Books EVENTS
EVENTS Events are listed by date, then city. Submit listings at least ten days before publication to books@list.co.uk. Listings are compiled by Laura Ennor.
Thursday 17
Glasgow Maggie Graham & David Hill CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, 352 4900. 7pm. £3. Graham reads excerpts from her poetry and novels, accompanied by classical and jazz guitarist David Hill.
✽✽ Margins Book and Music Festival Stereo, 20-28 Renfield Lane, 222 2254. 7pm. £1. Brand new festival of literary performances, peppered with music and brought to you by Cargo Publishing for an amazing £1 per session. The opening night features Monosyllabic, Margins of Error and Pop-Up Theatre. See feature, page 31.
Edinburgh ✽✽ Beyond the Crash George Square Lecture Theatre, George
Square, 622 8222. 7pm. £4. Panel discussion based around Gordon Brown’s new book. Rescheduled date; original tickets remain valid.
✽✽ FREE Rebel Shenanigans Word Power Bookshop, 43 West Nicolson
Street, 662 9112. 7pm. A selection of singers and writers explores political protest songs from Scotland’s recent history. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. Friday 18
Glasgow FREE The Better Crack Club Tchai- Ovna House of Tea, 42 Otago Lane, 357 4524. 8pm. Regular storytelling club.
✽✽ Margins Book and Music Festival Stereo, 20-28 Renfield
Lane, 222 2254. 4pm & 7pm. £1 per session. Poetry performance from Seeds of Thought in the afternoon and evening performances from Alan Bissett, Anneliese Mackintosh and Liz Lochhead. See feature, page 31. Allan Brown: Nileism
Edinburgh ✽✽ FREE Waxing Lyrical with Donny O’Rourke Portobello
Library, 14 Rosefield Avenue Portobello, 529 5558. 2–3.30pm. Singer Donny O’Rourke celebrates the power of song lyrics. Bring along your favourite lyric to talk about. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. FREE Page and Stage Poetry Workshops Tollcross Community Centre, 117 Fountainbridge, 4–5.30pm & 6–8pm. Email poetry@thiscollection.org. Double whammy of poetry workshops: the first in writing it, the second in performing it. No experience necessary.
Saturday 19
Glasgow FREE A Way With Words Glasgow Women’s Library, 15 Berkeley Street, 248 9969. 11am–2pm. Creative multi-arts workshop drawing on women’s folk tales. Lunch provided.
✽✽ Margins Book and Music Festival Stereo, 20-28 Renfield
Lane, 222 2254. 4pm & 7pm. £1 per session. A Golden Hour special in the afternoon, with contemporary Scottish writers Kirstin Innes, Doug Johnstone and Rodge Glass taking the stage at night. See feature, page 31.
Edinburgh ✽✽ Nothing But the . . . Songwriters’ Cut Scottish Poetry
Library, 5 Crichton’s Close, Canongate, 557 2876. 11am–12.30pm. £5 (£3). A special event looking at the lyricism of songwriters such as Leonard Cohen and Paul McCartney. Coffee and croissants included. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical.
Sunday 20
Glasgow ✽✽ Margins Book and Music Festival Stereo, 20-28 Renfield
Lane, 222 2254. 4pm & 7pm. £1 per session. In the afternoon there’s a Words Per Minute special, followed by the festival’s closing night event with polit- poet Tom Leonard, Withered Hand, Ewan Morrison, Burnt Island and more. See feature, page 31.
As part of the Let’s Get Lyrical shebang, Wicker Man obsessive and journo Allan Brown discusses his book Nileism, which details the arch rise and tortoise-like decline of the Blue Nile. Despite (or because of) never being the most prolific of bands, the Glasgow trio still managed to secure a wildly loyal following who will love the memories contained within this biography. It also features an absolutely corking closing anecdote which might not be true but perfectly encapsulates the relationship between the band and their home town. ■ Portobello Library, Edinburgh, Thu 24 Feb. 36 THE LIST 17 Feb–3 Mar 2011
Edinburgh FREE Spark! Creativity Showcase The Jazz Bar, 1 Chambers Street, 220 4298. 6pm. Open session for performers of all stripes, hosted by William Douglas. Monday 21
Edinburgh FREE Blackwell Book Group Blackwells, 53–59 South Bridge, 622 8222. 6pm. The group explores Mark Rowlands’ The Philosopher and the Wolf.
✽✽ Sophie Hannah Waterstone’s West End, 128 Princes Street, 226 2666. 6.30–7.30pm. £2. Sophie Hannah reads from, then signs, her latest book, Lasting Damage.
Tuesday 22
Glasgow FREE Gutter Magazine Launch Samizdat Issue CCA, 350 Sauchiehall Street, 332 6535. 7.30pm. The Glasgow literary journal launches a special GDR- themed issue, tying in with the GDR strand of screenings at Glasgow Film Festival. See GFF feature, page 12.
Edinburgh ✽✽ FREE Inky Fingers Open Mic The Forest Café, 3 Bristo Place, 220
4538. 8–11pm. Featured performers this month are Sophie Cooke and Morag Edward. Email ahead (inkyfingers edinburgh@gmail.com) for a chance to perform, or just watch and admire.
