BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Pickering Book Tree - ECPv6.16.3//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Pickering Book Tree
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:Europe/London
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20250330T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20251026T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20260329T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20261025T010000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0000
TZOFFSETTO:+0100
TZNAME:BST
DTSTART:20270328T010000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0100
TZOFFSETTO:+0000
TZNAME:GMT
DTSTART:20271031T010000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260331T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260331T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260218T173121Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260324T170408Z
UID:10000031-1774985400-1774990800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Ava Glass
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to welcome brilliant spy fiction author Ava Glass to Pickering to discuss her new page-turner\, which is published in March! \nInspired by her time working with spies and later as a crime reporter in the US\, Ava’s fiction is laced with tension and is addictively entertaining. The Hiding Season features a compelling main character who’s easy to root for from the beginning as she tries to build a new life for herself after her old one falls apart\, through to her unwitting discovery of something she wasn’t meant to see\, and the ensuing cat and mouse chase to survive. The fast-paced story is packed with plenty of action and suspense — all of which kept us hooked until the final page! \nOne of the vanishingly few female authors writing spy fiction\, Ava Glass is breaking down the door to the most male-dominated genre. We can’t wait to chat with her about The Hiding Season (spoiler free!)\, the art of writing gripping espionage and crime thrillers\, and balancing real world inspiration with the perfect fictional spy story. \nFor a taste of what to expect\, there’s a great article in The Yorkshire Times here: https://yorkshiretimes.co.uk/article/The-Spy-WHO-Nodded-At-Me \nThe event will start at 7.30pm and the shop door will be open from 7pm with complementary wine and cordial available on arrival. \nTickets are free and guarantee entry to the event. Please contact the shop or use the booking form below to reserve your seats. \nWe look forward to seeing you there! \n  \nAbout the Book\nA twisting cat and mouse chase from the mountains of Montana to the heart of Texas that warns the reader\, be careful who you trust! — Ruth Ware \nIn this gripping\, atmospheric thriller\, a woman becomes the only witness to a deadly crime . . . making her the next target.\nMaya Landry is in desperate need of a fresh start. \nAlone and heartbroken\, she finds work as a caretaker at an exclusive ski resort for the elite in the mountains of Montana. Quiet and empty in the summer months\, it’s the perfect escape. \nAll Maya wants is to be alone. But she’s not alone on the mountain. Someone else is there. A killer with his next victim in his sights. \nAfter Maya finds a body\, she must run for her life. One man tells her that he can save her. But can she trust him? Is he everything he claims to be? \nOnly one thing is certain: the killer will stop at nothing. And Maya is the only witness to their crime . . . \nA stunningly paced and artfully rendered thriller\, The Hiding Season gripped me from the first word and kept me up late into the night. Riveting — Megan Davis \n  \nAbout the Author\nDubbed ‘The new queen of spy fiction’ by the Guardian newspaper\, ‘the real thing’ by the Washington Post and ‘A worthy heir to the James Bond mantle’ by James Patterson\, A.C. ‘Ava’ Glass is the CWA Dagger-shortlisted author of the popular Emma Makepeace series (which included The Chase\, The Trap\, and The Traitor. Her critically acclaimed 2023 thriller The Traitor was a Grazia Book of the Month\, a Washington Post Book of the Year\, a Cosmopolitan Book of the Year\, and a Richard and Judy Bookclub pick. \nAva Glass’ novels are based on first-hand experience working with spies for the British government alongside several years working as an investigative journalist and crime reporter in the US. Her time in that world fascinated her\, and the people she met back then inspire every book she writes.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/ava-glass/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Fiction,In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Spy Fiction,Thriller
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Ava-Glass-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260403T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260403T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260224T190455Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T153710Z
UID:10000032-1775244600-1775253600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Anne Gair
DESCRIPTION:We are delighted to welcome the wonderful Anne Gair to Pickering during the tour for her gorgeous debut album of original songs which has already received wide praise. \nAnne’s music is a heady mix of genres with nods to indie folk\, country americana\, blues and jazz\, with strong vocal melody lines and a penchant for harmony and open tunings. \nAnne played at The International Celtic Connections Festival in Glasgow in January 2025\, releasing her debut single Steal Away that same month. \nHer debut album Cigarettes and Smokescreens was chosen as Album of the Week on Celtic Music Radio in November 2025\, and went on to be nominated for Album of the Year. Anne’s fifth single\, Blank Spaces\, was included in the Fatea Winter Sessions 2025. \nOriginally trained as an actor at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama\, Anne has toured widely on stage performing both Joni Mitchell covers as well as her own original material\, and is endorsed by Cole Clark Guitars and G7th Capos. \n(Anne’s) voice is beautiful\, just gorgeous — Nerina Pallot \nThe event will be held in The Black Swan in a separate room with a cosy atmosphere making it a lovely setting for live music! The room has easy access to the bar which will be open as usual\, so arrive any time before the show starts if you’d like to enjoy a drink or two beforehand. There will also be an interval. \nWe’ll check tickets into the performance space from 7pm to allow plenty of time to arrive and find a seat before the music starts at 7.30pm with a special guest opener from Carrie Martin. \nTickets can be booked below\, by contacting Pickering Book Tree\, or on the door while spaces are available. We hope to see you there! \n  \nAbout the Musician\nIn Cigarettes and Smokescreens Gair has delivered a remarkable debut … it flows as confidently as the incoming tide — Neil King\, Fatea Magazine \nWith an extensive performance history\, Anne has toured throughout the UK and abroad both as a solo artist and lately with her ensemble\, The Anne Gair Band. She has played at prestigious venues including The Glasgow Royal Concert Hall (Celtic Connections 2025)\, The 100 Club\, The Cavern Club\, The Hard Rock Cafe\, The Voodoo Rooms\, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut\, Belladrum Tartan Heart festival\, and regularly performs to sold-out audiences in venues and theatres across the country. \nAnne possesses a passion for writing in alternative open tunings and pushing genre boundaries which has drawn comparison to Laura Marling\, Joni Mitchell\, John Martyn\, and Imelda May\, as she lets each song breathe and travel where it needs to go. \nAnne Gair’s contributions to new music make her an up-and-coming artist being touted as ‘One of Scotland’s most promising songwriters’. \nWhen not on stage\, you will usually find her in a field in Scotland\, in the middle of no-where with her two retired horses. \nWhat a lovely song\, beautifully written. A masterpiece — Paul Johnson\, writing for Folking.com about the single White Horses \n  \nFind Out More\nFollow Anne on Facebook or Instagram \nRead more about Anne on her website \nFind Anne’s music on Bandcamp or YouTube
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/anne-gair/
LOCATION:The Black Swan\, 18 Birdgate\, Pickering\, YO18 7AL
CATEGORIES:Live Music
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Anne-Gair-new-venue-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260406T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260406T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260316T222646Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T201019Z
UID:10000035-1775502000-1775505600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Oak Book Club: April 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for a welcoming Book Tree book club! \nWe usually meet on the second Monday of each month to discuss the current book and choose the next month’s read\, but please note that this meeting is on the first Monday in April. \nBring along your favourite drink — we’ll provide the glasses and washing up. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our atmospheric upstairs space. \nOur book club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nThe Boy from the Sea by Garrett Carr\nA Waterstones Book of the Month\nAs read on BBC Radio 4\nA Sunday Times Best Book of the Year\nAn Observer Best Debut of the Year \nA baby is found abandoned on a windswept Irish beach\, and nothing in this small coastal town will ever be the same again. The Boy from the Sea is Garrett Carr’s moving tale of a boy that brings together a community\, but changes a family forever… \nCompassionate\, lyrical and full of devilment — Louise Kennedy\, author of Trespasses \nA joy . . . Vivid\, loving and genuinely funny — The Sunday Times \nI didn’t want it to ever end — Jennie Godfrey\, author of The List of Suspicious Things \nIn 1973 on the west coast of Ireland\, a baby is found abandoned on the beach. Who is he? Where is he from? \nAmbrose\, a local fisherman\, is far more interested in who he will become and – with a curious community looking on – takes the baby home and adopts him. \nBut for Declan\, Ambrose’s young son\, this arrival is surely bad news. Rivalries can be decades in the making\, and families are easy to break… \n\nReaders love The Boy from the Sea: \n“Left me feeling warm and satisfied when I finished it and I’ve thought about it daily since then” \n“Books are meant to change you\, to shape you\, and to heal you\, and The Boy from the Sea does all those things” \n“You feel like you’re right there in the village” \n“Stunning. I found myself waking up at 5am because I was desperate to read more” \n“Felt like I was stepping off life’s treadmill and immersing myself in another world”
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/oak-club-april-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Meet at the Book Tree,Oak Club
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Oak-Club-April-2026.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260409T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260409T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260317T210804Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260402T202732Z
