Soon Come: Kuba Shand-Baptiste - A Dr Johnson's House Talk

Kuba Shand-Baptiste is coming to Dr Johnson's House on Thursday 25 February, to talk about her debut novel, Soon Come. It's an evening hosted by the house itself, the former home of Samuel Johnson, who put together the Dictionary of the English Language back in 1755. The house sits in the heart of the Fleet Street Quarter, and the choice of venue has a bit of a connection to the book: Francis Barber, known as 'Faithful Frank', lived just off Fleet Street and is remembered as Johnson's servant, friend and heir.

Soon Come is a story about migration, friendship and the spaces people carve out when the world doesn't leave any for them. It follows three friends — Judith, Mikey and Frank — who meet in a tiny Caribbean restaurant in North West London and try to build a future in a country that refuses to see them. It's a rich, moving debut, and the evening is built around that.

There's more to the ticket than just the talk. You get an exclusive evening viewing of the house museum, so you can have a look around the rooms where Johnson lived and worked, and a welcome drink to start the night. After the talk, Shand-Baptiste will be signing copies of the novel, which you can pick up in the museum Gift Shop.

Doors open at 6:00 PM for the welcome drink, and the talk starts at 6:30 PM, running through to 8:00 PM. It's at Dr Johnson's House, 17 Gough Square, London EC4A 3DE.