Wednesday 23
Glasgow FREE Launch of The Liberation of Celia Kahn Waterstone’s, 153–157 Sauchiehall Street, 423 8852. 6.30–8pm. Launch event for J David Simons’ new novel. FREE Monosyllabic Mono, 12 Kings Court, King Street, 553 2400. 8pm. Spoken word performance evening – email verseatye@yahoo.co.uk to join in. Word Play Tron Theatre, 63 Trongate, 552 4267. 8.30pm. £2. Open mic night with acoustic music, poetry and prose.
Edinburgh ✽✽ FREE Lyrical Leith Leith Library, 28–30 Ferry Road, 529
5517. 2–3pm. Session on the history of theatres and music halls in Leith. Booking essential. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. FREE Bob Cant Re-launches Radical Records Word Power Bookshop, 43 West Nicolson Street, 662 9112. 7pm. Bob Cant introduces and reads from Radical Records: Thirty Years of Lesbian and Gay History 1957–1987. Poetry Association of Scotland: Young Dawkins Scottish Poetry Library, 5 Crichton’s Close Canongate, 557 2876. 7.30pm. £5 (£3; members free). The Poetry Association showcases the work of American poet Young Dawkins.
✽✽ Underword: The Ghost of William Shatner The Caves,
Niddry Street South, 557 8989. 8pm. £4. Can a song’s lyrics work as poetry when read without their corresponding melodies? Find out here. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical.
Thursday 24 Glasgow Meet Steven Erikson Waterstone’s, 153–157 Sauchiehall Street, 332 9105. 6.30–8.30pm. £3 (redeemable against purchase of book). The fantasy author introduces latest novel The Crippled God.
Edinburgh ✽✽ FREE Reminisce with the Book Group Moredun Library, 92 Moredun Park Road, 529 5652. 10–11am. A cup of tea and a chat about favourite songs past and present. Booking essential. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical.
✽✽ FREE Waxing Lyrical with Donny O’Rourke Newington
Library, 17–21 Fountainhall Road, 529
5536. 11am–noon. See Fri 18. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical.
✽✽ FREE Allan Brown: Nileism Portobello Library, 14 Rosefield
Avenue Portobello, 529 5558. 7pm. See caption. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical.
Friday 25
Edinburgh ✽✽ Alasdair Roberts & Robin Robertson St Mark’s Unitarian
Church, 7 Castle Terrace, 7–9pm. £9 (£7). Poetry and music collaboration. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. Guid Crack Club Waverley Bar, 1 St Mary’s Street, 557 1050. 7.30pm. £3 suggested donation. Regular storytelling club.
Saturday 26 Glasgow FREE Richard K Morgan, Hal Duncan & Gary Gibson Signing Plan B Books, 5 Osborne Street, 237 1137. 1pm. Q&A session and signings from three sci-fi and fantasy authors.
Edinburgh Creative Writing Workshop Leith Academy, 20 Academy Park, 553 2810. 10am–3pm. £16.50. One-day workshop. No experience necessary but works-in- progress are welcome. FREE Condition of Fire Scottish Poetry Library, 5 Crichton’s Close Canongate, 557 2876. 2pm. JL Williams launches his latest poetry collection. Zen Space The Centre, Gladstone Court, 179 Canongate. 7.30pm. £5 suggested donation. Music and a reading.
✽✽ FREE Party Piece Captains Bar, 4 South College Street, 9pm.
Open-mic poetry and music night. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. Sunday 27
Edinburgh FREE Book Group Meeting Waterstone’s, Cameron Toll Shopping Centre, 6 Lady Road, 0843 290 8305. 5–6pm. The group meet to discuss Hans Fallada’s Alone in Berlin.
✽✽ A Lyrical Death Match: Cargo vs Chemikal The Caves, Niddry Street South, 557 8989. 6pm. £13 (£9). Poetry and music slam refereed by AL Kennedy. Part of Let’s Get Lyrical. FREE Spark! Creativity Showcase The Jazz Bar, 1 Chambers Street, 220 4298. 6pm. See Sun 20. Shore Poets The Store, 37 Guthrie Street, 220 2987. 7.45pm. £4 (£3). Verse from Vicki Feaver, Jim C Wilson and Alastair Cook and music from Dorothy Lawrenson.
Tuesday 1 Edinburgh FREE Encountering: Poetry Reading by Gillian Allnutt Hawthornden Lecture Theatre, National Gallery of Scotland, The Mound, 624 6560. 12.45–1.30pm. Poetry inspired by paintings on display.
Thursday 3
Edinburgh FREE Beyond the Corporation National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge, 623 3918. 6pm. David Erdal’s latest book discusses business success stories. Booking essential. FREE Young Edinburgh Writers Launch: Muffins and Musings Scottish Poetry Library, 5 Crichton’s Close Canongate, 557 2876. 6pm. The teenage writing collective launches its first book. Please RSVP to reception@spl.org.uk
✽✽ FREE Gillian Galbraith Blackhall Library, 56 Hillhouse Road, 529 5595. 6.30–7.30pm. Crime writer Galbraith reads from and discusses her work.