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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Festivals‘Let's Talk' at the Edinburgh International Book Festival
A perfect place to escape the madness of Edinburgh in full festival mode, the leafy Charlotte Square Gardens – home of the Edinburgh International Book... Read more »| 03 Jul 2014 -
FestivalsLost is the New Found: Canongate at Jura Unbound
Canongate Books are one of Scotland’s longest established and most exciting publishers. They achieve that rare literary alchemy of classy credibility a... Read more »| 03 Jul 2014 -
FestivalsJoin the Club: Jim Lambie's Poetry Club at Jura Unbound
The Poetry Club is renowned for its nights of spoken word, music, small-scale theatre and performance art. The story goes that the ever-resourceful Glasgow-b... Read more »| 03 Jul 2014 -
FestivalsBand Books: Bookshop Band at Jura Unbound
The Bookshop Band makes a very welcome return to Jura Unbound after the success of their 2013 debut. Once more they are set to beguile and charm with their o... Read more »| 03 Jul 2014 -
Festivals
Helping the Sun to Finally Set: Louise Welsh on The Empire Cafe at Jura Unbound
One creative initiative is looking beyond the Commonwealth Games countdown to examine the roots of Scotland’s relationship with Empire and the transatlantic slave trade. Author Louise Welsh talks to us about The Empire Café Read more »| 03 Jul 2014 -
Book ReviewsThe Matiushin Case by Oleg Pavlov
'Matiushin thought it was hilarious, everything suddenly seemed funny to him; the more hopelessly dark and confused it became, the funnier it was.' Beginnin... Read more »| 02 Jul 2014
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Book Reviews
First Time Solo by Iain Maloney
April 1943. Eighteen-year-old Jack Devine is bound south to London to start RAF training. He dreams of playing jazz, turning girls’ heads and flying Sp... Read more »| 30 Jun 2014 -
Book Reviews
Happy are the Happy by Yasmina Reza
Yasmina Reza is well acquainted with the torments of the bourgeoisie; just watch her stage masterwork The God of Carnage for proof. So it's no surprise ... Read more »| 30 Jun 2014 -
Book Reviews
The Glasgow Coma Scale by Neil D. A. Stewart
The novel takes its title from the system used to judge consciousness in the comatose, applying it implicitly to its characters as they first numb out and th... Read more »| 27 Jun 2014 -
Features
Telling Stories: Neil Gaiman on bringing his new tale to Edinburgh
As international bestselling author Neil Gaiman prepares to bring his exciting new show to Edinburgh, he talks about the human purpose of storytelling and what you can do with the 26 letters of the alphabet, images and some tunes. Read more »| 26 Jun 2014 -
Features
Organised Crime: An Interview with Doug Johnstone
The Skinny talks with prolific author Doug Johnstone, who having just published his excellent new crime novel The Dead Beat, is already preparing for the next Read more »| 09 Jun 2014 -
Book Reviews
The Four Marys: A Quartet of Contemporary Folk Tales by Jean Rafferty
Mary Magdalene and her namesake, the Mother of God - whores and virgins, those cruel binary stereotypes. Jean Rafferty shows all those vivid hues in between in this quartet of contemporary Scottish folk tales Read more »| 05 Jun 2014 -
Book Reviews
For Faughie's Sake by Laura Marney
Glaswegian Trixie returns in this brilliant sequel to No Wonder I Take A Drink, sick of the mud, midges and cliques of Highland village Inverfaughie. In... Read more »| 05 Jun 2014 -
Book Reviews
Letters of James Agee to Father Flye by James Agee
In one of the later letters of celebrated writer James Agee to his lifelong confidant Father Flye, Agee mentions Montaigne's essay on his near-perfect, myth-... Read more »| 03 Jun 2014 -
Events
Mightier than the Sword: Scottish PEN Literary Events
The worldwide association of writers host a series of free literature events which unite an outstanding selection of Commonwealth and Scottish writers along the route of the Queens Baton Relay. Our Books Editor speaks to some of the participants Read more »| 02 Jun 2014