Dame Gail Rebuck, Chair of the Penguin Random House UK board, welcomed
the guests, proclaiming the evolution of BAMB from its earnest beginnings as a ‘campaign’ last year, to a serious and
significant ‘movement’, thanks to the support of booksellers, publishers,
authors and readers.
Deborah Moggach, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel author, charmed the crowd with her anecdotal
experiences as an author, as she reminded guests of the magic of a bookshop and
its important place in a community.
Finally, Tim Walker, president of the Booksellers Association, closed
the speeches with a heartfelt thank you to those who have supported the
campaign, listing the numerous events going on across the country in support of
BAMB this weekend. These include: a stand- up for Bookshops comedy event
featuring event featuring Jenny Éclair, Sara Pascoe and Robin
Ince at Foyles and 100’s of “meet the author” in-store events at chain and
independent bookshops across the country.
Adding to the excitement, on
Saturday 11 October, high street bookshops will be throwing Big Bookshop
Parties to support the campaign and limited edition tote bags designed by
award-winning British artist, Tracey Emin, will also be on sale. The iconic Books Are My Bag orange tote will also be
on sale and leading children’s illustrators across the country have
teamed up to help publicise this year’s campaign by re-drawing some of the UK’s
best-loved children’s characters with the tote.  |
| Pictures courtesy of Books Are My Bag |
The launch also saw the release of The Bookshop Book, Jen Campbell’s sequel to Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops, which features 50 UK bookshops. She will be attempting an ambitious world-record breaking most-bookshops-in-a-day tour of London on October 11.
My colleague and I are very grateful to the Books Are My Bag team for our invitation to
Thursday’s launch and for putting on such a delightful celebration of what
should remain at the heart of our publishing industry – books and bookshops.
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