UID:10000036-1775761200-1775764800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Hawthorn Book Club: April 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for the first meeting of a new Book Tree book club! \nWe’ll meet on the second Thursday of each month for a relaxed and friendly conversation about the current book. \nBring along your favourite drink — we’ll provide the glasses and washing up. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our atmospheric upstairs space. \nOur book club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nGreater Sins by Gabrielle Griffiths\nWaterstones Scottish Book of the Month for February 2026\nRadio Times Best Books of 2025 \nA gritty tale of secrets\, guilt and desire — The Observer \nCompletely enthralling — Lucy Rose\, author of The Lamb \nA simmering tale of outcasts and buried secrets\, love and redemption — Danielle Giles\, author of Mere \n1915\, the Cabrach. \nIn the fierce\, wild beauty of this remote corner of Scotland\, an isolated community makes a discovery: an ancient body in a peat bog\, perfectly preserved. Two people haul the body from the ground: Lizzie\, the wife of a wealthy local landowner\, and Johnny\, a nomadic singer and farm hand. \nSoon afterwards\, strange events begin to occur. At hearthside and inn\, people whisper: what have we unearthed? \nAs tensions run high and men leave for war\, old fears and secrets emerge. But in a place where judgement is swift\, who is truly without sin? \nA striking and atmospheric debut — The Times \nSets a beautifully atmospheric scene from its opening lines to its final moments — PA Media \nScapegoats\, suspicion and secrets…a haunting picture of a small\, intense environment where isolation can breed solidarity and warmth as easily as superstition and exclusion — Financial Times \n\nWhat readers are saying: \n“An earthy\, folkloric tale\, where superstition is rife…a captivating read. Highly recommended” \n“A gothic literary experience\, rural and immersive\, that thrums with tension\, mystery and forbidden love” \n“A deeply immersive reading experience\, and one of the best elements of this book is how the atmosphere and environment of rural scotland\, the small farms\, the fields\, the bog\, the changing of seasons – nature itself becomes a character” \n“Beautifully written\, chilling and disturbing\, the book is an engrossing read from start to finish” \n“Sometimes you come across a book that is note perfect; very readable and entirely relatable but still beautifully\, poetically written. This is such a complete novel\, it is hard to believe it is the author’s debut” \n“This was a stunningly beautiful novel. Dark and creepy and wonderfully realised\, and the character voices were next-level good”
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/hawthorn-club-april-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Hawthorn Club,Meet at the Book Tree
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Hawthorn-Club-April-2026-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260416T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260416T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260301T205549Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260312T180743Z
UID:10000033-1776367800-1776373200@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Kate Gray
DESCRIPTION:We can’t wait to chat with Kate about her gripping new summer thriller\, where family drama and dark secrets collide in a sun-drenched Italian villa to set in motion a mystery which kept us guessing right up to the end! \nC.M. Ewan recommends Welcome to the Family as “the perfect destination thriller” which combines “a messed up family with devastating secrets and a twisting murder mystery” to create “a stunning summer page-turner”. \nIn this character driven crime novel\, an alternating viewpoint casts doubt on the motivations of others to weave complicated family loyalties\, lies and betrayal into a quickly developing mystery where we could never be sure who to trust. That’s all we’ll say for now\, so that you can find out for yourself spoiler free! \nThis event will start at 7.30pm and the shop door will be open from 7pm with complementary wine and cordial available on arrival. \nTickets are free and guarantee entry to the event. Please contact the shop or use the booking form below to reserve your seats. \n  \nAbout the Book\nSimmering tension turns deadly in this twisty and addictive summer mystery – a cracking family thriller — T.M. Logan \n  \nHoliday with your in-laws can be murder . . .\nRosie Riley is nervously excited about meeting the Fraser family. She’s head-over-heels for her boyfriend Theo and she hopes that spending a fortnight with the Frasers at their luxury Tuscan villa is a good sign of where their relationship is headed. \nFenna Fraser has been part of the family for years. She’s always enjoyed the glam annual holiday\, but this year she’s especially tired with a new baby in tow and she fears her mother-in-law will be more critical than ever. No one is good enough for her sons. \nIt starts as the perfect family holiday.\nIt ends with one of these women arrested for murder.\nWho is guilty? Who is the victim? And did they deserve it? \nA red hot thriller which simply demands to be read by a pool… I didn’t know who to believe; lies\, betrayal and buried secrets ensured I read Welcome to the Family in one weekend — Jo Murray \n  \nAbout the Author\nKate Gray is the author of page-turning summer thrillers. She loves writing about terrifying situations that anyone could find themselves in. If these happen to take place in exotic locations then that’s even better! \nAs well as her twisty\, suspense thrillers\, she also writes feel-good uplifting fiction as Katy Colins. \nKate lives in North Yorkshire with her husband\, two young children and two rescue cats. She also runs creative writing workshops and mentors aspiring authors. \nBefore becoming a full-time author\, Kate worked in public relations and was a freelance journalist. Her work has been featured in Stylist\, Marie Claire\, and national newspapers. Her debut psychological thriller The Honeymoon published to critical acclaim in 2023 and was followed by The Summer Party in 2024. Welcome to the Family is Kate’s third book in this genre\, and will be published by Headline in April 2026.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/kate-gray/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Fiction,In Conversation With,Launch Event,Meet the Author,Mystery,Psychological Thriller
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Kate-Gray-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260425T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260425T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260302T205109Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T205109Z
UID:10000030-1777143600-1777154400@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Three Acres and a Cow
DESCRIPTION:The history lesson I’ve always wanted. Thank you for a very entertaining/life changing evening. I’ll be looking at the land and listening to folk songs in a very different way — Emily \nA history of land rights and protest in folk song and story\, the show connects the Norman Conquest and Peasants’ Revolt with current issues like the housing crisis\, reparations\, climate breakdown and food sovereignty via the Enclosures\, English Civil War and Industrial Revolution\, drawing a compelling narrative through the radical people’s history of England in folk song\, stories and poems. \nPart TED talk\, part history lecture\, part folk club sing-a-long\, part storytelling session… Come and share in these tales as they have been shared for generations. \nVisit the Three Acres and a Cow website for more information about the group and the show\, and check their Frequently Asked Questions page for answers to any specific enquiries. \nThe event will be held in the Memorial Hall\, Pickering\, which is fully accessible. \nDoors 6.30pm with the show starting promptly at 7.00pm. We will finish around 9.45pm with one interval. \nI think about this show all the time. It has totally changed the way I think about colonialism\, direct action and English nationalism. Thinking about it today\, four years after seeing the show\, it’s clear it was a life changing event for me — Monique \n  \nTickets\nStandard seated tickets are £16.50\n(supported and pay it forward options also available) \nBook online at threeacresandacow.co.uk\n(direct link to the Pickering event here)
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/three-acres-and-a-cow/
LOCATION:Pickering Memorial Hall\, Potter Hill\, Pickering\, YO18 8AA
CATEGORIES:Community Event,Folk,Live Music,Social History,Storytelling
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Three-Acres-and-a-Cow-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260504T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260504T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260414T175530Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260415T183624Z
UID:10000040-1777921200-1777924800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Oak Book Club: May 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for a welcoming book club to discuss the current novel and choose the next month’s read. \nIn May and for the foreseeable future\, meetings will now be held on the first Monday of each month rather than the second. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our atmospheric upstairs space. \nOur book club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nThe Names by Florence Knapp\n \nBrilliant . . . one of those books that will make you irritable with anyone who interrupts you\, but which you’ll finish wanting to press into the hands of a friend — The Times \nBeautifully written\, and wise and tender . . . An utter original — Jojo Moyes \n*** \nA once-in-a-generation debut from a major new talent\, The Names is the story of three names\, three versions of a life\, and the infinite possibilities that a single decision can spark. \nIt is 1987\, and in the wake of a great storm\, Cora sets out with her young daughter to register the birth of her son. Her husband expects her to follow tradition and call the baby after him – but is it right for her child to inherit his name from generations of domineering men? Her choice will shape the course of their lives. \nSeven years later\, her son is Bear\, a name chosen by his sister\, hoping he will grow up to be brave and big-hearted. Or he is Julian\, the name his mother set her heart on\, keen for him to become his own person. Or he is Gordon\, named after his father and raised in his cruel image – but is there still a chance to break the mould? \nPowerfully moving and full of hope\, this is the story of three names\, three versions of a life\, and the infinite possibilities that a single decision can spark. \n*** \nWildly original and emotionally profound — The Observer \nAstonishing\, unique and incredibly moving\, The Names is a beautiful novel about the courage of a mother in the moment she names her child . . . I know it will stay with me for a long time — Jeanine Cummins
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/oak-club-may-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Meet at the Book Tree,Oak Club
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Oak-Club-May-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260505T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260505T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260408T213220Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260502T193530Z
UID:10000038-1778009400-1778014800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Jules Brown
