READING REVIEW: Project U at The Library

Often, readings and book launches can be ostentatious or never quite hit the mark they set out to. It can be too many (or too few) people crammed into a function room, and then writers read from their work to a room full of people who were strong armed by relations and friendships into coming. Thankfully, Unthank Books has the solution with Project U. It’s great readings by great writers, always held in a lovely location with a friendly atmosphere.

Taking place upstairs in The Library restaurant in Norwich, Project U opened its doors at 7:30. The room was charming and intimate with no need for a microphone, just the acoustics of an old building. A table with books to be sold at the side, and downstairs a wonderful restaurant filled with charming staff and even better beer.

To begin the night was author Sarah Bower reading from Chrissie Gittins’ Between Here and Knitwear. Bower did justice to Gittins’ stories, even though admitting to the audience that she was from a different part of the country, and the author would be gravely unhappy if she tried to truly reflect the dialect as spoken in the story.

Reading from Unthology 8 was Victoria Briggs, whose story ‘A Beautiful Noise’ tells us of fascination and attempted romance at a music convention. Briggs did justice to the characters that she created, and charmed the audience with her sharp dialogue and interesting characters.

After than Andre Van Loon was reading from his story that follows a couple quitting their smoking habit. It was full of great lines that explored tension in a relationship, as well as how strongly people can be drawn together over one thing:

“Her lipstick would be on both of their cigarette filters, and their smoke filled the little space…”

After a quick intermission in which guests chatted to the authors, and people refilled their glasses and purchased books, the second half began. The second half featured Amanda Mason’s ‘The Best Part of the Day’ featuring Mason’s reflective characters that continuinously drew the reader in, like following a piece of string into a labarynth of story telling.

The penultimate reader was FC Malby, reading from her story ‘Lines in the Sand’, which took us to a stunning location, with imagery that does as much provoking as it does amazing. Malby gave a delightful tone in her reading, and gave guests another reason to pick up Unthology 8.

Finally, editor of Unthology 8, Ashley Stokes, took the stage to read Ken Edwards’ Country Life. Stokes managed to capture all of the whirling emotions that take place in Edwards’ novel, which has drawn praise for its clear and crisp prose.

As Project U came to a close, people stayed around to chat and grab more books. They left smiling, happy that they could have taken part in an event that doesn’t require pretension nor is forced fun. It’s just a free event to celebrate independent literature from a small press – with a new discovery of literature they may have not heard before.