Former Bishop of Edinburgh, Richard Holloway explores the delicate intersection of faith and reality in his 31st book. Carefully examining the relationship between religion, belief, and perception, Stories We Tell Ourselves is written as much for others as himself. Holloway feels a path forward, navigating the fallout of a millennia of reading our species’ stories Read More
‘Antlers of Water’—the phrase is MacCaig’s—and for several reasons it’s an apt title for this new anthology of ‘Writing on the Nature and Environment of Scotland’. That craggy map. A land that is as much water, as land. Those antlers, perfectly seen by the poet, delve deeply into what it is to live in Scotland. Read More
‘Courage calls to courage everywhere, and its voice cannot be denied.’ Celebrated author Jeanette Winterson takes the first phrase of Millicent Fawcett’s stirring words for the title of her work on the achievements of women since the 19th century. This diminutive book, developed from her 2018 Richard Dimbleby Lectures, appearing flyweight at less than A5 size and only Read More
Originally published in the US in 2015, Above the Waterfall is the sixth of seven novels by award-winning American novelist, poet and short-story writer, Ron Rash. Born in South Carolina, where he now lives, Rash grew up in North Carolina. He teaches fiction writing at Western Carolina University where he holds the John Parris Chair Read More
This debut novel from Malachy Tallack follows the old adage, ‘Write about what you know’. Raised in Shetland, and author of two previous non-fiction books about the island, Tallack is uniquely positioned to tell the story of life in a remote Shetland valley. The narrative, told from several points of view, follows the intertwining lives Read More
“It remains a sexist world and I can’t change it for my daughters the way I would like to. But I can try and improve the situation one man at a time. Starting with me.” Robert Webb has chosen to bare his soul with this autobiographical debut. He doesn’t just want to tell people where Read More
Although Yejide Ajayi is a confident and educated woman with her own successful business, the society that she lives in recognises only her inability to conceive a child. “Women manufacture children,” her mother-in-law reminds Yejide, “and if you can’t you are just a man. Nobody should call you a woman.” Shortlisted for the 2017 Bailey’s Read More
Tabard Inn to Canterbury Cathedral, poet pilgrims competing for free picks, Chaucer Tales, track by track, here’s the remix [.] What does the word re-mix mean to you? Personally, I always associated re-mixes with music, taking an old song, lay it over a new beat, reharmonize the melody and BAM! Simple. But did you know Read More
This debut work of non-fiction has already received widespread critical acclaim – this year, it was shortlisted for the Wellcome Prize, and won the Wainwright Golden Beer Prize. As The Outrun is a memoir of Liptrot’s slide into alcoholism, and her efforts to remain sober by returning to the place of her birth and raising, Read More
Dirt Road, James Kelman’s latest novel, opens at the outset of a journey; Murdo, a sixteen-year-old accordionist, and his father, Tom, are travelling from Scotland to visit relatives in Alabama. Where one might expect feelings of excitement, the anticipation of an adventure, there is instead a solemn atmosphere. Murdo’s mother has recently passed away from Read More
