Books
The Skinny book guide – bringing you book reviews, features, events, reviews and author interviews. Find previews and on the ground reporting from festivals of literature and poetry in Scotland and beyond.
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Book ReviewsAn Exquisite Sense of What is Beautiful by J. David Simons
J. David Simons’ new novel is primarily noteworthy for the ambition it shows in tackling difficult, often uncomfortable themes. Flitting between the yo... Read more »| 28 Mar 2013 -
Book ReviewsBook of the Month: The Iraqi Christ by Hassan Blasim
Calling Hassan Blasim's second short story collection a ‘tour de force’ seems tactless – a tour by the Allied Western armies, involving dea... Read more »| 25 Mar 2013 -
EventsStAnza International Poetry Festival, St Andrews
StAnza poetry festival director Eleanor Livingstone tells us what attendees can expect this year, what not to miss, and how the recent closure of The Byre Theatre has impacted the programme Read more »| 12 Mar 2013 -
Book ReviewsThe Investigation by Philippe Claudel
Philippe Claudel’s latest novel is an engrossing and often frustrating descent into the irritation and tyranny of the modern world. Frustrating becau... Read more »| 05 Mar 2013 -
Book Reviews
Stonemouth by Iain Banks
Stewart Gilmour returns home, after 5 years, to the small town of Stonemouth to attend a funeral, but only after getting permission from the Murstons, one of... Read more »| 05 Mar 2013 -
Book Reviews
The Dandy - The Last Issue
This last ever print version of The Dandy is a pretty representative compendium of some 75 stories. The Dandy's humour was never particularly sophistica... Read more »| 01 Mar 2013
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Book Reviews
Gone Again by Doug Johnstone
Edinburgh-based Doug Johnstone has pared down the breadth of his subject matter – his last novel, Hit and Run used the setup indicated by its titl... Read more »| 25 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Me and You by Niccolò Ammaniti
The third Ammaniti novel to be translated from Italian into English, he moves away from the thriller format he experimented with in I'm Not Scared and Steal ... Read more »| 23 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Eustace by S.J. Harris
The darkness in Eustace creeps up on you unexpectedly. It begins sadly, but innocently with the travails of a sick child, illustrated in a whimsical, pencil-... Read more »| 21 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World by Donald Antrim
Donald Antrim's 1993 debut novel, Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World is being published in the UK for the first time. Featuring a pagan-like shrouded figu... Read more »| 21 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
The Fields by Kevin Maher
The Fields by Kevin Maher is a coming of age novel set in Ireland during the 1980s. Although the Troubles are present, the focus remains firmly on the a... Read more »| 20 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
The Library of Unrequited Love by Sophie Divry
It would seem a good plan to release a book about love, for lovers of books, on St Valentine’s Day, but this is an odd one for that particular date. Th... Read more »| 14 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Spinach Soup for the Walls by Lynn Harkes
There is no doubt this book has good intentions: beautifully written and graciously told, Spinach Soup for the Walls is a memoir of one woman’s travels... Read more »| 04 Jan 2013 -
Features
Maement by Various
Maement is a nifty new writing journal, named for an old scots word for 'moment'. No star rating here, because we let the Maement writers review their own bo... Read more »| 03 Jan 2013 -
Features
Scotland Writers FC 4-2 England Writers FC: Prose In Motion
A tale to brighten your New Year – Scottish writers have banded together to form a football team. The newly formed Scotland Writers FC played their first match on 1 December, against – who else? – England Writers FC Read more »| 18 Dec 2012