Join the Bondi Literary Salon for our August book club, hosted by Dave Francis! In our gathering, we will be discussing Percival Everett's new novel, James.

WHEN: Wednesday, 14th August, 2024, at Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore, please arrive at 6.45pm for a prompt 7pm start.

TICKETS: Admission; $25.00 (excluding external fees). Your ticket includes a drink on arrival and nibbles during the evening.

From the Booker Prize-shortlisted author of The Trees

James is an enthralling and ferociously funny novel that leaves an indelible mark, forcing us to see Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in a wholly new and transformative light.

About James

The Mississippi River, 1861. When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a new owner in New Orleans and separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson’s Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father who recently returned to town.

Thus begins a dangerous and transcendent journey by raft along the Mississippi River, toward the elusive promise of free states and beyond. As James and Huck begin to navigate the treacherous waters, each bend in the river holds the promise of both salvation and demise.

With rumours of a brewing war, James must face the burden he carries: the family he is desperate to protect and the constant lie he must live. And together, the unlikely pair must face the most dangerous odyssey of them all . .

From the shadows of Huck Finn’s mischievous spirit, Jim emerges to reclaim his voice, defying the conventions that have consigned him to the margins.

About the Author

Percival Everett is the author of over thirty published works, including Zulus, Erasure, I Am Not Sidney Poitier, Assumption, Percival Everett by Virgil Russell, Telephone, The Trees, Dr. No and James. A Guggenheim Fellow and Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Everett has won the PEN Oakland/Josephine Miles Literary Award, the Academy Award in Literature, the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction, and the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize for Fiction. In 2022, The Trees was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

Percival Everett lives in Los Angeles, CA, where he is Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Southern California.

About the Host

Dave has been a long time Bondi Literary Salon fan, and avid reader from an early age thanks to both parents filling him with a love of words and stories. He has a degree in English Lit from Otago University which helped with his love of the classics and poetry, and has recently (re) dived into a Shakespeare rabbit hole.

Some of Dave's favourite books include: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera and Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace.

About The Bondi Literary Salon

Bondi Literary Salon was established in 2018, it is the in-house book club of beloved Bondi institution, Gertrude & Alice. The Bondi Literary Salon endeavours to explore the vast world of literature each month, with a selection that reflects a focus on diverse writers and stories; delving into both classic and contemporary fiction, as well as non-fiction.

Our philosophy has always been to use language and literature not only as a tool for connection and community, but as an insight into worlds we have not had the pleasure of visiting ourselves. We welcome all - young and old, those with a life-long love of literature, or whose relationship may be only beginning. Join us in the unmatched comfort of an after-hours bookstore, accompanied by wine and cheese, for an evening spent discussing books and building community.

About Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore

Rated as one of the top 10 bookstores in the world by National Geographic, Gertrude & Alice Cafe Bookstore is an oasis for writers, readers, and coffee lovers. Books overflow from the shelves of their store, featuring a mix of new, second-hand, antiquarian and rare books. Stay a while & enjoy some home made chai, and amazing coffee, and unearth a book treasure or two. Read more about the bookstore's story here, and about the real Gertrude & Alice here.