Radical booksellers, publishers, artists and activists of all stripes are setting up in the Great Hall at Goldsmiths University to host the 5th London Radical Bookfair. 

With over 130 exhibitors and 20 guest speakers, this will be a unique gathering of progressive readers, thinkers and doers, in a celebration of radical publishing and politics. 

The free event is organised by the Alliance of Radical Booksellers (ARB),  which formed in 2011 to raise awareness of the radical book trade. The fair provides an annual opportunity to bring Britain’s radical booksellers together to meet in person with publishers and the reading public.

And it’s also an opportunity for us to host award ceremonies for the ARB’s two annual book prizes — the Bread and Roses Award for Radical Publishing and the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award. Shortlisted authors from the two awards will give talks and participate in panel discussions throughout the day.

As in previous years, we’ll be showcasing the depth and breadth of radical publishing. While there are currently other book fairs dedicated to progressive titles, they tend to focus on tightly defined political traditions. The aim of the London Radical Bookfair is to be a broad church that brings together these traditions and make them accessible to a wider audience.

This year’s bookfair is supported by the Centre for Cultural Studies, with the Departments of English and Comparative Literature, Media and Communications, Politics and International Relations, Sociology, Visual Culture, and Goldsmiths Press.  Goldsmiths, University of London. http://www.gold.ac.uk/