In the fairly recent publication, Hallaig and Other Poems, two of Sorley Maclean’s most devoted acolytes, Aonghas Pàdraig Caimbeul (Angus Peter Campbell) and Aonghas MacNeacail – both respected poets in their own right – have selected over seventy of what I assume are their personal favourites from the renowned, late Raasay poet’s work. Drawn mainly Read More
Iain Bamforth’s A Doctor’s Dictionary: Writings on Medicine and Culture is a collection of essays, written by a doctor-cum-poet, which at first seems to offer little in the way of enticement to the reader: it contains copious amounts of enumeration and, as a consequence, lengthy sentences that are interlaced with heavy but necessary levels of Read More
A Petrol Scented Spring by Ajay Close is a brilliant work of fiction that has a multitude of layers and is set in various different timeframes from the early 1900s onwards. Based on true facts she has gathered, Close has written about an unconventional love triangle featuring two very unconventional women. These women, whom the Read More
Moira Forsyth, Editorial Director at Sandstone Press talks to Gail Low about the history of the press, independent publishing, publishing in Scotland, submitting manuscripts and more. This edited transcript and interview, recorded 11 November 2015 at the University of Dundee, is part of a joint enterprise by MLitt in Writing Practice and Study programme there Read More
As someone who has admired Quentin Tarantino’s work for many years, the premise of The Hateful Eight, a small number of characters in an enclosed space, sounded familiar: Reservoir Dogs has the same set-up. However although it returns to an earlier formula, The Hateful Eight comes alive on screen with the usual blood, gore and Read More
The title ALL SYSTEMS…go is an imperative sentence in history depicting the point of no return. The creators have taken ownership of this terminology to dismiss and reject all the systems that control artists and restrict the art scene. Questioning this, artists Liam Gillick, Anton Vidokle, Miranda Pennell and Dominic Watson present a body of Read More
Pamphlets are a marvellous way into poetry publishing for many emergent poets; currently some very challenging, innovative work is appearing in that form. Scotland’s own HappenStance (which has also published Clare Best) has rightly won awards for its beautiful work in this area, and Frogmore Press also create some excellent examples. Generally, it’s a slightly Read More
The trouble was, he’d never counted on her love dying. At first he didn’t believe it. Assumed it was a mood, a temporary sulk. Reached for her hand, she pulled away, and he grumbled good-naturedly: ‘Ah sweetie, stop teasing.’ ‘I’m not teasing,’ she said kindly but distantly. ‘Yeah, right.’ Then a week later, feeling a Read More
Having missed hearing Linda Cracknell’s recent offerings on Radio 4, I was delighted to have the chance to review the book. Doubling Back is an account of ten walks undertaken by the author, in the footsteps of various famous writers as well as those of her own relations. These take place all over the world: Read More
“'[…] Do you realise what’s going on? There is an epidemic of autism in Silicon Valley. Something terrible is happening to our children.’ Her words were chilling. Could they be true?” In reviewing this title, I must declare an immediate disclosure of interest, having being diagnosed at the age of three as occupying a place on Read More