James Cook & Jude Cook: In Her Room

James Cook’s daughter Emily was diagnosed with complex, nonverbal autism at the age of 2½. In his moving and fascinating book, “In Her Room”, he writes about his discovery that singing and playing guitar for Emily could provide a unique form of communication. 

An accomplished musician, James and his equally musical twin brother Jude Cook had a recording career as members of 1990s indie band Flamingoes before they both forged careers as writers and critics. James’s first book non-fiction book, “Memory Songs” was followed by “In Her Room”. Jude’s first novel “Byron Easy” was followed by “Jacob’s Advice”. 

We’re delighted to welcome both James and Jude to Stroud Book Festival to perform a mixture of readings and songs from “In Her Room”. Expect tunes by The Beach Boys, The Beatles, REM and their own band Flamingoes, as well as an exploration of autism and its relationship with music.