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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FestivalsAkala on Race, Class and his new book Natives
London rapper Akala is best known for his expansive hip hop records and BBC Radio freestyles. But his new book Natives is a reminder that he also knows a thing or two about how racism and classism works in the UK Read more »| 09 Aug 2018 -
Book ReviewsWashington Black by Esi Edugyan
Edugyan explores with deft skill the damage done to a slave’s mind and the persistent workings of white privilege on the road to abolition Read more »| 09 Aug 2018 -
Festivals
The Inking Woman: A Chat with Nicola Streeten
Nicola Streeten looks to retell the history of British comics and cartoons with The Inking Woman Read more »| 07 Aug 2018 -
Book Reviews
Hits and Misses by Simon Rich
Hits & Misses is an eighteen-piece short story collection inspired by Rich’s experiences in Hollywood, and the collection is a thought-provoking and laugh-out-loud work Read more »| 03 Aug 2018 -
Book Reviews
Resin by Ane Riel
Resin expertly navigates a wealth of themes – obsession, grief, love, and innocence and childhood – and binds them together in a cleverly crafted, gripping tale. Addictive, brutal and honest, Resin is an emotional rollercoaster. Read more »| 03 Aug 2018 -
Book ReviewsEverything Under by Daisy Johnson
The eerie atmosphere of this imaginative page-turner by Daisy Johnson seeps into the reader and grips with claws as sharp as the Bonak’s. Read more »| 02 Aug 2018
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Events
Beyond Borders: Jodi Rudoren & Talat Yaqoob
The Beyond Borders festival brings a weekend of discussion and cultural exchange to Scotland this August – ahead of their event on 100 years of votes for women, we talk to Jodi Rudoren and Talat Yaqoob Read more »| 02 Aug 2018 -
Book Reviews
How to Love a Jamaican by Alexia Arthurs
How to Love a Jamaican explores the gravitational pull between close-knit island communities and the USA for Jamaican characters who have moved one way or the other. Alexia Arthurs is an evocative storyteller who dives deep into her characters’ motivation Read more »| 01 Aug 2018 -
Features
Scottish Poetry News - August 2018
While Edinburgh is a hub of literary activity this month, there are also festivals, open mics and events to take in across Scotland this August Read more »| 01 Aug 2018 -
Book Reviews
Amateur by Thomas Page McBee
Reading Amateur is watching someone try to simultaneously figure out who they are, who the world wants them to be, and why. It’s deeply personal and politically vital, a calm and contemplative antidote to male toxicity. Read more »| 31 Jul 2018 -
Features
Claire Askew on All the Hidden Truths
Claire Askew's debut novel tackles the tinderbox of masculinity, the uneasiness of our relationship with information, and our collective desire for the reasons behind horrific crimes Read more »| 30 Jul 2018 -
Festivals
Writing Destiny with Nikesh Shukla
As he brings his two new novels to the Edinburgh Book Festival, we talk fate, thrillers and diversity with Nikesh Shukla Read more »| 26 Jul 2018 -
Book ReviewsNotes to Self by Emilie Pine
Emilie Pine writes with pinpoint precision and invites readers into deeply personal parts of herself, exploring them with beautiful nuance Read more »| 26 Jul 2018 -
Book Reviews
The Tyranny of Lost Things by Rhiannon Cosslett
The Tyranny of Lost Things is, at its best, a nostalgia-popping look at the place past countercultural lifestyles holds in contemporary consciousness, an intergenerational exploration, and a warning against romanticising the past. Read more »| 12 Jul 2018 -
Book ReviewsTestament by Kim Sherwood
Sherwood's first novel is a stunning new take on the horrors of the Holocaust Read more »| 10 Jul 2018