Books
Hollywood star James Cosmo makes sell-out appearance at Wigtown Book Festival
Hollywood star James Cosmo made a sell-out appearance during the first weekend of the Wigtown Book Festival. The Braveheart actor told audiences about his long career, starring in everything from Highlander to Game of Thrones, The Chronicles of Narnia, and Trainspotting. The fact that he was a big man and an accomplished rider proved to…
Read MoreWigtown Book Festival gets underway with The Hebridean Baker, Sue Lawrence and Irvine Welsh
Scotland’s National Book Town will burst into life with the start of the annual Wigtown Book Festival this week. Well-known names at this year’s event include poet Pam Ayres, The Hebridean Baker Coinneach MacLeod, food legend Sue Lawrence, Scotland’s National Chef Gary MacLean, Former BBC Moscow correspondent Martin Sixsmith, author Irvine Welsh. There will also…
Read MoreThe Good Books, Jenni Fagan: ‘I found Alice Walker at a really pivotal moment in my reading life’
Author and poet Jenni Fagan on finding her love of reading as a child, being inspired by Alice Walker and the book she always recommends. The first book I remember reading: I was reading from a really early age, I remember being in class when I was five years old and being so annoyed…
Read MoreThe Good Books, Angie Spoto: ‘I re-read The Hobbit and fell in love with it all over again’
Angie Spoto on the book she recommends to everyone, reading the books of her childhood to her son, and her favourite place to read. The first book I remember reading: Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of Rings – I read them so fast when I was a kid. I couldn’t get enough of…
Read MoreThe couple who gambled everything to become Wigtown bookshop owners
Joyce Cochrane had just discovered she was pregnant when she and her partner Ian gave up their jobs and moved from Edinburgh to revive a former bookshop in Wigtown. With no stock, no shelves in the shop, no accommodation and having no retail experience they were gambling everything on a dream. Now they are celebrating…
Read MoreThe Good Books, J.D. Oswald: ‘Realising you can stop reading something you don’t enjoy and pick up something else is liberating’
J.D. Oswald on his memories of reading as a child, how he doesn’t enjoy Dickens and becoming addicted to audiobooks. The first book I remember reading: I devoured books from the moment I was first able to read them myself, having been read to by my parents from a very early age. I have…
Read MoreShortlist announced for Bloody Scotland 2024 McIlvanney Prize
The shortlist for the 2024 McIlvanney Prize at Stirling’s crime writing festival has been revealed. The prestigious award, named in honour of the iconic late writer William McIlvanney, will be presented on 13 September – the opening night of Bloody Scotland. The shortlist includes Val McDermid, Chris Brookmyre and Abir Mukherjee. D V Bishop and…
Read MoreThe Good Books, Catherine Hokin: ‘I come from a working class background which prized education, our house was full of books’
Catherine Hokin on the books of her childhood, her best books of the year so far, and reading in rainy Glasgow. The first book I remember reading: I’ve loved stories since as long as I can remember – I come from a working class background which prized education and our house was full of…
Read MoreThe Good Books, Damian Barr: ‘James Baldwin’s voice is as urgent now as it ever was’
Damian Barr on reading for the Big Scottish Book Club, his love of Jackie Kay’s latest poetry and being inspired by James Baldwin. The first book I remember reading: The answer to this shifts – like so many memories. Beyond Peter and Jane…it would be a memory of being read to. At primary school,…
Read MoreTwo year waiting list to run Wigtown’s Open Book Airbnb as visitors from around the world flock to Scotland’s National Book Town
Since welcoming its first holidaymakers in August 2014, Wigtown’s charity-run Open Book Airbnb bookshop has become an international sensation. Over the years, nearly 450 guests have enjoyed the unusual experience of running their own bookshop in Scotland’s National Book Town, in the far west of rural Galloway. A map on the wall shows where Open…
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