DESCRIPTION:We’re very much looking forward to chatting with Jules Brown about his travel adventures\, from how he plans his journeys to translating them into his always entertaining real-life stories. \nThe evening will focus on Jules’ newest book Far Out\, which takes readers with him on his challenge to reach each of the four furthest points in Europe by train\, exploring some fascinating off the beaten track places along the way. \nJules’ books are all written in his lively and humorous style\, and are brilliantly engaging with quick and often funny observations which make these reads perfect for fans of Bill Bryson\, anyone in need of some armchair travelling\, or perhaps even to inspire your own European adventure! \nJules started his travel author journey writing for Rough Guides\, now focussing on his own blog posts and travel books. He’s published two series: Tales from a Travel Writer’s Life (Don’t Eat the Puffin\, Never Pack an Ice-Axe and Watch Out for Pirates) and On the Rails (Not Cool: Europe by Train in a Heatwave and Far Out: By Train to the Edges of Europe). \nJules has so many great stories to tell gathered from his many trips across Europe and beyond\, so we know that we’re in for a fantastic evening hearing some of them! \nThis event will start at 7.30pm and the shop door will be open from 7pm with complementary wine and cordial available on arrival. \nTickets are free and guarantee entry to the event. Please contact the shop or use the booking form below to reserve your seats. \n  \nAbout the Book\nJules’ travel writing is funny\, inspiring\, quirky and always engaging. His blog is great but reading the cream of his travels in book form is even more fun — Mark Ellingham\, founder of Rough Guides & publisher of Driving over Lemons \nTravel writer Jules Brown is back with another wayward rail adventure. \nWhen Jules sets out to go as far as he can in Europe by train\, everything seems to be on track. Travel to the most extreme stations in the north\, south\, east\, and west. How hard can it be for a seasoned rail traveller and ex guidebook writer? \nFunny you should ask. \nIt’s a long way\, for a start – from Scandinavia and Finland to the shores of the Mediterranean and Atlantic. Even the final destinations are in dispute. In fact\, no one sensible would try it. \nEnter Jules. Whether it’s travelling through the Swedish wilderness on the Inlandsbanan\, into the Pyrenees on the Train Jaune\, or across Spain on the Torre Oro\, he’s aiming for some classic rail experiences. And while capital cities and famous sights come and go\, there are also plenty of offbeat and intriguing stops along the way. \n*This book also includes five special route maps. \nJules has a rare observational talent. These short travel tales are really very good – passionate\, engaging and entertaining — Phil Ascough\, journalist\, author\, media/PR consultant \n  \nAbout the Author\nTravel writer Jules Brown wrote his first books for Rough Guides\, and more recently has produced a series of highly entertaining travel memoirs and adventures based on his travelling life. \nIn his latest book\, Far Out\, he takes to Europe’s trains to journey to the most extreme stations in the north\, south\, east and west of the continent. Part travelogue\, part memoir\, and definitely not a guidebook\, Far Out is a snort-in-your-coffee train adventure by the author of Not Cool: Europe by Train in a Heatwave.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/jules-brown/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Memoir,Non Fiction,Travel Writing
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Jules-Brown-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260508T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260508T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260403T160041Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260502T193153Z
UID:10000034-1778268600-1778277600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Yvonne Lyon & Boo Hewerdine
DESCRIPTION:An intimate\, story-led evening with Boo Hewerdine and Yvonne Lyon. Things Found In Books is a wonderful project!\nFollowing a hugely successful 2025 tour for their album Things Found In Books\, we’re thrilled that Yvonne Lyon and Boo Hewerdine are touring again this May and are returning to Pickering for what we know will be another very special evening of music and stories. \nThings Found In Books is a show born from songs written in response to a notice board in Culzean Castle’s secondhand bookshop\, where notes\, photographs\, old receipts\, letters\, postcards and fragments of people’s lives have been lovingly collected and kept on the wall among the bookshelves. Forming an inimitable songwriting partnership\, Yvonne and Boo weave these ephemeral stories with their own\, creating a performance full of nostalgia and beauty\, hope and longing. \nFor a hint of what to expect you can hear Yvonne and Boo talk about the album on their YouTube video. \nAudience members are encouraged to bring their own ‘things found in books’ to to the gigs — items brought along so far have have ranged from tickets and letters to… bacon! Yes… in 4 different locations…! This is a beautiful idea\, so if you have anything you’d like to add to the touring board of things found in books please bring it along to the show. \nThe gig will be in our atmospheric upstairs event space\, surrounded by the building’s old oak beams in the very apt setting of the bookshop! Drinks will be available to purchase at an informal bar before the show and during the interval. \nDoors will open from 7pm\, and the show will start at 7.30pm. \n  \nAbout the Musicians\nBoo Hewerdine\nOne of the country’s most consistently admired songwriters — Folk Radio UK \nBoo Hewerdine is an acclaimed award-winning English singer-songwriter now living and working in Glasgow. Well known as one of the greatest songwriter performers in the business\, he has worked with several other well-known names including Eddi Reader\, who enjoyed international success with the hit single Patience of Angels (written by Boo) in 1995. \nSimple\, poetic reflections on life and love — The Guardian \nRead more about Boo on his website \nFollow Boo on Facebook or Instagram \nListen to Boo’s music on YouTube or Bandcamp \n  \nYvonne Lyon\nAn awesome level of talent that I cannot compare — Maverick Magazine \nYvonne Lyon is among the UK’s brightest and best singer songwriters. Her most recent album Growing Wild is her tenth solo studio album release. Yvonne consistently combines poignant lyrics with strong\, creative melodies demonstrating a voice that can be both fragile and intense. She has guested on to live sessions with Bob Harris on BBC Radio 2 and recently completed a master’s degree in Songwriting and Performance from the University of West Scotland. \nI love her\, absolutely love her… great song beautifully performed — Michael Ball\, BBC Radio 2 \nRead more about Yvonne on her website \nFollow Yvonne on Facebook or Instagram \nListen to Yvonne’s music on YouTube or Bandcamp
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/things-found-in-books/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Live Music
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Things-Found-in-Books-2-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260514T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260514T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260413T214456Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260415T183555Z
UID:10000041-1778785200-1778788800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Hawthorn Book Club: May 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for our next Thursday book club! \nWe meet on the second Thursday of each month for a relaxed and friendly conversation about the current book. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our atmospheric upstairs space. \nOur book club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nLate in the Day by Tessa Hadley\n \nThe lives of two close-knit couples are irrevocably changed by an untimely death in this Sunday Times bestselling novel \nAlex and Christine and Zach and Lydia have been inseparable since their twenties. From student house-shares and grubby pubs to proper homes and grown-up careers\, the two couples’ lives have been interlinked for decades. Then one evening\, Alex and Christine receive a call from a distraught Lydia. Zach is dead. \nInconsolable\, Lydia moves in with Alex and Christine. But instead of their loss bringing them closer\, the three of them find that love and sorrow give way to anger and bitterness as old entanglements and resentments rise from the past. \nUnflinching\, intelligent and fascinating — Marian Keyes
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/hawthorn-club-may-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Hawthorn Club,Meet at the Book Tree
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Hawthorn-Club-May-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260515T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260515T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260107T163335Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260404T174947Z
UID:10000025-1778871600-1778875200@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Ellie Levenson
DESCRIPTION:New date — this event had to be rescheduled due to Ellie’s train being at an hours long standstill last time. We’re so glad that it’s been possible to find a new date when Ellie will be able to travel up to us again!\n \nWe’re delighted to welcome Ellie Levenson to the Book Tree to discuss her deeply suspenseful and original debut novel! \nRoom 706 is both reflective and pacy with the tension of a very real threat looming over the narrator throughout. Caught somewhere she shouldn’t be when the worst happens — in the wrong place at precisely the worst time — she must face the most confronting situation of her life and discover what matters most. \nBuilt upon a brilliant concept brought to life sensitively\, and led by a deeply layered and very believable main character\, this story is gripping and emotional in equal measure and lingers long after turning the final page. \nThis event will start at the slightly earlier time of 7pm\, and the shop door will be open from 6.30pm with complementary wine and cordial available on arrival. \nTickets are free and guarantee entry to the event. Please contact the shop or use the booking form below to reserve your seats. \nWe look forward to seeing you there! \n  \nAbout the Book\nA tense\, riveting read about the unpredictable ripple effects luck and choices can have — Tracy Sierra \nA love story wrapped in a grenade — Cecelia Ahern \nIf she knew it would end this way\, would it ever have begun?\nWhen mother of two Kate goes to meet her lover James in a hotel room\, she watches in horror when she switches on the TV and realises their hotel has been taken under terrorist siege. Told to stay silent and hidden\, Kate is trapped in a room with a man she’s been having an affair with for years – her escape hatch\, her release valve – but who she doesn’t really know at all. \nIn one room\, with the possibility of death looming\, Kate is left to contemplate what has led her here. She reflects on the grief and heartbreak of her young life\, the complexities of her relationship with her husband\, Vic\, and the pure\, unadulterated love she feels for her children. Intricately weaving Kate’s past in with her present\, Room 706 follows one woman taking stock of her life\, and considering what life might hold in store – if she makes it home. \nI devoured it… I haven’t stopped thinking about it — Jennie Godfrey \nA suspenseful real-time page-turner with an ending that demands to be talked about — Erin Kelly \n  \nAbout the Author\nEllie Levenson has worked as a journalist\, writer and lecturer for many years. \nHer freelance work as a feature writer and columnist saw articles published across national newspapers\, consumer magazines and specialist publications\, with a special focus on writing accessibly about politics\, language and social issues. \nEllie has extensive experience as a lecturer in journalism at Goldsmiths College\, University of London\, and has been a guest lecturer at many other institutions. She has also worked as an Adjunct Professor at the London programmes of Boston University and Syracuse University. \nBefore becoming a novelist\, Ellie wrote non-fiction books for adults and non-fiction and picture books for children. These include Politics in 100 words (Quarto\, 2020)\, Creativity and Feature Writing: How to get hundreds of new ideas every day (Routledge\, 2015)\, The Election (Fisherton Press\, 2015) and The Noughtie Girl’s Guide to Feminism (Oneworld\, 2009).
