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 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 -
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
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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 -
FeaturesNat Raha and Mijke van der Drift on Trans Femme Futures
We chat with Nat Raha and Mijke van der Drift about their upcoming book Trans Femme Futures and the politics of trans abolitionism Read more »| 06 Nov 2024 -
Book ReviewsShe's Always Hungry by Eliza Clark
Eliza Clark's debut short story collection She's Always Hungry explores destructive appetites and hungers for self-annihilation in every form Read more »| 05 Nov 2024 -
FeaturesPush the Boat Out 2024: Our programme picks
After a lot of venue stress, poetry festival Push the Boat Out returns with a packed programme across The Scottish Storytelling Centre, Pleasance, Dovecot Studios and Dance Base Read more »| 05 Nov 2024 -
EventsScottish Books Events: November 2024
There's two big literary festivals arriving in Edinburgh this month: Push the Boat Out and the Radical Book Fair. Elsewhere, the likes of Eliza Clark and Hannah Lavery launch new books Read more »| 29 Oct 2024