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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EventsScottish Books Events: February 2025
There's lot of Scottish authors launching books this month, as well as open mic poetry nights and queer reading groups Read more »| 04 Feb 2025 -
Book ReviewsAsk Me Again by Clare Sestanovich
In Clare Sestanovich's debut novel Ask Me Again, tautological questions and half-answers lend a frustrating air to proceedings Read more »| 31 Jan 2025 -
Book ReviewsThe Lamb by Lucy Rose
In this mesmerising Gothic debut, a mother and daughter in the Cumbrian forest prey on strays that cross their path Read more »| 28 Jan 2025 -
Book ReviewsThe Book of George by Kate Greathead
Kate Greathead’s millennial campus novel is a well-written portrait of a slacker that can't help but grate Read more »| 28 Jan 2025 -
Book ReviewsConfessions by Catherine Airey
In Catherine Airey's debut, an epic family saga unfolds across generations and countries, capturing the entanglements of the Irish-American experience Read more »| 21 Jan 2025 -
NewsScottish Books Events: January 2025
Some book launches, poetry nights and a seance for Rabbie Burns over this month – here are our January literary highlights Read more »| 08 Jan 2025
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Book ReviewsDealing with the Dead by Alain Mabanckou
In acclaimed Congolese author Alain Mabanckou's latest book, a new resident of Frère Lachaise cemetery has to reckon with their death Read more »| 06 Jan 2025 -
Book ReviewsWandering Stars by Tommy Orange
American novelist Tommy Orange's latest is a masterful exploration of intergenerational trauma and displacement as told through the eyes of one Native family through the centuries Read more »| 09 Dec 2024 -
FeaturesThe Skinny's Books of 2024
Our intrepid book team tell us about their favourite books of the year – get ready to make that pile of books by your bedside even bigger Read more »| 05 Dec 2024 -
Book ReviewsFreakslaw by Jane Flett
Vivid characters and irreverent references abound in Jane Flett's irresistible queer literary horror, Freakslaw Read more »| 04 Dec 2024 -
NewsScottish Books Events: December 2024
It may be quiet this month, but there's still some poetry events to dip in and out of, as well as some late night bookshop openings Read more »| 02 Dec 2024 -
Book ReviewsFeast While You Can by Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta
Queer horror lies at the heart of Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta’s second novel, a sexy and smart inquiry into what it means to belong Read more »| 29 Nov 2024 -
Book ReviewsGliff by Ali Smith
Ali Smith's latest novel Gliff is a natural dystopian progression from her Seasonal Quartet, following two siblings in a near-future world Read more »| 29 Nov 2024 -
Book ReviewsSavage Theories by Pola Oloixarac
Argentinian writer Pola Oloixarac’s controversial and acclaimed debut novel, published in the UK for the first time, is a wild treatise on historic violence Read more »| 12 Nov 2024 -
Book ReviewsSet My Heart on Fire by Izumi Suzuki
The thrill of the Tokyo music scene of the 1970s meets the ennui of a protagonist getting through their 20s in this existentialist exploration of the modern condition Read more »| 11 Nov 2024