University of Sunderland Lecturer in Journalism Dr Alex Lockwood will be launching his new book The Pig in Thin Air on Friday, April 15, at Ampersand Inventions in Newcastle.
The Pig in Thin Air is a family memoir, a road trip, and an academic study into the place of the body in animal activism.
Supported by his Winston Churchill Travel Fellowship from 2014, Alex travelled around North America to explore bodily encounters with farmed animals and to take part in various animal advocacy activities, which he has turned into his debut work of non-fiction.
Published by Lantern Books in their {bio}graphies series, The Pig in Thin Air makes a contribution to the new field of critical animal studies as told through the lens of autobiography and memoir.
Alex is taking the book on tour around the UK, including invites to speak at Newcastle Vegan Festival, ONCA Gallery in Brighton, and by Manchester Pig Save at their all-day vigils, as well as in July a seven city tour of the United States and Canada including an invite to speak at the prestigious FARM Animal Rights Conference in Los Angeles.
He said: “This book was an important piece of work for me, a family memoir written at the time of my mother’s illness and passing, as well as a piece of academic research into the role of the body in animal advocacy.
“I hope it can bring more attention to the profound issues of what we choose to eat, how we treat others, and how both of those issues are connected to our future environmental sustainability.
“As academics, it’s important that we reach the right people with our research and take all the opportunities we can to influence those who our work can help, in either their personal or professional lives. I’m pleased to be taking this book on tour and getting it into the hands of those who work within the animal advocacy field, as well as those who have their own story of a vegan journey to tell.”
The book launch takes place at 6.30pm, for more information go to: https://www.facebook.com/events/198956500470856