Books
Granite Noir Festival to welcome First Minister
Granite Noir – Aberdeen’s crime writing festival – has revealed Scotland’s First Minster as chair for one of the festival’s opening events. A voracious reader since childhood, Nicola Sturgeon will chair an event with author Abir Mukherjee, the child of immigrants from India, who was bought up in the West of Scotland, on Friday, February…
Read MorePlans for defending the nation are mapped out
Two map experts explore the extraordinarily rich legacy of Scottish military mapping over the course of the last five centuries in Scotland: Defending the Nation. Carolyn Anderson and Christopher Fleet’s research includes fortification plans, reconnaissance mapping, battle plans, tactical maps and plans of mines. The book also explores a number of unrealised proposals and projected schemes.…
Read MoreTweet yourself a literary agent in 280 characters
After the astonishing success of the last three years, XpoNorth’s Writers’ Tweet Pitch is back. On Friday 11 January, from 9am-9pm, writers from across Scotland can tweet pitch their work to a panel of Scotland’s literary agents and publishers. Twitter channels will be open to pitches of unpublished fiction, nonfiction and writing and illustration for…
Read MoreThe Scots who shaped London after the war
Scots in Great War London commemorates the end of the First World War and recognises the contribution of London-Scottish organisations during this time. This new examination of the Great War pulls together often untold stories and includes famous names such as Sir Douglas Haig, John Buchan and Lord Kinnaird, known as football’s first superstar. This…
Read MoreTwelve real life stories of Scots in the Great War
Historian Walter Stephen reflects on the centenary of the end of World War I in A Dirty Swindle. This is a collection of 12 stories of Scottish soldiers from the Great War. A World War II veteran himself, Stephen tells the often neglected accounts of Scotland’s involvement in the conflict. Stephen provides a level of…
Read MoreThe Bookshop Band to tour America’s book shops
Scotland’s renowned The Bookshop Band is touring some of the finest bookstores and libraries across the USA with its repertoire of songs inspired by literature. Folk duo Ben Please and Beth Porter perform across the UK and Europe – and have frequently appeared on stage with the famous writers whose work they sing about. Living…
Read MoreThe Scottish roots of Dracula are revealed
When Brave Men Shudder: The Scottish Origins of Dracula is the previously untold story of how the terrifying character, capable of giving the toughest among us chills, was created. Shepherd is the first to investigate Bram Stoker’s time in Cruden Bay in detail. With an introdcution by Dacre Stoker, the great grand-nephew of Bram Stoker,…
Read MoreSequel to classic novel is full of intrigue
If you are looking for an adventure series to get stuck into, Castle Macnab book is certainly one to consider. As the sequel to John Buchan’s John Macnab, Robert J. Harris has created a novel full of intrigue which is played out in the heart of the Scottish Highlands. Set in the 1920s, a group…
Read MoreA chance to re-discover Scotland’s natural wonders
Grab a cup of tea, sit down in the summerhouse and enjoy a moment of tranquility whilst reading Amanda Thomson’s delightful A Scots Dictionary of Nature. Split into six categories – land, wood, weather, birds, water and walking – the author has brought together some long-forgotten words that are customarily used to describe Scotland’s rich…
Read MoreA guide to the best of British shooting estates
The Great Shoots: Britain’s Finest Shooting Estates by Brian P Martin has been revised and revamped and is now in its third edition. For all those field sports and countryside fanatics out there, the book is one that has to feature on the bookshelves. Though it does not provide a ‘how-to’ guide on shooting, nor…
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