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/ellie-levenson/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club Fiction,Debut,Fiction,In Conversation With,Meet the Author
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Ellie-Levenson-new-date-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260529T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260529T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260408T224454Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T151631Z
UID:10000039-1780083000-1780088400@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Katie Carr
DESCRIPTION:We very much look forward to welcoming Katie Carr to mark the much anticipated publication of her memoir Thundery at Times. \nKatie’s first book Moderate Becoming Good Later follows her brother Toby as he faces a life‑limiting illness through sea kayaking and the solace of the natural world\, written from his recordings and notes. \nThundery at Times is her own memoir of finishing his Shipping Forecast journey while navigating loss\, a difficult family past\, and midlife in Barcelona. \nThis event will start at 7.30pm and the shop door will be open from 7pm with complementary wine and cordial available on arrival. \nTickets are free and guarantee entry to the event. Please contact the shop or use the booking form below to reserve your seats. \nWe look forward to seeing you there! \n  \nAbout the Book:\nThundery at Times announces Katie Carr as a terrific writer on her own terms. Having continued her brother’s journey and book in the beautiful Moderate Becoming Good Later\, here she sets out on the next epic series of voyages\, revealing herself to be not only resilient\, determined and courageous\, but possessing a rare ability to distil those qualities into exquisite prose. Thundery at Times is a profound depiction of the long tail of grief\, but most of all it is a voyage into the best of humanity and how it can be found in the remotest of locations. Like the Shipping Forecast itself\, Thundery at Times is quirky and eccentric but underpinned by extraordinary heart and substance. A remarkable book. More\, please — Charlie Connelly\, author of Attention All Shipping \nKatie had never been in a sea kayak\, but when her brother Toby died in the middle of his challenge to paddle in every area of the Shipping Forecast\, she decided to honour his memory by completing his adventure. On a journey that takes her from the monotonies of motherhood in urban Barcelona to the far reaches of the Shipping Forecast through the wilds of the British Isles\, Katie is forced to face her past and question her present\, exploring the loss of her family members as well as her own identity. After two years of inelegant paddling and potentially worse parenting\, can she complete the challenge? \nThundery at Times is not a story of battling high seas or completing daring tasks\, but one of making your own rules and living life to the full. It is about finding joy and hope in nature\, motherhood and middle age\, in nurturing your own adventures and embracing connection and peace. It is a story of female resilience in the face of adversity; of staring down grief and asking\, what’s possible from here? \nThundery at Times captures something essential about grief – that it asks us to keep going even when we don’t know how. Carr’s honest\, heartfelt writing about finishing her brother’s challenge is a story of small braveries and the quiet strength found in honouring those we love — Freya Bromley\, author of The Tidal Year \n  \nAbout the Author\nKatie Carr is a British author\, coach and trainer based in Barcelona. Her work sits where sea and city\, loss and possibility meet: she writes narrative non‑fiction and helps people find steadier ways of leading and living; her narrative non‑fiction is rooted in sea\, weather and family\, and includes Moderate Becoming Good Later and Thundery at Times.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/katie-carr/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Memoir,Non Fiction,Travel Writing
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Katie-Carr-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260601T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260601T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260511T181348Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260511T181348Z
UID:10000048-1780340400-1780344000@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Oak Book Club: June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for a welcoming book club to discuss the current novel and choose the next month’s read. \nWe meet on the first Monday of each month for a relaxed conversation\, sharing our thoughts in the friendly atmosphere amongst the bookshelves. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our upstairs event space. \nBook club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nThe Director by Daniel Kehlmann\, translated by Ross Benjamin\nSupple\, horrifying and mordantly droll — New York Times\, who chose The Director as a Notable Book of 2025 \nFrom ‘one of the brightest\, most pleasure-giving writers at work today’ (Jeffrey Eugenides)\, a visionary tale inspired by the life of the 20th century film director G.W. Pabst\, who left Europe for Hollywood to resist the Nazis and then returned to his homeland with his wife and young son and began making films for the German Reich. An artist’s life\, a pact with the devil\, a novel about the dangerous illusions of the silver screen. \nG.W. Pabst\, one of cinema’s greatest\, perhaps the greatest director of his era: when the Nazis seized power he was filming in France\, to escape the horrors of the new Germany he flees to Hollywood. But under the blinding California sun\, the world-famous director suddenly looks like a nobody. \nNot even Greta Garbo\, who he made famous\, can help him. And thus\, almost through no fault of his own\, he finds himself back in his homeland of Austria\, which is now called Ostmark. The returning family is confronted with the barbaric nature of the regime. \nBut Goebbels\, the minister of propaganda in Berlin\, wants the film genius\, he won’t take no for an answer and makes big promises. While Pabst still believes that he will be able to resist these advances\, that he will not submit to any dictatorship other than art\, he has already taken the first steps into a hopeless entanglement. Daniel Kehlmann’s novel about art and power\, beauty and barbarism is a triumph. \nThe Director shows what literature is capable of. \nA subtle\, often darkly funny novel about the relationship between art and power — Sunday Times
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/oak-club-june-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Meet at the Book Tree,Oak Club
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Oak-Club-June-2026-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260611T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260611T200000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260518T180502Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260518T180502Z
UID:10000053-1781204400-1781208000@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Hawthorn Book Club: June 2026
DESCRIPTION:Join us for our next Thursday book club! \nWe meet on the second Thursday of each month for a relaxed and friendly conversation about the current book. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 6.50pm for a 7pm start in our atmospheric upstairs space. \nOur book club meetings are free to attend\, and we offer a 10% discount on each month’s paperback choice. \n  \nThis Month’s Book\nThe Tiger’s Share by Keshava Guha\nBrilliantly rendered … Guha poignantly balances individual lives and threats of political and ecological disaster — Literary Review \nA stylish and engaging tragi-comedy of manners . . . Keshava Guha is an astute and insightful observer of contemporary India — Amitav Ghosh\, author of the Ibis trilogy \nA waspishly witty eye cast on the war between sisters and brothers in polluted\, high-achieving Delhi — Francis Spufford \nThe fiercest wars are fought between siblings. \nTara\, a successful Dehli lawyer\, is everything her younger brother isn’t: dedicated\, independent\, thriving. When their beloved father retires\, he summons them to a meeting. But what he has to say threatens to tear the family apart. \nTara’s friend Lila has it all: a great job\, a lovely home\, a beautiful family. But when Lila’s father dies unexpectedly\, her brother wastes no time in claiming what he thinks is his. \nTogether\, Tara and Lila are forced to confront the challenge that their ambition poses to patriarchal Delhi society. Set against a backdrop of ecological collapse and political unrest\, The Tiger’s Share is both a family and a state-of-the-nation novel unlike anything else in contemporary Indian fiction. \nAn extraordinary new kind of Indian novel in English\, as attuned to life in contemporary New Delhi as to the choices ecological collapse eventually will force upon us all. It’s also the story of two unforgettable families\, told with a controlled emotional precision that only intensifies the power of the novel’s shocking conclusion — Nell Freudenberger\, author of The Newlyweds \nExciting young minds are a joy forever\, and Guha is true superstar … destined for greatness — Amol Rajan \nGuha offers a wide\, chaotic and morally ambiguous portrait of contemporary Delhi society … Its breadth and ambition – with even the most minor characters fleshed out\, each bookshop or park or neighbourhood visited an opportunity for Guha to thicken the text with some historical\, political context – has echoes of Zadie Smith’s early maximalist style — Guardian
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/hawthorn-club-june-2026/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club,Hawthorn Club,Meet at the Book Tree
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Hawthorn-Club-June-webp.webp
ORGANIZER;CN="Pickering Book Tree":MAILTO:shop@pickeringbooktree.co.uk
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260618T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260618T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260422T151700Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260523T123918Z
UID:10000044-1781811000-1781816400@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Wyl Menmuir
DESCRIPTION:The Spirit of Stone\nPickering Book Tree | Doors from 7pm | Tickets FREE\n \nFull of wonder\, hope and fascinating tales of stones and their people — Fiona Robertson\, author of Stone Lands \nFrom the lonely heights of mountains to the womblike depths of caves\, stone has always drawn us in. In The Spirit of Stone\, Wyl Menmuir explores the many ways in which rock and earth form part of our identities\, histories and futures. \nAcross Britain and Ireland – from Mull to the Isles of Scilly – rock is everywhere beneath our feet\, shaping not only our landscapes but also our imaginations and the ways we live together. \nMoving across these lands\, Wyl Menmuir’s essays combine travelogue\, social history and memoir\, bringing together interviews\, folklore and personal encounters with the landscapes themselves. \nFrom sacred monuments to modern sculpture\, this book reveals how stone grounds us\, challenges us and inspires us\, such as: \n\nMountains and caves as places of pilgrimage\, danger\, refuge and wonder.\nAncient pathways and stone circles that leave traces of our ancestors written into the land.\nMarks and monuments\, from Neolithic carvings to contemporary sculpture\, art that endures across centuries.\nEveryday stone\, for example the quarries\, buildings and raw materials that underpin our daily lives.\n\nThe Spirit of Stone follows on from The Draw of the Sea and The Heart of the Woods\, completing a trilogy of explorations into our relationship with place. Where the first two books took readers to the water’s edge and into the forest\, this book journeys into the landscapes of rock\, stone and earth\, reflecting on how they continue to define us. \nResonant with the work of Robert Macfarlane\, Kathleen Jamie and Peter Ross\, yet strikingly original in its breadth and vision\, The Spirit of Stone is a profound meditation on belonging\, endurance and our shared human story written in stone. \nA warm and generous guide to the bedrock of our land\, and the characters who champion it — Ruth Allen\, author of Weathering and Grounded  \n  \nAbout the Author \nWyl Menmuir is an author and creative writing lecturer based in Cornwall. His 2016 debut novel\, The Many\, was nominated for the Man Booker Prize and was an Observer Best Fiction of the year pick. His short fiction has appeared in Best British Short Stories and he has been published by Nightjar Press\, Kneehigh Theatre and the National Trust. \nWyl’s non-fiction books have been awarded the Roger Deakin Award from the Society of Authors\, the Award for Excellence from the OWPG\, a Holyer an Gof Award\, and the 2026 Blue Metropolis Planet Literature Prize\, awarded for a body of work that demonstrates the beauty and fragility of the living world and promotes greater ecological awareness. \nA former journalist\, Wyl has written for Radio 4\, The Guardian and The Observer. He lectures in creative writing at Falmouth University. \n  \nTickets\nFREE from the shop counter or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nDoors will be open from 7pm for a 7.30pm start. The event will be held in our atmospheric upstairs event space.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/wyl-menmuir/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Memoir,Nature Writing,Non Fiction,Pickering Midsummer Festival,Social History
