Our open call for local authors received so many brilliant applications we are holding two local author showcase events this year. Darlington Library will host Michael Brown, Geoffrey Chapman, Emma Conally-Barklem, LM Milford, Dominic Nelson-Ashley and Tim Prescott. Middlesbrough Central Library will host Bob Beagrie, Paul Cooper, Michael Jarvie, Rebecca Philipson and Max Wrigley. Each… Continue reading Meet the local authors
by Reader-in-Residence for Redcar & Cleveland Libraries Kat Lynas I have been exploring Redcar library. In particular, a number of archive boxes that hold hundreds of historical photographs. Each box revealed unexpected treasures. I soon found time ticking away as I unearthed new images that sparked my imagination. Some of the photographs were of recognisable… Continue reading The Hidden Gems of Redcar Library
Reader-in-Residence for Redcar & Cleveland Libraries Kat Lynas introduces her map making workshop. I’ve always loved discovering maps in books. It started with childhood reads like the map of the Hundred-Acre Wood in Winnie the Pooh, through to classics like Tolkien’s Middle-earth and many more besides. The original map of the Hundred-acre Wood, published in… Continue reading Imagined Islands & Lost Lands
Fancy getting hands‑on and helping our libraries look fabulous? Come along and make bunting and banners to decorate libraries for Crossing the Tees Book Festival! Join textile artist Harriet Mee at fun, free craft sessions in libraries throughout May. Everyone’s welcome — whether you’re a complete beginner or a seasoned sewer. We’ll be using sewing… Continue reading Get crafty for Crossing the Tees!
We tell ourselves stories in order to live. I have been thinking about this since last week, since I stood in Darlington Library on a research visit, and picked up a baby names book. Baby Names 2023. Over 8,000 names. I opened it at the Ts. Thabo, Swahili, meaning filled with happiness. Thelonious, Latin, meaning… Continue reading What the library holds by Louise Logan-Smith
It can be easy to think of your life as being unremarkable. Maybe you are a busy parent, trying to fit everything in that you need to before the school run. Or maybe you are a shift worker, getting ready to leave after a long day. Or maybe you are just trying to get through… Continue reading Stories are already all around you by Theodore Forcer
I keep coming back to libraries. I don’t entirely know why when I have piles and piles of books at home. Something about the light, maybe, the flatness of it, the way it falls without drama across tables and spines and other people’s bent heads. Something about the permission to be still. I have lived… Continue reading Finding Home in Stories by Louise Logan-Smith
I’m Louise Logan-Smith, a poet, fiction writer, and lecturer in English and Creative Writing at Teesside University. My research focuses on reading and writing for wellbeing and social inclusion, exploring how reading and writing can transform lives and build communities. As both a practicing writer and an educator, I’m passionate about making reading accessible, meaningful,… Continue reading Meet our Reader-in-Residence for Darlington Libraries – Louise Logan-Smith
I am passionate about reading, writing, and libraries. In 2022, after working in education for forty years, I became a freelance writer. In 2023 I was Writer-in-Residence for Crossing the Tees. I spent months hanging out in libraries, with photographer Jo Booth, then wrote Everyone Welcome: Remembering and Celebrating Teesside Libraries. Since then, I have… Continue reading Meet our Reader-in-Residence for Middlesbrough Libraries – Debbie Rolls
The design on my library card reads: “My library card changed my life!” and in this instance it truly has. I am absolutely buzzing to announce I have been selected as Reader in Residence for Stockton-on-Tees for the 2026 Crossing the Tees festival. As a lifelong member of Stockton libraries, it would be fair to… Continue reading Meet our Reader-in-Residence for Stockton Libraries – Claire Jennings
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