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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FeaturesJen Hadfield on her Shetland memoir Storm Pegs
We talk to Jen Hadfield about her eco-memoir exploring the movements of land, people and languages on the Shetland Islands Read more »| 09 Jul 2024 -
Book ReviewsNapalm in the Heart by Pol Guasch
Politically wistful and brimming with queer desire, Pol Guasch's debut novel evokes an end of days which might not be far beyond us Read more »| 03 Jul 2024 -
EventsScottish Books Events: July 2024
There's lots of book launches this month, including The Skinny favourites Andrés N. Ordorica and Dean Atta, poetry readings at Lovecrumbs and Lighthouse, and a double launch of experimental writing at Good Press Read more »| 03 Jul 2024 -
Book ReviewsThe Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez
A late-career magical realist gem from a literary titan, somehow never before published in the UK, arrives at Charco Press Read more »| 02 Jul 2024 -
Book ReviewsMisrecognition by Madison Newbound
In Misrecognition, an adrift young woman becomes fixated by a famous actor and his relationships Read more »| 02 Jul 2024 -
Book ReviewsRosarita by Anita Desai
In Anita Desai's latest novel, the reader is directly implicated in a magical realist fable of identity and generational trauma Read more »| 01 Jul 2024
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Book ReviewsPerson Unlimited: An Ode to My Black Queer Body by Dean Atta
In his memoir Person Unlimited, Dean Atta traces his life through seven different lenses, exploring ideas of identity, race and queerness Read more »| 01 Jul 2024 -
FeaturesLighthouse Bookshop, Edinburgh's queer community bookstore
There're so many incredible bookshops in Edinburgh to choose from – here we pick one of our favourites, the queer community bookshop Lighthouse Read more »| 24 Jun 2024 -
FeaturesElle Nash on her new novel Deliver Me
We chat with Glasgow-based author Elle Nash about her new novel Deliver Me, the eerie cultural capital of pregnancy, and women who fall through the social and political cracks Read more »| 18 Jun 2024 -
Book ReviewsWhy Would Feminists Trust the Police? by Leah Cowan
Leah Cowan's latest radical book is a historical look at the entanglements between the feminist movement and carcaral state, tracing narratives of both resistance and complicity Read more »| 10 Jun 2024 -
Book ReviewsParade by Rachel Cusk
In Parade, Rachel Cusk takes a direct, disorienting look at the patriarchal dynamics hidden within traditional families and relationships Read more »| 04 Jun 2024 -
Book ReviewsPrivate Rites by Julia Armfield
Three sisters navigate the fallout of their estranged father's death in this soggy, speculative reimagining of King Lear by acclaimed author Julia Armfield Read more »| 29 May 2024 -
EventsScottish Books Events: June 2024
With four literary festivals and a ton of launch events this month, it's gonna be a summer for book lovers Read more »| 28 May 2024 -
Book ReviewsExperienced by Kate Young
A young woman just out of the closet sets out to make up for a decade's worth of lost experiences in this fizzing romcom debut from Kate Young Read more »| 20 May 2024 -
Book ReviewsGhost Mountain by Rónán Hession
A mysterious mountain appears as a backdrop to an intriguing cast of characters in Rónán Hession's rich and warm third novel Read more »| 20 May 2024