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Wyl-Menmuir-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260619T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260619T213000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260423T182959Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260426T183821Z
UID:10000047-1781897400-1781904600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Toni Bunnell
DESCRIPTION:New Songs\, Traditional Sound\nPickering Book Tree | Doors from 7pm | Tickets £5+\n \nJoin us in the Book Tree to hear Toni Bunnell perform original songs\, music and stories\, with all proceeds going to Protect the Wild. \nToni’s self-penned songs in the traditional style speak of social conscience and love of the natural world\, bringing audiences and communities together with her rousing performances. \nDuring the evening Toni will share songs and tunes from her new album\, Between the Moon and Sea\, including two pieces linked to her recent memoir Ferret in a Rucksack\, which is inspired by her rescue ferrets. In between songs Toni will talk about where she gets her ideas from\, some of which evolve into books while others result in songs she’ll sing on the night. \n  \nAbout the Musician\nToni Bunnell is a singer-songwriter who has played on the folk circuit in the UK and Germany for many years. She has recorded nine albums of her songs which she accompanies using the guitar\, bouzouki\, dulcimer and hurdy gurdy\, plus an album of hurdy gurdy tunes. Toni has produced a book of 100 of her songs\, called Across the Years. \nToni’s album\, Tracking the Changes\, received a 4 star review in RNR music magazine: ’These are songs that respect ‘the spirit of people throughout the world’\, songs that remind us to ‘move to the future but remember the past’. Tracking the Changes is a living heritage’ — Andrew Darlington\, RNR\, 2024. \nToni is also the author of fifteen books\, including two books of poems\, one non-fiction on music therapy and two about hedgehogs\, based on her work running a hedgehog rescue since 1990 and her background as a wildlife biologist. Ten works of fiction venture into parallel worlds and the supernatural. \n  \nTickets\nPay what you feel (suggested price £10\, min £5) with all proceeds going to Protect the Wild.\n  \nAvailable from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nDoors will be open from 7pm for a 7.30pm start. The event will be held in our atmospheric upstairs event space.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/toni-bunnell/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folk,Live Music,Meet the Author,Pickering Midsummer Festival
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Toni-Bunnell-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260620T170000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260620T183000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260518T184905Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260518T184905Z
UID:10000054-1781974800-1781980200@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Pre-Ceilidh Meet Up
DESCRIPTION:Get to Know Some Other People Going to the Ceilidh\nPickering Book Tree | from 5pm | Tickets FREE\n \nIf you’re attending the Midsummer Ceilidh and would like to get to know some friendly faces before the dancing begins\, join us for this relaxed gathering in Pickering Book Tree. \nThe pre-ceilidh meet up is free to attend\, but please RSVP via the booking page linked below. \nWe’ll mingle in the welcoming atmosphere of the bookshop\, enjoying an informal chat and a drink. There’ll also be the opportunity to browse the books if you’d like to do so. We’ll then walk to the Memorial Hall together as a group to arrive in good time before the music and dancing begins! \nAnyone booked for the ceilidh is welcome to join us\, especially if you’re new to the area\, haven’t been to a ceilidh before or aren’t sure if you know anyone else going to the dance. \nWe hope that this will be a lovely way to feel comfortable and meet each other before the evening fully starts. \n  \nTickets\nFree\, but please RSVP\n  \nAvailable from the shop counter or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nThe bookshop will be open from 5pm and we’ll leave for the Memorial Hall at around 6.30pm.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/pre-ceilidh-meet-up/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Community Event,Folk,Live Music,Meet at the Book Tree,Pickering Midsummer Festival
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Pre-Ceilidh-Meet-Up-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260620T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260620T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260518T191244Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260520T021438Z
UID:10000055-1781982000-1781992800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Clodhoppers Ceilidh
DESCRIPTION:A Traditional Community Dance\nPickering Memorial Hall | 7-10pm | Tickets £10\n \nJoin us for the perfect event on the eve of the Summer Solstice\, in the joyful company of the Clodhoppers Ceilidh Band\, to welcome in the night before the longest day and celebrate the height of summer together. \nWe’ll dance to traditional tunes as communities have for generations past\, led by this excellent folk ensemble with full instructions given for each dance. \nThe word ceilidh comes from the Gaelic for gathering or party\, and this event is about having fun and connecting with each other through music and dance. Expect a lively evening of reels\, polkas\, waltzes\, jigs and more. Even if we meet at the start of the evening as strangers\, joining in these welcoming group dances will have us laughing and celebrating together as new friends. \nThere will be seats around the edge of the hall to rest in between dances\, and a bar serving alcohol and soft drinks will be open from 6.30pm until 10pm. Bring your own food if you’d like something to eat during the evening\, or perhaps stop off at Potter Hill Fish & Chip shop just a few doors up the road on your way to the event. \nNo experience needed as all dances will be guided by an experienced caller. Whether you’ve been to many ceilidhs\, or this will be your first\, everyone is welcome.\n \n*** \nIf you’d like to get to know a few people before the ceilidh\, please join us for a relaxed gathering in Pickering Book Tree from 5pm. This is free to attend\, but please RSVP here. \nWe’ll mingle in the friendly atmosphere of the bookshop\, with some drinks available and the opportunity to browse the books if you’d like to\, and then walk to the Memorial Hall together as a group in good time before the ceilidh begins. \nAnyone booked for the ceilidh is welcome for the pre-dance gathering\, especially if you’re new to the area\, haven’t been to a ceilidh before or aren’t sure if you know anyone else going to the dance. We hope that this will be a lovely way to feel comfortable and know some friendly faces before the evening fully starts. \n  \nClodhoppers Ceilidh Band\nClodhoppers ceilidhs were first held from the mid 1970’s for expat audiences in Hong Kong. The caller\, Richard Abrahall\, has therefore five decades of experience. He will teach the dancers what they need to know before the band strikes up so beginners and more experienced dancers can enjoy traditional country music and dances some of which are centuries old. \nThe musicians are local\, mostly Pickering based\, and play a variety of instruments including fiddles\, tin whistle\, flute\, accordion and the bodhran which drive the beat. \nAlthough they are all skilled and experienced musicians the band that you will dance to has only been recently assembled and their debut was a sold out dance to celebrate St Patrick’s Day in March with a lot of positive feedback. \n  \nTickets\n£10 from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nThe Memorial Hall door and bar will be open from 6.30pm. The ceilidh start at 7pm and finish around 10pm.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/clodhoppers-ceilidh/
LOCATION:Pickering Memorial Hall\, Potter Hill\, Pickering\, YO18 8AA
CATEGORIES:Community Event,Folk,Live Music,Pickering Midsummer Festival
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Clodhoppers-Ceilidh-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260621T100000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260621T110000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260519T203025Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260520T020801Z
UID:10000057-1782036000-1782039600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Solstice Yoga
DESCRIPTION:Midsummer Yoga with Liz Vowles\nOutdoors at Pickering Castle | 10-11am | Tickets £15\n  \nWe’re delighted that Liz Vowles is leading an additional Castle Yoga session for the Summer Solstice as part of the Midsummer Festival. \nPickering Castle is a wonderful outdoors venue for these classes\, which are running monthly until September (more info here). \n  \nAbout Midsummer Yoga (from Liz’s website)\nCelebrate the longest day of the year in one of North Yorkshire’s most magical settings. As the solstice sun climbs high over the ancient walls of Pickering Castle\, join us for an outdoor yoga class that marks the turning of the year — a moment to breathe\, ground yourself\, and soak in the pure summer energy around you. \nThis is yoga as it was always meant to feel — unhurried\, connected to nature\, and completely alive. Whether you’re a seasoned practitioner or simply curious\, you’ll move through a mindful\, accessible sequence designed to open the body and still the mind\, all within the beautiful medieval fortress. \nThere are few better ways to honour Midsummer than this. \nWhat to bring: \n\nYour yoga mat and blanket\nComfortable layers\nWater bottle\n\nSuitable for all levels. Outdoors — dress for the weather. \n  \nAbout the Teacher\nLiz Vowles specialises in mindful yoga and pilates practices that help you return to balance and flow. \nThrough inspiring classes and soulful workshops\, you’ll rekindle your creativity\, restore your vitality\, and feel grounded\, radiant\, and alive. \nEven in difficult times\, Liz believes we can find our centre\, and reconnect to what truly matters. Together\, we can thrive with calm strength and vitality. \n  \nTickets\n£15 directly from Liz online here\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\nArrive in time for the start time of 10am. \nAt the end of the practice\, you are invited to stay and enjoy the castle grounds at no extra cost (entry to the Castle for participant only). \nThe session will be held outdoors in the grounds of Pickering Castle\, unless the weather is very poor in which case it will take place undercover.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/midsummer-yoga/
