It is not easy to reconcile the Scotland that reluctantly became England’s “poor partner” in 1707 with the “Enlightened”, intellectually progressive country of 108 years later. By the close of the first century of parliamentary union, the once “backward” northern state had become renowned for innovations in economics, literature, philosophy, and architecture. In tracing this Read More
Nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature nine times, awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in May 1977 and deemed by French poet Louis Aragon “the greatest poet of our age”, Yiannis Ritsos is rightly considered amongst the greatest Greek poets of the twentieth century. Given this great stature then, it is perhaps surprising – and Read More
Translating poetry is a creative enterprise and, for many, a labour of love. How, then, are we to assess the translated poem? No doubt there is no easy answer to that question, but at least bilingual editions such as this one open up different possibilities. Those with some knowledge of the original language can enjoy Read More
Andy Hixon actively unnerves with this chilling though compelling graphic novel, Lucia. An artist living in Sheffield, Hixon creates a uniquely stylised novel whose peculiar visuals are sure to scare a few but perhaps also charm some others. Exploring the medium of graphic novels, Hixon is able to convey a very special kind of feeling Read More
Daunderlust – meaning the compulsion to meander – is a term as applicable to the scope of Peter Ross’s latest essay collection as its content, collated as it is from four years of Scotland on Sunday columns. With a remit to report from within where most have never dared nor thought to enter, the peripatetic Read More
John Berger is a poet, Art critic, playwright and general European polymath. Collected Poems brings together nearly 60 years of work in one English language volume. Enhancing the start of each discrete section are beautiful, understated monotypes by his son, Yves Berger. The volume examines history, emigration, place and love; collectively it contemplates the impact Read More
George Mpanga, aka George The poet, is a street savvy Cambridge-educated 23 year old from North West London. His debut collection, Search Party, espouses a blend of spoken word and rap which explores life in the capital’s inner city housing estates, of which he also has much experience. Arguably, not since Gil Scot Heron has Read More
“We didn’t stand a chance, my siblings and I, when it came to loving tea.” Having dazzled the poetry world with her 2009 debut collection, Furniture (shortlisted for both the Forward Prize for Best First Collection and the Seamus Heaney Centre Poetry Prize), Lorraine Mariner has returned with an array of diverse and insightful poems Read More
Following on from her previous novel The Midwife’s Daughter, Patricia Ferguson returns to the sleepy Cornish town of Silkhampton to tell the story of both new and also some familiar characters. Set in the early 1930s, the book revolves around three women, all widely different but drawn together by circumstance into a situation which will Read More
Lissa Evans’ fourth novel, Crooked Heart, brings to the table a new story with old bones. Set in World War 2 England, one would expect it to be another historical drama, rife with tales of heroism and loss, of tragedy and hope. As you traverse the pages however, you find humour in the place of Read More