Programme

SIBFest begins on Saturday with events hosted by each of Sheffield's independent bookshops in their own spaces across the city. Pick up a bookshop crawl map and make a day of it.

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14:00 - 15:00 Juno Books, 24 Chapel Walk

Grown Up Storytime with Jake Hall

Ever felt jealous of kids getting to sit down and have a story read to them?? Well now its your time to relax and enjoy author Jake Hall reading you a selection of contemporay short stories and non-fiction piece. Just drop in and enjoy!

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18:00–20:00 · La Biblioteka, Leah's Yard

Three Sheffield Poets [SOLD OUT]

Helen Mort · Suzannah Evans · Molly Naylor

Round off the first day of SIBFest with an evening of poetry at La Biblioteka. Three of Sheffield's finest poets — Helen Mort, Suzannah Evans and Molly Naylor — read from their work in an intimate bookshop setting. Tickets are sliding scale, with all proceeds going to Sheaf Poetry in support of future live events in the city.

The main festival takes place across two stunning Neepsend venues: The Victoria and The Mowbray, Kelham Island.

Plan Your Day

10:00–11:00 · Lodge

Children's Drawing Workshop

Bethan Woollvin · These Are My Rocks, Robin Hood, Little Red, I Can Catch a Monster

Sheffield's own Bethan Woollvin — beloved for her brilliantly dark and funny reinventions of classic tales — hosts a drawing workshop for young readers. Perfect for budding illustrators aged 5 and up.

10:30–11:30 · Chapel

Witches and Folklore

Anna Caig · Molly Aitken · Sally O'Reilly

Three writers explore myth, magic and the enduring power of the witch in contemporary fiction. With Anna Caig (The Wise Witch of Orkney), Molly Aitken (The Island Child and Bright, I Burn) and Sally O'Reilly (Hagtale).

11:30–12:30 · Lodge

Children's Graphic Novel Workshop

Steve Webb · Peng and Spanners

Peak District-based author and illustrator Steve Webb brings his beloved graphic novel series to life in a hands-on workshop for young readers. Come and meet Peng the sarcastic penguin and Spanners the cat with a toolbelt — and make your own comic strip characters.

11:30–12:30 · Chapel

Into the Ancient Woods

Luke Barley · Ancient: Reviving the Woods That Made Britain

Forester and writer Luke Barley draws on over twenty years of working in ancient woodland — from the Lakes to the Peak District — to explore Britain's most precious and overlooked habitats. A conversation about trees, people, and why these irreplaceable places need us as much as we need them.

12:30–13:30 · Chapel

Britain's Forgotten Frontierlands

Hazel Sheffield · Frontierlands: Britain's Survival in the Making

Journalist and author Hazel Sheffield takes us to Britain's forgotten places — silt-filled harbours, overgrown forests, abandoned buildings — and the remarkable communities rebuilding them. An inspiring conversation about regeneration, resilience and what it really means to reclaim a place.

14:00–15:00 · Chapel

Lady Doctors: India's medical pioneers

 Kavitha Rao ·

At a time when medicine is a highly sought-after career for Indian women, it is hard to imagine what it was like for the pioneers.  In Lady Doctors, Kavitha Rao unearths the extraordinary stories of six women from the 1860s to the 1930s, who defied the idea that they were unfit for medicine by virtue of their gender.

15:00–16:00 · Chapel

Manya Wilkinson · Lublin (& Other Stories)

A Jewish New Yorker who has made her home in the North of England for over twenty years, Manya Wilkinson discusses her new novel Lublin with Tara Tobler of & Other Stories. A conversation about, displacement, Tsarist Russia, memory and the fiction that holds them together.

16:00–17:00 · Chapel

Unfiltered: Life, Writing and Queer Culture

Michelle Tea · Little F (Cipher Press)

One of America's most vital and fearless writers joins us all the way from across the pond for a conversation spanning her remarkable body of work — from the raw confessional memoir of Valencia to her joyful, boundary-pushing new book Little F, published by Cipher Press.

17:30–18:30 · Chapel

Sing For Your Life: Juno Dawson in Conversation

Juno Dawson · Survival Show (Simon & Schuster)

Juno Dawson closes SIBFest's first ever main programme in style, joining us just days after the publication of her explosive new novel Survival Show — a darkly funny dystopia where reality TV contestants compete for their lives. Bestselling author of This Book Is Gay, Clean and Her Majesty's Royal Coven, Juno is one of Britain's most entertaining and fearless writers. Come for the pop culture, stay for the queer joy.

Also at SIBFest — all day Sunday, free entry

Book Market · The Mowbray · 10am–5pm
Local bookshops and independent makers under one roof.

Graphic Novel Reading Room · Lodge · 12:45–4:00
Drop in and read in good company. A wide selection of graphic novels provided.

Speakers Corner · Victoria Yard
Informal talks and conversations throughout the day.

Food and drink — Delicious food, cocktails and coffee available throughout the day at both venues.