LOCATION:Pickering Castle\, Castle Road\, Pickering\, YO18 7BA\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Activity,Pickering Midsummer Festival
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Midsummer-Yoga-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260621T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260621T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260422T154016Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260426T183750Z
UID:10000045-1782068400-1782075600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Old Songs
DESCRIPTION:Stories Told Through Music\, Words and Art\nPickering Book Tree | Doors from 6.30pm | Tickets £15\n \nAs the Summer Solstice twilight nears\, we welcome you to the Book Tree to travel into a selection of Britain’s folktales through a stunning artistic collaboration.  \nOld Songs is based on the book of the same name\, written by Amy and illustrated by Gwen. Natalie will lead the trio in performing beautiful renditions of the traditional ballads featured in the book\, while animated versions of Gwen’s illustrations will be projected onto a screen to accompany the songs. Giving deeper context to the stories\, Amy will share readings and historical insights throughout the evening. \n  \nOld Songs\nAn astonishing collaboration of words and images that immerses readers in a magical folkloric world . . . These remarkable stories dice with the dangers around us and within us\, and they challenge us to emerge triumphant — Juno Magazine \nOld Songs fuses short stories\, histories\, lyrics and illustrations in an enthralling reimagining of traditional folk ballads. Sunday Times Bestselling historian Amy Jeffs and Illustrator Gwen Burns combine forces to create a rich compendium\, singing of travel\, mystery\, magic and the essential urges of humanity. \nFeaturing iterations of fairy tales and sinister descendants of Greek myths and bible stories\, as well as a cast of lesser-known characters with names like Tam Lim\, Child Wynd and Maisery\, Old Songs threads a tapestry of Britain’s landscape\, history and cultures. At the base of hills we can visit to this day\, elf queens kidnap hapless poets and carry them through rivers of blood; and at the foot of a tree whose offspring still stand in the forests of Northumberland\, a girl mimes combing the hairless head of a dragon who was once her brother. \nIn spellbinding tales of brown-skinned girls who danced on their lovers’ graves\, of golden-masted ships captained by the Devil\, of fiddles that cried “Murder!”\, of men kidnapped by fairies and boys married at fourteen\, we find narrative motifs as ancient as humanity itself. \nIn the histories interconnecting the stories\, we find the fantastical rooted in the everyday\, bringing to light the real experiences of great swathes of people to whom such story-songs were not only familiar\, but a way of escaping into the extraordinary and returning gratefully home. Bringing enchantment to familiar landscapes\, ballads were created anew by each singer and passed down from fireside to fireside\, at the knees of childhood nurses\, in manuscripts and in early printed pamphlets. Now\, ten stories are gathered here\, beautifully recreated for modern readers. \nThe stories absorb you instantly . . . A treat for those captivated by the medieval\, grisly and historic — The Northern Echo \n  \nTickets\n£15 from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nDoors will be open from 6.30pm for a 7pm start. The event will be held in our atmospheric upstairs event space.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/old-songs/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folk,Live Music,Meet the Author,Meet the Illustrator,Pickering Midsummer Festival,Social History,Storytelling
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Soft-Lap-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260622T130000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260622T140000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260512T202655Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260512T202655Z
UID:10000051-1782133200-1782136800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Amy Jeffs
DESCRIPTION:Saints\nSt.Peter and St. Paul’s Church | Doors from 12.30pm | Tickets £5\nJoin us for an event steeped in mythological history with author\, medieval culture historian and artist\, Amy Jeffs. Hear about the history and legends of Saints featured in Amy’s book of the same name\, in the setting of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church where we’ll be surrounded by the famous and rarely preserved medieval wall paintings depicting these stories. \nAmy will be in conversation with Alex from Pickering Book Tree\, whose background is also in medieval history. It’s set to be a fascinating discussion about Amy’s retellings of the legends and the histories behind them in her book Saints\, which is thoroughly researched\, thoughtfully compiled and beautifully illustrated with her own black paper cut-outs. On Amy’s website\, she says of her work: “All my books are based on primary research. I care about faithfully and rigorously drawing readers into the sources I work with: historical manuscripts\, literature\, music and art. All my books are invitations to discussion\, close-looking and wonder\, rooted in real places and lives. My illustrations are made at home\, with wood\, Lino\, ink and paper.” \nThe Tablet\, who chose Saints as their Book of the Year\, described it as “a book of remarkable beauty\, mystery and originality“ and that “the legends are beautifully told and illustrated . . . The writer’s approach is both imaginative and scholarly”. \n  \nAbout the Book\nA rewarding and beguiling collection of legends that are little known\, a wide-ranging introduction to medieval saints’ lives — The Literary Review \nFrom the Sunday Times bestselling author of Storyland and Wild\, comes a sweeping new legendary of miracles\, magic\, human frailty and heroic strength. Illustrated with over thirty original paper cutouts by the author. \nSaints’ legends suffused medieval European culture. Their heroes’ suffering and wonder-working shaped landscapes\, rituals and folk beliefs. Their tales spoke of men raised by wolves\, women communing with flocks of birds and severed heads calling from between bristling paws. \nIn Saints\, Amy Jeffs retells legends born of the medieval cult of saints. She draws on ‘official’ lives\, vernacular romances\, artworks and obscene poetry\, all spanning from the fourth to the sixteenth centuries. The legends’ heroes originate from as far east as Turkey and North Africa and as far west as Britain and Ireland. Saints includes such enduring super saints as Brigid\, George\, Patrick and Michael\, as well as some whose legends are less well known (Scoithín\, Euphrosyne and Ia) or else couched in prejudice (William of Norwich). \nThe commentaries following the stories offer a history of each saint and\, together\, trace the rise and fall of the medieval cult of saints from the first martyrs to the Protestant Reformation. And all this maps onto the passing year: from St Mungo in January to St Thomas Becket in December. \nJeffs guides her readers from images high on the walls of medieval churches\, through surviving treasures of the elite and into the shifting silt of the Thames\, where lie the lowly image-bearing badges once treasured by pilgrims. She opens manuscripts that hold wondrous stories of the lives and deaths of wayfaring monks\, oak-felling missionaries and mighty martyrs. With tales of demons and dragons\, with the stubborn skull of a giant\, with stories of sleepers in a concealed Greek cave\, Saints will enchant and transport readers to other worlds. \nWonderful . . . Each lifestory is a gem . . . It’s beautifully written\, evocative\, informative\, compulsive reading — Scottish Field Magazine \n  \nAbout the Author\nAmy Jeffs writes and illustrates her critically acclaimed books from her home in Somerset. Her work engages with Britain’s medieval and early modern storytelling cultures. She has a PhD in Art History from Corpus Christi College\, Cambridge. \nHer work combines a love of nature and natural history with her academic training as a medievalist and art historian. She takes part in podcasts\, Youtube shows and television documentaries and travels widely to speak about medieval and early modern cultures and how they can open our eyes to Britain’s heritage and oldest recorded stories. \nJeffs’ first book\, Storyland: A New Mythology of Britain\, was a Sunday Times bestseller\, shortlisted for Waterstones Book of the Year and named a Times Historical Fiction Book of the Year. Her second book\, Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain\, explores an old idea of the wilderness through medieval stories of outcasts\, monsters and the natural world. The audiobook\, illustrated with song\, was named audiobook of the week by the Times and the Guardian. \nSaints: Legends of Heroes\, Humans and Magic is her third book\, and this was followed by Old Songs: Stories of Love and Death from Traditional Ballads in 2025. \n  \nTickets\n£5 from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\nThe event will be held in the beautiful setting of St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church in Pickering\, which is a perfect venue for this event with its incredible Medieval wall paintings. \n£2 from each ticket will be donated towards the Church to help with maintenance and the ongoing restoration project. \nDoors will be open from 12.30pm for a 1pm start.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/amy-jeffs/
LOCATION:St. Peter and St. Paul’s Church\, Hallgarth\, Pickering\, YO18 7BE\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Folklore & Mythology,In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Meet the Illustrator,Non Fiction,Pickering Midsummer Festival,Social History,Storytelling
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Amy-Jeffs-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260622T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260622T203000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260423T172207Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260523T123815Z
UID:10000046-1782154800-1782160200@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Aidan Meighan
DESCRIPTION:The Folklore of Trees\nPickering Book Tree | Doors from 6.30pm | Tickets FREE\n \nThe Folklore of Trees explores the fascinating stories and intriguing superstitions behind nature’s guardians. Insightfully written and beautifully illustrated by Aidan Meighan\, it’s the perfect reading companion for every lover of the natural — and mythological — world. \nThis book reminds us of the enduring power of stories to connect us to our history\, to nature and hopefully to an ever-greener future. We need to love life\, we need to love trees — Chris Packham\, wildlife TV presenter & campaigner \nUncover the myths\, legends and secrets of the world’s most iconic trees. \nDid you know that laurel is said to protect against snakebites and shield against witchcraft? Or that yews are often planted near graveyards to keep the devil out? Across cultures and centuries\, trees have stood as guardians of life\, inspiring stories that connect us to nature\, spirituality and tradition. \nThe Folklore of Trees brings these tales together in a stunning hardback featuring a foreword by acclaimed naturalist\, Chris Packham. Inside\, you’ll explore 36 legendary species from around the globe\, each paired with an intricate illustration and rich cultural context. \nYou’ll discover: \n\nThe Major Oak\, said to shelter Robin Hood\, and the baobabs of Madagascar\, revered for their longevity.\nSacred trees of Celtic\, Norse\, Greek\, Roman\, Hindu\, Buddhist and Indigenous traditions.\nFascinating myths behind olive branches of peace\, dragon blood trees that bleed red sap and Japanese cherry blossoms symbolising life’s impermanence.\nSeasonal customs\, protective charms and superstitions.\nA compact\, beautifully designed format\, perfect for gifting or personal reflection.\n\nWhether you’re a nature lover\, folklore enthusiast or simply curious about the stories rooted in our landscapes and forests\, this book is your invitation to wander the cultural canopy. \n  \nAbout the Author\nAidan Meighan is an author\, illustrator and arboreal devotee living in Somerset\, with a passion for nature and storytelling. For fifteen years\, Aidan has been passionately drawing trees\, maps and beautiful places from around the world\, working with travel and lifestyle books and magazines\, brands and destinations\, in his distinctive style. \nAidan is an enthusiast for the written word and print\, being instrumental in the production of the Glastonbury Free Press newspaper since its inception in 2013. He is also a keen gardener and back-yard conservationist. \nThe Folklore of Trees is a joyful coming together of Aidan’s passions and interests. \nYou can find Aidan on his website\, www.aidanmeighan.com\, and on Instagram\, @aidan_meighan. \n  \nTickets\nFREE from the shop counter or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nDoors will be open from 6.30pm for a 7pm start. The event will be held in our atmospheric upstairs event space.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/aidan-meighan/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folklore & Mythology,In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Meet the Illustrator,Nature Writing,Non Fiction,Pickering Midsummer Festival,Social History
