Books
A meticulous account of the battle for equality
Struggle and Suffrage in Glasgow comes with the subtitle of ‘women’s lives and the fight for equality’, and that’s exactly what this book is. It chronicles events that took place as the women of Glasgow battled for the right to vote: marching on the streets, daring escapes from under the noses of police officers, and…
Read MoreTickets still available for Royal Scots Club Literary Lunches
Scots crime writers Ian Rankin, Lin Anderson and Lesley Kelly are the special guests of the Royal Scots Club, at their new series of themed Literary Lunches. The first event is themed Scottish Crime, and will take place later this month, on Thursday 23 and Friday 24 September. Ian Rankin is best known as the…
Read MoreWigtown Book Festival launches £25,000 fundraiser
Wigtown Book Festival has launched a £25,000 Book It and Spread the Word fundraising appeal to help secure the future of the literary event. The initiative has been announced as Scotland’s National Book Town prepares to welcome audiences back after last year’s entirely digital event. This year’s festival will be one of the biggest of…
Read MoreSwapping Glasgow to Skye in the formative years
One of the most fascinating aspects of reading autobiographical books about Scotland is learning the life experiences of others in their formative years. Whether you’ve grown up in pleasant suburbia, on a country estate, or even a council house, people from all walks of life have different stories to tell. Raymond Moore’s Skye Stories –…
Read MoreA crime thriller in a turbulent period of history
Scottish crime fiction is a wonderfully rich and diverse area, as authors all over the land create their own characters and scenarios, with murders to solve. Unlike many others, Douglas Watt has taken a slight twist on the genre, by turning back the clock, as investigative advocate John MacKenzie cracks crimes in the 17th century…
Read MoreA moving novel with a forgotten Scottish shame
In 1950s Scotland, thousands of children were removed from their families for a ‘better life’ in the rural idyll of the Scottish Highlands as ‘boarded-out’ children. In Mick, by Willie Orr, he has crafted the moving story of Mick Crossan, removed by social services from his widowed mother and slum home in the Gorbals and…
Read MoreFinding what it means to be Scottish post-Brexit
What does it mean to be Scottish? According to the film Trainspotting (and I’ll paraphrase by removing the expletives)… It’s not great being Scottish. We’re the lowest of the low! The scum of the Earth! The most wretched, miserable, servile, pathetic trash, that was released into civilisation! For others, it means having an enduring sense…
Read MoreA fascinating fiction on the power of objects
Set in a shared flat where two of the novel’s three narrators reside, Bitterhall is a tantalising deepdive into the characters’ lives. As the consequences of a mysterious stolen 19th century diary begin to unravel, the mundane existence of the protagonists is shattered. McClory expertly conveys the power of objects and the impact they can…
Read MoreThe mystery of the missing Roman legion
The disappearance of Lego IX Hispana has long been a mystery, sparking debate and theories for decades. In this fascinating book, Missing Legion, Simon Elliott sets out in great detail the evidence for some of these theories. Elliott’s writing style makes the book easy to follow and understand even if you are not familiar with…
Read MoreA fascinating tale based on true-life events
In a Veil of Mist is based on the true life but little-known event of Operation Cauldron. In 1952, during the Cold War, germ warfare experiments were taking place on a ship off the coast of the Isle of Lewis. The book delves into the lives of two locals who begin to suspect something is…
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