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Continue reading →: Theatre Review – Nigel Slater’s ‘Toast’ at Northern Stage
By Ken Powell Newcastle’s Northern Stage bills this production as a comedy – and it is, gloriously so. But beware, you’ll want tissues aplenty as this adaptation of Nigel Slater’s childhood biography is a painful tearjerker. The play (written by Henry Filloux-Bennett) takes us from Slater’s memories of cooking with…
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Continue reading →: Book Review: Milkman by Anna Burns
Milkman by Anna Burns My rating: 5 of 5 stars If Franz Kafka had been born in Northern Ireland, as a woman, and lived during ‘The Troubles’ of the 1970s, he would have written this novel. Anna Burns has, in effect, written ‘The Trial’ for a modern generation with all…
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Continue reading →: Book Review: Around the World in 80 Words – A Journey Through the English Language by Paul Anthony Jones
Around the World in 80 Words: A Journey Through the English Language by Paul Anthony Jones My rating: 5 of 5 stars Continuing on with my quest to allow Dr Oliver Tearle of Interesting Literature fame to bankrupt me, this review is as a direct result of his own review…
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Continue reading →: Book Review: No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg
No One Is Too Small to Make a Difference by Greta Thunberg My rating: 5 of 5 stars This book is the collected speeches of 16-year-old Swedish girl, Greta Thunberg. The eleven speeches date from September 2018 to April 2019. It’s an extremely short time-frame and, as you might expect,…
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Continue reading →: NEW! Psychology for Writers course
I am delighted to announce my first formal course for writers – one based on twenty years of teaching and ten years as working freelance writer and editor. I am taking bookings to begin from July (you can join at any time) – but places are limited and many have…
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Continue reading →: Book Review: Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman My rating: 5 of 5 stars I’ll begin with a confession: I listened to this book rather than ‘read’ it. I often do, seeing no distinction between reading a book and having one read to you – if it is done well. Usually, seeing no…
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Continue reading →: Theatre Review: A Thousand Splendid Suns at Northern Stage
The latest production at Northern Stage, Newcastle, is an ambitious presentation of Khaled Hosseini’s masterpiece, ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’. It takes a brave playwright to take on such a powerful novel which takes place over more than two decades and encompasses several life stories within. Ursula Rani Sarma has achieved…
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Continue reading →: Book Review: Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier
Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier My rating: 3 of 5 stars I know the opening pages of Daphne du Maurier’s classic novel extremely well having used the opening for several years with my GCSE English students. It was an extract given in a past paper and I found it…
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Continue reading →: An Interview with Charlotte Keatley
By Ken Powell A shorter version of this interview was published here for Lancashire Life magazine. This is the interview in full. Charlotte Keatley wrote the play ‘My Mother Said I Never Should’ in 1985 aged just 25. The play has gone on to be the most performed play by…
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Continue reading →: Theatre Review: The Rite of Spring by Phoenix Dance Theatre
By Ken Powell The contemporary ballet group, Phoenix Dance Theatre, performed ‘Left Unseen’ and Igor Stravinsky’s classic ‘The Rite of Spring’ at Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake on Wednesday 8 May, and gave the audience a thing of beauty which was hard to define. Stravinsky’s musical work famously supposedly caused…
Hello, I’m Ken.
Welcome to Write Out Loud, my blog dedicated to all sorts of things to do with writing.
This page will be updated constantly every week with book reviews and writing-related stuff.
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Write Out Loud (Reviews and Writing) 