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 Reviews
Gone Again by Doug Johnstone
Edinburgh-based Doug Johnstone has pared down the breadth of his subject matter – his last novel, Hit and Run used the setup indicated by its titl... Read more »| 25 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Me and You by Niccolò Ammaniti
The third Ammaniti novel to be translated from Italian into English, he moves away from the thriller format he experimented with in I'm Not Scared and Steal ... Read more »| 23 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Eustace by S.J. Harris
The darkness in Eustace creeps up on you unexpectedly. It begins sadly, but innocently with the travails of a sick child, illustrated in a whimsical, pencil-... Read more »| 21 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World by Donald Antrim
Donald Antrim's 1993 debut novel, Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World is being published in the UK for the first time. Featuring a pagan-like shrouded figu... Read more »| 21 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
The Fields by Kevin Maher
The Fields by Kevin Maher is a coming of age novel set in Ireland during the 1980s. Although the Troubles are present, the focus remains firmly on the a... Read more »| 20 Feb 2013 -
Book Reviews
The Library of Unrequited Love by Sophie Divry
It would seem a good plan to release a book about love, for lovers of books, on St Valentine’s Day, but this is an odd one for that particular date. Th... Read more »| 14 Feb 2013
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Book Reviews
Spinach Soup for the Walls by Lynn Harkes
There is no doubt this book has good intentions: beautifully written and graciously told, Spinach Soup for the Walls is a memoir of one woman’s travels... Read more »| 04 Jan 2013 -
Features
Maement by Various
Maement is a nifty new writing journal, named for an old scots word for 'moment'. No star rating here, because we let the Maement writers review their own bo... Read more »| 03 Jan 2013 -
Features
Scotland Writers FC 4-2 England Writers FC: Prose In Motion
A tale to brighten your New Year – Scottish writers have banded together to form a football team. The newly formed Scotland Writers FC played their first match on 1 December, against – who else? – England Writers FC Read more »| 18 Dec 2012 -
Book Reviews
The Seven Wonders of Scotland, edited by Gerry Hassan
The Seven Wonders of Scotland brings together seven authors’ imagined Scotlands of the future – examining fantastical worlds where Rannoch Moor h... Read more »| 18 Dec 2012 -
Book Reviews
Gold Digger by Francis Fyfield
An answer to the quiz question ‘crime novels with the same title as Kanye West songs,' but otherwise this is a solid but not very memorable story. Curi... Read more »| 04 Dec 2012 -
Book Reviews
Blood of Crows by Caro Ramsay
This is now the fourth of Caro Ramsay’s series following DI Colin Anderson and his colleagues, most prominently DS Costello, whose first name isn&rsquo... Read more »| 04 Dec 2012 -
Book Reviews
Top Gear: The Cool 500 by Matt Master
Subtitled ‘The Coolest Cars Ever Made’, this is a large format book about cars through history, glossy photos and all. Some people love Top Gear,... Read more »| 04 Dec 2012 -
Book Reviews
Fremont by Elizabeth Reeder
Fremont is the debut book from Kohl Publishing that they’ve been publicising gradually for a while now. It was maybe a risk to do that, but this book p... Read more »| 04 Dec 2012 -
Features
A Christmas Book Guide
No clever title here – this is your basic guide to various books you can buy various people. Nice and simple. Read more »| 29 Nov 2012