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 ReviewsMarigold Mind Laundry by Jungeun Yun
In Jungeun Yun's Marigold Mind Laundry, a magical realist laundry becomes a place where hearts can be washed free of the troubled memories that stain them Read more »| 01 Oct 2024 -
Book ReviewsThe Great When by Alan Moore
The undisputed king of comic books returns with a new novel set between two different worlds Read more »| 30 Sep 2024 -
FeaturesBuilding bridges with Scottish International Storytelling Festival
The connective power of storytelling is at the heart of the 35th Scottish International Storytelling Festival, with its theme of Bridges Between. We chat with the head programmer and performers about what it means to tear down walls and build bridges Read more »| 30 Sep 2024 -
EventsScottish Books Events: October 2024
As autumn sets in, there's a plethora of book launches, workshops and readings to get stuck into – here's our October book events guide Read more »| 30 Sep 2024 -
Book ReviewsIntermezzo by Sally Rooney
In her masterful fourth novel Intermezzo, Sally Rooney conveys the tangles of grief and desire through the relationship between two brothers Read more »| 24 Sep 2024 -
Book ReviewsThe Strangers by Ekow Eshun
In this non-fiction narrative of five historical Black Men, Ekow Eshun explores the histories and contexts that formed them Read more »| 17 Sep 2024
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Book ReviewsDear Dickhead by Virginie Despentes
French author Virginie Despentes' latest book draws on an online relationship to look at the ways narratives around the self are constructed Read more »| 10 Sep 2024 -
FeaturesCaleb Femi on his house party poetry collection The Wickedest
We chat with Forward Prize-winning poet Caleb Femi about his sophomore poetry collection The Wickedest, which explores the intimate mechanisms of a house party in London Read more »| 09 Sep 2024 -
Book ReviewsOur London Lives by Christine Dwyer Hickey
An epic yet intimate tale of immigration, Christine Dwyer Hickey's Our London Lives is a beautiful mediation on the everyday Read more »| 05 Sep 2024 -
EventsScottish Books Events: September 2024
September's a quiet month on the book front, but there's still a fair bit to catch in Scotland's bookshops and beyond Read more »| 05 Sep 2024 -
Book ReviewsMedusa of the Roses by Navid Sinaki
In Navid Sinaki's debut novel, a tender, melodic tale of queer love in Iran is as lyrical as it is heartbreaking Read more »| 02 Sep 2024 -
Book ReviewsYr Dead by Sam Sax
Yr Dead is a lyrical, dizzying portrait of the final moments of a man's life, and the moments – both personal and intergenerational – that have taken him to this point Read more »| 12 Aug 2024 -
FeaturesNisha Ramayya on her new poetry collection Fantasia
We talk with poet and academic Nisha Ramayya about her latest poetry collection Fantasia, and the constellation of influences and touchstones that inform her practice Read more »| 08 Aug 2024 -
FeaturesAndrés N. Ordorica on debut novel How We Named the Stars
Edinburgh-based poet Andrés N. Ordorica's debut novel retells the quiet queer awakenings of two lovestruck college freshmen in one’s eulogy to the other Read more »| 08 Aug 2024 -
FeaturesN.S Nuseibeh on Palestinian essay collection Namesake
We chat with British-Palestinian author N.S. Nuseibeh about her essay collection Namesake, and connecting her life and experiences with her warrior ancestor Nusayba Bint Ka’ab Read more »| 08 Aug 2024