Every month at The Morrab Library we host talks in the Reading Room for library members and non-members alike. The programme is as eclectic as the Library’s collection – from stories of standing stones to the Bumblebees of Cornwall – and meander through Literature, Poetry, Art, Geology and a host of other fascinating subjects in between.
Often, the writers, academics, poets and artists we invite to speak at the Library generously let us record their talk so we can share them with a wider audience online. You can browse the selection of recorded talks here.
Some of our brilliant speakers also use the Library’s archive, newspaper and book collections for their own research. We like to share a “Reading List” to go with each talk recording, in case you would like to follow up on the talk by borrowing related titles from the Library or delving into our archives.
In October 2024, Jak Stringer gave a light-hearted, multi-media performance delving into the writer Wilkie Collins’ formative years and his rambles around Cornwall.
After discovering that Wilkie Collins had toured Cornwall in 1850 and written a travel journal, Jak Stringer felt inspired to follow in his footsteps. She wanted answers to questions; why did the people of Looe eat rats, the women of Saltash clean boots and the folk on Scilly never open windows.
Reading List
Rambles Beyond Railways; Notes in Cornwall Taken A-Foot by Wilkie Collins – Non-fiction – Jenner Room.
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins – Fiction (fiction can be found in the room with the Reception desk).
The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins – Fiction
The Dead Secret by Wilkie Collins – Fiction
No Name by Wilkie Collins – Fiction
The following suggestions are not currently part of the library’s collection but if you have a copy that you would like to donate to us then please email enquiries@morrablibrary.org.uk. They may be available to borrow from the public library too.
Wilkie Collins A Life of Sensation by Andrew Lycett
Brief Live: Wilkie Collins by Melisa Klimaszewski
Jak has also share a couple of useful websites to refer to.