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Aidan-Meighan-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260623T110000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260623T123000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260512T212243Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260520T013810Z
UID:10000052-1782212400-1782217800@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Tree Walk
DESCRIPTION:Tree Walk with Aidan Meighan\nMeet outside Beck Isle Museum | Starts at 11am | Tickets £8 or £16 including sandwiches\nExplore the folklore of the trees found on our doorstep here in Pickering! \nJoin arboreal devotee and author of The Folklore of Trees\, Aidan Meighan\, on an approximately two mile walk starting outside the Beck Isle Museum and following the Pickering Beck\, before branching off around the Castle and down Burgate to the Church. \nAlong the way we’ll stop to hear about the legends\, secrets and myths of the different tree species living on this beautiful route. \nWe’ll end the walk at The Forest and Vale Hotel garden\, home to a 300+ year old sweet chestnut tree\, with a sandwich buffet for those who choose to add this on to the walk. Drinks aren’t included\, but the bar will be open for you to choose your favourite\, from a cup of tea to an afternoon tipple! \nThe walk is generally considered an easy route along footpaths. If you have any questions about the route or accessibility\, please contact Pickering Book Tree to discuss. \nThe event will go ahead in most weathers\, so please come prepared for the day’s forecast. We’ll move inside at the Forest and Vale if it is raining. \n  \nAbout the Book\nThe Folklore of Trees explores the fascinating stories and intriguing superstitions behind nature’s guardians. Insightfully written and beautifully illustrated by Aidan Meighan\, it’s the perfect reading companion for every lover of the natural — and mythological — world. \nThis book reminds us of the enduring power of stories to connect us to our history\, to nature and hopefully to an ever-greener future. We need to love life\, we need to love trees — Chris Packham\, wildlife TV presenter & campaigner \nUncover the myths\, legends and secrets of the world’s most iconic trees. \nDid you know that laurel is said to protect against snakebites and shield against witchcraft? Or that yews are often planted near graveyards to keep the devil out? Across cultures and centuries\, trees have stood as guardians of life\, inspiring stories that connect us to nature\, spirituality and tradition. \nThe Folklore of Trees brings these tales together in a stunning hardback featuring a foreword by acclaimed naturalist\, Chris Packham. Inside\, you’ll explore 36 legendary species from around the globe\, each paired with an intricate illustration and rich cultural context. \nYou’ll discover: \n\nThe Major Oak\, said to shelter Robin Hood\, and the baobabs of Madagascar\, revered for their longevity.\nSacred trees of Celtic\, Norse\, Greek\, Roman\, Hindu\, Buddhist and Indigenous traditions.\nFascinating myths behind olive branches of peace\, dragon blood trees that bleed red sap and Japanese cherry blossoms symbolising life’s impermanence.\nSeasonal customs\, protective charms and superstitions.\nA compact\, beautifully designed format\, perfect for gifting or personal reflection.\n\nWhether you’re a nature lover\, folklore enthusiast or simply curious about the stories rooted in our landscapes and forests\, this book is your invitation to wander the cultural canopy. \n  \nAbout the Author\nAidan Meighan is an author\, illustrator and arboreal devotee living in Somerset\, with a passion for nature and storytelling. For fifteen years\, Aidan has been passionately drawing trees\, maps and beautiful places from around the world\, working with travel and lifestyle books and magazines\, brands and destinations\, in his distinctive style. \nAidan is an enthusiast for the written word and print\, being instrumental in the production of the Glastonbury Free Press newspaper since its inception in 2013. He is also a keen gardener and back-yard conservationist. \nThe Folklore of Trees is a joyful coming together of Aidan’s passions and interests. \nYou can find Aidan on his website\, www.aidanmeighan.com\, and on Instagram\, @aidan_meighan. \n  \nTickets\n£8 from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\nWe’ll meet outside the Beck Isle Museum and start the walk at 11am\, heading along the Beck and up to Pickering Castle. \nWe’ll end the walk in The Forest and Vale Hotel with sandwiches in the garden for those who have added this on. In the case of poor weather\, we will move inside! \nSandwiches are an additional £8 per person and need to be booked in advance through the booking page or Pickering Book Tree\, letting us know of any dietary requirements.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/tree-walk/
LOCATION:Beck Isle Museum\, Bridge Street\, Pickering\, YO18 8DU\, United Kingdom
CATEGORIES:Activity,Folklore & Mythology,Meet the Author,Meet the Illustrator,Nature Writing,Non Fiction,Pickering Midsummer Festival,Social History
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Pickering-Tree-Walk-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260623T190000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260623T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260520T015402Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260520T020327Z
UID:10000056-1782241200-1782248400@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Midsummer Festival: Beth Burrows
DESCRIPTION:The Living Tradition\nPickering Book Tree | Doors from 7pm | Tickets £8\n  \nAs this year’s Midsummer Festival draws to a close\, join us to learn about the relevance of folk song today and how to be part of keeping the tradition alive. \nBeth Burrows is deeply rooted in traditional folk music and has a long career in a cappella performances of songs from the living tradition at workshops\, folk clubs and festivals across Yorkshire and beyond. \nDuring this welcoming event\, Beth will be accompanied by friend and fellow musician Alison Lawson for what promises to be a wonderful blend of workshop and performance. \nBeth will introduce traditional folk songs passed down from generation to generation\, living and evolving over time as each singer weaves their own musicality into the storytelling. \nShe will discuss her own personal journey in learning and singing these songs\, explaining how they have survived and why they are as relevant today as ever. She will share her wisdom on performing from memory and the importance of meaningful song interpretation\, as well as opening the floor to discuss our own experiences and understanding of the folk tradition. \nThroughout the evening Beth and Alison will lead in song\, performing as a duo as well as encouraging us to sing together. \nAs all who love folk know\, sharing songs which have been sung through the ages is a joyful way to connect with the beating heart of these islands\, and with each other. Folk tradition grounds us in the history of the working people and the natural world\, while also looking forward to keep these timeless songs about human experience alive. \nWhether you are a lover of traditional song or just inquisitive about folk\, why not join us for this special evening of music\, bringing a beautiful conclusion to the inaugural Pickering Midsummer Festival. \n  \nTickets\n£8 from the shop counter (currently cash only) or online at ticketsource.com\n  \nDirect link to booking page here\n \nDoors will be open from 6.30pm for a 7pm start. The event will be held in our atmospheric upstairs event space.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/beth-burrows/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folk,Folk at the Book Tree,Live Music,Pickering Midsummer Festival
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/The-Living-Tradition-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260703T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260703T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260427T221259Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260427T221259Z
UID:10000042-1783107000-1783116000@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Rachel Davis & Darren McMullen
DESCRIPTION:Rachel Davis and Darren McMullen ignite the stage with a bold\, fiery blend of Celtic tradition and contemporary folk energy. Their music is a thrilling fusion of driving rhythms\, haunting melodies\, and masterful instrumentation\, at once deeply rooted and refreshingly modern. \nWith a dynamic mix of vocals\, fiddles\, guitar\, banjo\, mandolin\, viola\, bouzouki\, and whistles\, they breathe new life into age-old tunes while crafting original songs that feel instantly timeless. Every performance is a vibrant journey through sound. Passionate\, precise\, and irresistibly alive. \nWith over a decade of international touring and recording as core members of the award-winning Cape Breton Celtic supergroup Còig\, Rachel and Darren are now forging a new path with their latest collaborative project\, Home. This bold new venture has already garnered critical acclaim\, winning the 2024 Music Nova Scotia Award for Roots/Traditional Recording of the Year\, and earning nominations from both the Canadian Folk Music Awards and the East Coast Music Awards. \nThe gig will be in our atmospheric upstairs event space\, surrounded by the building’s old oak beams. Drinks will be available to purchase at an informal bar before the show and during the interval. \nDoors will open from 7pm\, and the show will start at 7.30pm. \n  \nAbout the Musicians\nFans will be happy to know that the whole album lives up to the extraordinarily high standards that Darren and Rachel have already set for themselves. They really had nothing left to prove coming into this project\, but they’ve managed to outdo themselves\, nonetheless — Roots Music Canada \nRachel Davis is a masterful fiddler known for her emotive playing and rich\, expressive voice. She won the prestigious Canadian Folk Music Award for Traditional Singer of the Year in 2020. \nDarren McMullen is a versatile and highly respected multi-instrumentalist\, bringing deep musicality and rhythmic drive to the duo’s sound. \nBetween them\, they have performed across Canada\, the US\, UK\, Denmark\, Belgium and Australia\, with multiple East Coast Music Awards and a JUNO nomination to their names. \nSet to release a highly anticipated new album in June 2026\, Rachel and Darren continue to expand their artistry while staying grounded in the Celtic traditions that inspire them. \nThe first single\, River and the Road is a touching folk track that blends evocative lyrics with a haunting melody\, creating a deeply moving experience … Overall\, this album seamlessly blends a variety of musical elements\, creating a captivating tapestry of sound that invites listeners to immerse themselves in its rich textures and explore its compelling narratives — Canadian Beats \n  \nFind Out More\nRead more about Rachel and Darren on their website \nFollow Rachel and Darren on Facebook or Instagram \nExplore Rachel and Darren’s music on YouTube or go straight to the videos for River and the Road and Long House with examples of their live performances here and here.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/rachel-davis-darren-mcmullen/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folk,Folk at the Book Tree,Live Music
