Scottish New Writers Award recipients revealed

The Scottish Book Trust has announced the 13 recipients of the New Writers Award, which is supported by Creative Scotland. Since 2009 Scottish Book Trust, the national charity transforming lives through reading and writing, has supported over 100 creative individuals through the New Writers Awards. The New Writers Awards, which celebrated its tenth anniversary last…

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When Burns became the talk of the capital

Robert Burns arrived unknown in Edinburgh in 1786, but within days the ‘Ploughman Poet’ was the talk of the town. This colourful guide to Burns’ associations with the city chronicles the places he visited and people he met. With easy-to-follow routes through Edinburgh arranged by the people and places who influenced the Bard, this is…

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Bringing seaweed into every day cooking

Most of us have eaten food containing seaweed, but few of us will have actually cooked with it, something that BBC Masterchef finalist Fiona Bird is looking to change. Living in the Hebrides, Bird sources the finest natural produce for all of her recipes. The book combines Bird’s foraging skills with her imaginative recipes to…

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Fantastic beasts (but not where to find them)

This book vividly brings to life the mythical creatures from a wide range of Scottish legends and folklore. It beautifully engages the imagination thanks to both the stories and the incredible illustrations that accompany them. This picture book has everything – the Loch Ness Monster is here, of course, but so are the less well-known…

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A moving journey of travels around the world

60 Degrees North – Around the World in Search of Home is written from the personal memoirs of Malachy Tallack’s travels. Tallack’s story is brave and honest, while also deeply moving. Although his physical journey is fascinating, it is through his emotional journey that he manages to overcome his feelings of isolation and grief, and grow to love…

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Can you beat these for bad Secret Santa work gifts?

‘Snowflakes’ and vegans are ruining Secret Santa in UK workplaces with almost half of Brits claiming they have to be overly cautious not to offend colleagues and want to BAN the tradition, according to a survey. Research revealed that 45% of Brits say they have to tread carefully when picking out gifts for colleagues and…

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An exciting tale set in medieval Europe

Neil Oliver, historian and charismatic presenter of BBC’s Coast, tells the exciting and fictional tale of a young Scot who sets off on a great journey across medieval Europe to fulfil a death-bed promise. Older children and teenagers will love the rich narrative and scintillating story-line inspired by real historical characters. Master of Shadows, by…

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A journey into reality, folklore and legend

Caught between a physical journey in reality and a world of folklore and legend, this book takes the reader on a voyage that goes much deeper than most travel books. Years after the untimely death of his beloved aunt, Marsden is determined to complete a solo sail from his home in Cornwall, around the west…

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An encounter with Scotland’s original ghost hunter

Scottish ghosthunter Tom Robertson discusses the ghouls and spooks that still haunt him. What is a ghost? A ghost is the earthbound spirit of someone whose death was so traumatic that something became jammed and they are unable to pass into the next life. Instead, they are stuck in purgatory until someone frees them. In…

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Birds of a feather inspired a modern book

The artwork of an overlooked 19th century ornithologist inspired, and now graces, a modern book on raptors. It is said that you should never judge a book by its cover. However, it was indeed the half a dozen beautiful early Victorian illustrations of birds of prey perching on the lettering of the book’s title that…

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