The Nymph is proud to announce our support of The Maya Centre. From 1st of May 2012, we are donating 50p of each sold copy of Peirene No 1, Beside the Sea by Veronique Olmi, to this wonderful London based charity. The Maya Centre offers free psychodynamic counselling and group therapy for women on low or no income in different languages.

There are a number of obvious links between the Maya Centre and Peirene. Our focus on translated fiction chimes well with The Maya Centre’s missions to offer therapy to women in their native language. Peirene believes in building local communities and so too does the Maya Centre. And finally Peirene’s metamorphosis from the weeping Nymph into a sparkling source of inspiration reminds us of psychotherapy’s contribution to self-empowerment.

And just in time to inaugurate our collaboration with the Maya Centre, we received this quote from bestselling writer Lionel Shriver (author of ‘We have to talk about Kevin’) about Beside the Sea: ”A harrowing evocation of mental illness, and of one woman’s terrifying inability to bear the burdens of motherhood. A sustained exercise in dread for the reader, but a surprisingly sympathetic portrait nonetheless.”

But that’s not all. We have more to celebrate: Peirene’s version of a Nordic Noir, The Murder of Halland by Danish author Pia Juul, translated by Martin Aitken will be launched this month. Pia will be in London from 12th June to 17th June. Our next Salon is now sold out. However, we’d be delighted to see you at one of the other events:

Tuesday, 12 June, 6.30pm: Join us on a beautiful 1930s barge on The Thames. Pia Juul in conversation with award-winning author Ali Smith. Tamesis Dock, Albert Embankment, SE1 7TP. £5, including a glass of chilled wine. Please book your ticket here

Wednesday, 13th June, 6.30pm: For all Book Bloggers: Meet Pia and the Peirene team at the upstairs room in the Blue Post, 28 Rupert Street, London W1D 6DJ. It's an informal gathering but please RSVP by emailing me so we have an idea of the numbers.

Thursday, 14th June 2012, 6.30pm: Pia will discuss Nordic Noir and The Murder of Halland at Belgravia Books, London SW1. For more details and booking click here.

And a few more dates:
Hay Festival, 4th June, 8.30pm: Lisa Dwan takes her South Bank Centre triumphant staging of Veronique Olmi's 'Beside the Sea' to Hay. For tickets click here.
Our Roaming Store will be on the Broadway in Crouch End, London N8, 9.30am – 5pm on Friday 8th, Saturday 16th, Friday 29th, Saturday 30th June.
Our next Coffee Morning will be at Hightea in Highgate Tuesday 26th of June, 10am-11am.

I wish you a lovely sunny Queen's Jubilee weekend.
Meike

 

• The Maya Centre