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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FeaturesCategory Is, Lighthouse and Book Nook on supporting indie bookshops
"Shop indie" is a common slogan, and in a year where Amazon's profits have soared while the majority struggle, Anahit Behrooz explores exactly why independent bookshops are important, and why your support matters more than ever Read more »| 30 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsI Want to Be Where the Normal People Are by Rachel Bloom
This collection of personal essays from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend's Rachel Bloom is blisteringly funny with some insightful gut punches on the way Read more »| 30 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsStrange Beasts of China by Yan Ge
Yan Ge's postmodern tales of strange and unusual beasts offer ecological parables and evocative thoughts on the way we interact with the world Read more »| 27 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsThere's No Such Thing As An Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura
Kikuko Tsumura's new novel is a deadpan look at the sometimes-mundane, often-surreal and ever-changing world of the 'easy job' Read more »| 26 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsTheatre of War by Andrea Jeftanovic
Chilean author Andrea Jeftanovic's debut novel, newly translated into English, is a powerful exorcism of one family’s inherited trauma Read more »| 23 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsXstabeth by David Keenan
David Keenan's new novel blends the metaphysical and metatextual on a journey from St Petersberg to St Andrews Read more »| 09 Nov 2020
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Book ReviewsCat Step by Alison Irvine
Gripping and poignant, Alison Irvine's Cat Step is a refreshing representation of the complexities of motherhood Read more »| 05 Nov 2020 -
FeaturesRebecca Tamás ponders the anthropocene in Strangers
The impact of human existence on our planet is reaching its tipping point. Rebecca Tamás, whose new essay collection considers this era, ponders the true complexities of the relationship between the human and nonhuman Read more »| 04 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsWhat You Could Have Won by Rachel Genn
Rachel Genn's deft tale of toxicity, in substances and relationships, will keep you hooked and discombobulated in equal measure Read more »| 02 Nov 2020 -
Book ReviewsThe New Abject edited by Sarah Eyre, Ra Page
This new anthology of psychological and social horror tackles 'disgust-inducing' everyday objects Read more »| 30 Oct 2020 -
FeaturesScary Stories: Halloween books round-up
2020 has been its own collection of horror stories, but with Halloween around the corner, Rabeea Saleem looks at this year's releases that capture the season – from the power of superstition to the monsters all around Read more »| 13 Oct 2020 -
Book ReviewsRamifications by Daniel Saldaña París
Daniel Saldaña París' new novel is a picture of a childhood coloured by the loss of a mother, as well as a probing study on the nature of memory Read more »| 08 Oct 2020 -
Book ReviewsEarthlings by Sayaka Murata
Sayaka Murata's new novel is a bizarre and unsettling look at the commodification at the heart of modern capitalist life Read more »| 05 Oct 2020 -
Book ReviewsWhat Are You Going Through by Sigrid Nunez
Sigrid Nunez's new book is a heartbreaking yet life-affirming take on the stress and solitude of being alive Read more »| 30 Sep 2020 -
Book ReviewsGrimoire: New Scottish Folk Tales by Robin Robertson
Booker Prize nominee Robin Robertson reimagines Scottish folk tales in a magical new poetry collection Read more »| 30 Sep 2020