Books HITLIST THE BEST BOOKS, COMICS & EVENTS
Mark Millar & Frank Quitely As part of the Glasgow Film Festival, these two comics heroes discuss collaboration, being powerful Scots in a global industry and their next work. CCA, Glasgow, Tue 21 Feb.
Margins Book & Music Festival Returning for a second year, and now in bigger premises, Margins promises a great line-up across three days, culiminating in only the second ever performed reading of Alasdair Gray’s Fleck. While Gray and co are at Oran Mor, the majority of events take place at the Arches. Appearances from Tom Leonard, Don Paterson, Louise Welsh, Alan Bissett, Helen FitzGerald, Allan Wilson and William McIlvanney are among the literary highlights. See feature, page 26, and books listings for more. Plus, head online to list.co.uk/books to read a conversation between Bissett, FitzGerald and Wilson on the present health of Scottish literature. The Arches, Glasgow, Fri 24–Sun 26 Feb. Shalom Auslander With Hope: A Tragedy, the US essayist delivers a bleak, black and brilliant comedy about an aged Anne Frank living in a farmhouse outside New York. See review, page 51. Picador.
I R U P L A P S A J
H T A E B C M N A M R O N
Supper and Sonnets at Six Scots Makar Liz Lochhead (pictured) and fellow poet James McGonigal deliver some verse prior to food being served. House for an Art Lover, Glasgow, Thu 16 Feb.
Louise Welsh The Glasgow-based crime writer signs books, discusses writing and reads aloud this month. Waterstone’s, Edinburgh, Thu 23 Feb; The Arches, Glasgow, Fri 24 Feb; Òran Mór, Glasgow, Sun 26 Feb. Winter Words Festival Liz Lochhead, Alistair Darling, Janice Galloway and Neil Oliver (pictured) appear at the Pitlochry literary festival’s final weekend. Pitlochry Festival Theatre, until Sun 5 Feb.
Jane Harris The acclaimed author of Glasgow-set Gillespie and I and Orange Prize-nominated The Observations returns to familiar soil for a bit of a chat. University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Mon 13 Feb.
Ossian: An Epic Controversy Historians and editors Allan and Linda Burnett discuss the infamous literary hoax surrounding the ‘ancient’ Gaelic poem. National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh, Tue 7 Feb.
Stuart MacBride The writer of crime tales in the Granite City takes his new thriller, Birthdays for the Dead, out on the road. See review at list.co.uk. Blackwells, Edinburgh, Thu 2 Feb; Waterstone’s, Edinburgh, Fri 3 Feb.
Andy Kershaw The veteran music journalist and late- night radio pioneer signs copies of new autobiography No Off Switch and answers questions about his colourful life. The Arches, Glasgow, Tue 28 Feb.
50 THE LIST 2 Feb–1 Mar 2012
list.co.uk/books
FirstWrites INTRODUCING DEBUT AUTHORS
EOWYN IVEY takes on this issue’s debut author Q&A. Her first book is a tale of heartbreak and hope set in 1920s Alaska
Give us five words to describe The Snow Child? Alaskan. Wild. Magical. Rugged. Tender.
Name one author who should be more famous than they are now? M Allen Cunningham. His novel The Green Age of Asher Witherow is one of the finest I have ever read. Set in the 1800s, it tells the story of a boy growing up in a coal mining town in California. But it is about everything from faith to the dark mysteries of the natural world. What was the first book you read? One of the first books I remember discovering on my own and really loving is The Boxcar Children, about a family of orphans who make a home for themselves in an abandoned train car. I was always drawn to the idea of children thriving in extreme situations.
Which book makes you cry? I love it when a good book makes me cry, but I want it to come naturally. I want to fall in love with the characters, so that their sorrows and joys become my own. Let the Great World Spin, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, A Fine Balance: they all made me cry. Which dead author do you wish was still alive today? Wallace Stegner. His characters are portrayed with such compassion and insight, and his prose is just beautiful.
What plans do you have for book number two? It shares some similarities with The Snow Child, set in historical Alaska with fantastical elements. But I envision it as more epic and adventurous. (Interview by Brian Donaldson) ■ The Snow Child is out now published by Headline Review. See list.co.uk for more of this interview.