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Rachel-Davis-Darren-McMullen-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260721T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260721T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260428T144129Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T145817Z
UID:10000043-1784662200-1784667600@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Sally Coulthard
DESCRIPTION:We are excited to welcome Sally Coulthard back to Pickering Book Tree to discuss her fascinating new book\, A Brief History of the Coast in 100 Objects\, which offers a wealth of insight into the often surprising objects connected to the coast and the people who live and work there. \nSally has authored more than thirty non-fiction books spanning a wonderful range of interests including nature writing\, social history\, folklore\, and anthropology — always brilliantly researched\, engaging\, and informed by an immersion in the subjects she writes about through her own rural life in her Yorkshire smallholding. \nWe’ll chat with Sally about the book\, her writing\, research and inspiration. There’ll also be a chance to ask your questions and Sally will sign copies of the book at the end of the evening. \nThe shop door will be open from 7pm with complementary drinks available on arrival until the event starts at 7.30pm. \nThe event is free to attend\, but booking is essential. Please contact the shop or use the form below to reserve your seats. \nWe look forward to seeing you there! \n  \nAbout the Book\nA genuine delight\, this richly woven tale of our maritime nation is as crafted as the objects it highlights. I’ve loved every page\, and learnt and laughed along the way — Jules Hudson \nAn immersive history of our coasts and the people who have shaped them \nThe coast means something different to everyone. \nIt’s a place of pleasure and reckless pursuits\, of fishing\, fearless endeavours and a crashing\, rugged beauty. The coast is\, and always has been\, our first line of defence and our springboard to other cultures. \nThrough the lens of 100 carefully selected objects\, this treasure chest of a book delves into the myriad ways our coastlines have shaped\, and been shaped by\, our history\, culture\, and identity. From Roman lighthouses to rosary beads\, knitted jumpers to Viking slave shackles\, each object serves as a portal to a unique story. \nSally Coulthard’s engaging narrative goes far beyond the traditional seaside holiday to illuminate the coast’s role as a first line of defence\, a site of trade\, and a catalyst for cultural exchange. Readers will discover how the coast has influenced our beliefs\, economy\, and even our domestic lives. And\, looking out to sea\, this book will show how Britain’s story is anchored to those of our European neighbours and of faraway lands. \nFrom one of Britain’s finest historians of material culture\, this book vividly captures the enduring magic and significance of our shores. Whether it’s smugglers’ underpants or sailor’s hoaxes\, whale vomit or pickled puffin – it all washes up on the British coast… \nA rich\, perfect jigsaw of 100 genuinely fascinating pieces\, building a deep and wide picture of Britain’s history through its salty edges. Prehistoric harpoons\, slave shackles and a Pepysian fake nose all contribute to this superbly researched\, lively tale of our islands. Enriching\, engaging and a pleasure to read — Jo Bell \n  \nAbout the Author\nBestselling author and columnist Sally Coulthard has spent the last two decades writing about her favourite things – nature\, history\, and craft. Many of her books delve into the traditions of rural life – from artisans to agriculture – the people\, plants\, and creatures who make the countryside tick. \nSally’s work often weaves together different disciplines\, pulling threads from social history\, anthropology\, archaeology\, design\, and nature writing to bring her diverse subjects to life.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/sally-coulthard/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:In Conversation With,Meet the Author,Non Fiction,Social History
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Sally-Coulthard-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260728T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260728T210000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260511T224041Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260511T224041Z
UID:10000049-1785267000-1785272400@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Naomi Kelsey
DESCRIPTION:We are excited to welcome Naomi Kelsey back to the Book Tree to discuss her atmospheric and intriguing historical fiction novel\, Pale Mistress. \nThose of you who joined us when Naomi visited with her previous novels\, or have read The Burnings and The Darkening Globe\, will know what a fabulous storyteller she is. Her books are infused with historical detail and pack a page-turning punch. Part Shakespearean retelling\, part psychological thriller\, Pale Mistress is no exception! \nAtmospheric\, immersive and engrossing\, Pale Mistress tells the story from the point of view of Bianca\, a character both dismissed and villainised in Othello\, overshadowed by the virtuous Desdemona\, the courageous Emilia\, the tragic Othello and the cunning Iago. \nThis reimagining is set before\, during and after the events of the play have unfolded\, exploring the human cost of love\, envy and ambition. The story of Iago\, one of literature’s most notorious villains\, is woven into Bianca’s as she fights to prove her innocence and save her own life. \nWe will chat with Naomi about the book\, her writing\, research and inspiration. There will be a chance for the audience to ask questions and Naomi will sign copies of the book at the end of the evening. \nThe bookshop door will be open from 7pm and complementary drinks will be available until the event starts at 7.30pm. \nThe event is free to attend\, but booking is essential. Please contact the shop or use the form below to reserve your seats. \nWe hope to see you there! \n  \nAbout the Book\nA bold and beautiful triumph. In prose as rich as Cyprus wine and as sharp as a Venetian blade\, Naomi Kelsey gives voice to the silenced and reshapes tragedy through a woman’s eyes. Lyrical\, haunting\, and breathtakingly tense\, this is historical fiction at its most electrifying — Seth Insua\, author of Human\, Animal \n“Let heaven and men and devils\, let them all\, all\, cry shame against me\, yet I’ll speak…” \nCyprus\, 16th century. Murder\, lies and vengeance has left lovers dead\, promises broken and no one to trust. Only one woman survives\, Bianca. \nThe slain? History knows their names: Emilia\, Desdemona\, Othello. \nBut why do we not know Bianca? Who was the pale mistress? Liar or lied to? Instigator or victim? In telling one woman’s story\, Naomi Kelsey dazzlingly recasts a Shakespearean tragedy as a psychological thriller of jealousy and gaslighting\, ambition and envy\, and the making and breaking of one of Shakespeare’s most notorious villains\, Iago. \nNaomi Kelsey cements her position as one of the foremost writers of historical fiction today… I could not put it down until every secret was exposed — Laura Shepperson\, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Heroines\, on The Darkening Globe \n  \nAbout the Author\nNaomi Kelsey is the winner of two Northern Writer’s Awards and the HWA Dorothy Dunnett Competition. Her fiction has been published in Mslexia magazine and shortlisted for several further awards including the Bridport Prize and the Bristol Prize. \nHer debut novel\, The Burnings\, was published to critical acclaim in 2023 and The Darkening Globe\, an Elizabethan gothic tale\, has captivated readers and booksellers alike.
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/pale-mistress/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Book Club Fiction,Fiction,Historical Fiction,In Conversation With,Meet the Author
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Naomi-Kelsey-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/London:20260807T193000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/London:20260807T220000
DTSTAMP:20260613T040558
CREATED:20260512T171228Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260512T171228Z
UID:10000050-1786131000-1786140000@www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk
SUMMARY:Daria Kulesh
DESCRIPTION:Join us for an evening of glorious\, emotive and distinctive music-making with award-winning storytelling songstress Daria Kulesh. \nDaria’s four highly acclaimed albums to date have established her as one of the finest musicians on the folk scene. To see a Daria Kulesh gig is to experience something memorable and magical. Peter Shaw of Folk Radio UK described her live performance as “mesmerising… (with) breathtaking vocals. A true star”. \nDaria’s most recent album\, MotherLand\, won the 2025 Celtic Music Radio Album of the Year and saw Daria nominated for the FATEA Female Artist of the Year. Dai Jeffries wrote in a 5 Star review for RnR Magazine that “MotherLand finds Daria at the height of her vocal powers and is destined to be one of the albums of 2025”. \nThe gig will be in our atmospheric upstairs event space\, surrounded by the building’s old oak beams. Drinks will be available to purchase at an informal bar before the show and during the interval. \nThe bookshop door will open from 7pm\, and the show will start at 7.30pm. \n  \nAbout the Musician\nA concert in which Daria Kulesh appears is no ordinary gig… The audience were totally enthralled\, you may even say bewitched by the songs and stories — Tony Collins\, Hot Music Live (Read More) \nAn amazing album. It’s probably one of the best anti-war albums I’ve ever heard\, and beautifully produced — Hugh Taylor\, Celtic Music Radio\, on MotherLand \nDaria Kulesh has been described by Mike Harding as “one of the finest voices and one of the most intriguing and interesting songwriters on the present folk scene”. \nHer debut release Eternal Child was described as “phenomenal”\, her second album Long Lost Home has enjoyed rave reviews and multiple awards\, including LCM Album of the Year\, her third offering Earthly Delights was named “one of the year’s finest albums” by Folk Radio UK\, and her latest studio release MotherLand is “near perfect” and “astonishing”\, according to Liverpool Sound and Vision. \nDaria has toured extensively in the UK and Europe\, sharing stories and songs that are deeply personal but feel universal and timeless. Every performance is an “emotional\, compelling and uplifting experience”\, leaving the audiences “completely spellbound”. \nBorn in Russia but based in the UK for the last 15 years\, she fearlessly explores her heritage and turbulent family history in Ingushetia (North Caucasus) with songs that “aren’t just sung\, but lived” (FATEA). \nSensational Russian songstress… A tour-de-force performance… Her voice is incredibly expressive and strikingly pure\, and her songs reach deep into the emotions — Colin Bailey\, Readifolk\, on Daria in concert \nDripping with mystical power and presence… stirring and hypnotic… Daria Kulesh uses her singular voice to present thoughtful\, reflective and sometimes impassioned music that draws on the past\, the troubled present and hopes for the future — Marc Higgins\, Time Past and Time Passing\, on MotherLand \n  \nFind Out More\nRead more about Daria on her website \nFollow Daria on Facebook or Instagram \nExplore Daria’s music on YouTube or Bandcamp
URL:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/event/daria-kulesh/
LOCATION:Pickering Book Tree\, 43a Market Place\, Pickering\, YO18 7AE
CATEGORIES:Folk,Folk at the Book Tree,Live Music
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://www.pickeringbooktree.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Daria-Kulesh-webp.webp
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR