Allan Gaw has been shortlisted for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize with his crime fiction novel, The Silent House of Sleep.
The first book I remember reading:
I remember it was hard backed and easy to hold, and it had come from the magical folding bookcase in our infant school classroom. There were words in large print and the sentences were short. On every page facing the text there was a painted illustration – children in a garden, a dog. I think there was a picnic with a gingham cloth. We had no garden or dog and I had never been on a picnic, so it was all wonderfully exotic. Of course, it was a Ladybird book – and others of its kind soon became an indispensable part of my childhood. I even still have some of them that I occasionally buy in second hand bookshops when I spot a cover that I remember and realise I can no longer live without it.
A book I recommend to everyone:
Possession by A.S. Byatt. I thought it was a masterpiece the first time I read it and re-reading it has not diminished that opinion. I also think it has influenced my own writing in more ways than I have realised. Possession is a book set in two distinct but interwoven timelines, and so are several of my own novels. A time-traveller, she takes you by the hand and leads you through Victorian streets that are at first unfamiliar but quickly come to feel as real as anything in the present.
The best three books I have read in the last year:
Flights by Olga Tokarczuk. This is one of those books that is almost impossible to describe. The experience of reading it leaves you with images, ideas and ghosts that swirl around for…well, I suspect a lifetime.
Something Small by Julie McNeill. I read a lot of contemporary poetry and occasionally some poems stop you in your tracks. This whole collection does exactly that, and despite a deceptive lightness of touch, the author delves into some of the deepest parts of the soul.
The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold. I am not an avid reader of true crime per se, but the historical research that went into this one meant it was a must read for me and it certainly did not disappoint.
A book I didn’t finish:
At secondary school, I was forced to read the novel Shane by Jack Schaefer. I was always an obedient child – in fact I was the class swot – which was probably why my outburst one day came as such a surprise to my English teacher, Mrs Weir. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said, rather louder than was necessary and not with even the pretence of true regret, ‘I cannot read this trash. Please don’t make me finish it.’ This time, I was the one surprised as she relented on the spot and offered me Steinbeck instead. Peace was promptly restored, but to this day I still cannot abide westerns.
An author who has inspired me:
Julian Barnes. I vividly remember reading the last line of his Booker Prize winning novel The Sense of an Ending, closing the book and then my eyes and thinking, one day I want to write a book like that. Needless to say, I’m still trying.
My favourite place to read:
I know I’m supposed to reveal a corner table at a secret café or perhaps a shady spot on a sun drenched terrace in Tuscany, but the truth is rather more mundane — isn’t it always? My favourite place to read is my bed. Early mornings or late nights, I just like to snuggle in and escape.
The winner of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival will be revealed in Stirling on 13 September. Tickets and further information at www.bloodyscotland.com. Allan Gaw’s shortlisted novel is The Silent House of Sleep, published by SA Press. The paperback and ebook are available from Amazon for £7.99 and 99p respectively.
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