Former Perrier award winner Rich Hall brought a smile to many a face as he read passages from his book, Everything Snowballs, and his forthcoming piece of work, Magnificent Bastards.
Forgetting your reading glasses isn't a good thing at the best of times. It's especially not the best when you have to do a reading for your fans. Thankfully, a woman from the audience lent her glasses to Hall, and apparently they did the job just fine.
Famous for his creation of Sniglets (words that should be in the dictionary but aren't) his prose is a delight to hear. His first extract was about Aberdeen, and through impressive description, the city was brought to life. This was made even more visual through Hall reading his own words. Especially with biography, I always feel that it would benefit from being read by the writer. To hear Hall tell his own stories is a marvel. Hearing him read what he has written, in his distinctive Virginian drawl, adds nuances and comedy to something that would not be the same if read by yourself.
The extract from Magnificent Bastards was entitled 50 Cent Words, also the name of the show. His tone again injected this piece with humanity, and as he recalled a time when he read the dictionary to learn new words, it portrayed what a wonderful wordsmith he is. With an informal style, you can't help but be drawn into his world. Although I wouldn't have classed this as a comedy show, more like something that would appear in the Book festival, it was still an enjoyable hour. And if you are a fan of Hall and his words, you definitely won't be disappointed.
Times: Aug 8-25 at 13:05 (no show Aug 11)