BOOKS REVIEWS continued
WARTIME ROMANCE
Charlotte Gray
Sebastian Faulks (Vintage £6.99) * 'Ir a
The final part of Faulks' trilogy set in
France, and successor to the World
War I trenches of Birdsong, Charlotte ; Gray traces the fortunes of a fiercely
patriotic y0ung Scottish woman.
Our eponymous heroine does her bit for King and country during World War II by becoming a secret agent for a
British intelligence organisation and
decamping to Occupied France. This
mission also provides the opportunity
1 for her to carry out a private task:
i finding her English airman lover who is missing in action.
In addition to the love story and development of Charlotte’s sense of
self, Faulks also tackles the French
collusion with, and resistance to, the Nazis. Attention to detail in this novel
is everything, and the state of both
Britain and France during the 40s are
evoked through vivid description of the
everyday minutiae. This is intense and , moving without descending too far ‘ into cloying sentimentality. (DK)
MUSlCBlZ FICTION
. Powder
3 Kevin Sampson (Cape £10)
*‘ki
Having tackled football hooligans in the highly praised Awaydays, Kevin
- Sampson turns his attention to another
subculture of urban male youth — rock musicians. Unlike his debut, which portrayed thugs as twisted existentialists with a fondness for Joy Division, Powder
does little to alter one’s perceptions of . the record industry.
Indie strugglers turned stadium rockers
. The Grams are every bit as egocentric, . self destructive, coked up and shag
happy as you'd expect them to be, and there’s plenty of degenerate behaviour to keep you turning the pages. Sampson (former manager of baggy bandwagon jumpers The Farm) also writes well about the intricacies of contracts, publishing rights, tours and
: personal appearances, but the book falls
down when dealing with the music itself. Resorting to NME speak and Mansun/Kula Bleeding Shaker comparisons do not make The Grams as attractive a proposition as they need to be to fully capture the reader's imagination. (RF)
REVIEWERS THIS ISSUE:
Simone Baird, Alison Chiesa, Brian Donaldson, Miles Fielder, Rob Fraser. Ally Hardy, Kirsty Knaggs, Dawn Kofie, Alan Morrison, Mark Robertson
108 THE lIST 24 Jun—8 Jul 1999
books
EVENTS
' THURSDAY 24
Glasgow 5 Alex Benzie John Smith. 252 Byres Road. 334 2769. 7pm. Free. A young woman comes to terms with the story of her young husband's premature death in Benzies' novel Angle Oflneidenee (Viking £16.99). Ann Harries John Smith. 57 St Vincent Street. 221 7472. 7pm. The author signs copies of her latest book Manly Pursuits (Bloomsbury £15.99).
Visions 8i Vistas Main Reception. BBC : Scotland. Queen Margaret Drive. 945 3207. 7.15pm. £5. Must be booked in : advance. A performance of poetry written or chosen by West End writers with a backdrop of music and paintings as part of the West End Festival.
Edinburgh Daniel Liebowitz James Thin. 53-59
. South Bridge. 622 8222. 7pm. Free from
branch. Californian doctor Daniel
1 Liebowitz's fascinating biography The Physician And Tlte Slave Trade (W.H. Freeman £17.95) looks at the life of John
Kirk. who explored Africa with David Livingstone. A gifted naturalist. he discovered new species of wildlife and plants. but his main passion was to put an
end to the African slave trades.
Joanna Blythsman Waterstone‘s.
George Street. 225 3436. 7.30pm. Free.
The author talks about her new book The Food Our Children Eat: How To Get Children To Like Good Food (Fourth
Estate £9.99).
Wi Allan An Wi Gilbertfield Canon‘s Gait. 232 Canongate. 556 4481. 7.30pm. £2. The Merchants O Renoun present a
dramatic reading of the lively verse letters exchanged between William Hamilton ofGilbertf'ield (1665—1751)
‘ and Allan Ramsay (1685—1758).
Stirling David R. Ross Smith Art Gallery and Museum. Dumbarton Road. 01786 471917. 1230—! . 10pm. £3.50. The popular historian and author of On The Trail Of Robert The Bruce (Luath Press £7.99) talks about Scotland‘s great hero- king.
Glasgow Poetry In The Palace Glasgow Botanic Gardens. 730 Great Western Road. 334 2422. 1—2pm. Free. Survivors‘ Poetry Scotland present an afternoon of poetry readings among the plants.
: Edinburgh The Guid Crack Club The Waverley. St . Mary‘s Street. 557 5724. 7.30pm. £2.50. ' ‘Scotland to Appalachia And Back‘ with ; guest storyteller Wendy Welch.
Dunformlino
David R. Ross Abbot House. Maygate. 01383 733266. 12.30—2pm. £3 (£2). See Thu 24.
SATURDAY 26
Glasgow Contemporary Fiction Discussion Group Borders Books. 283 Buchanan
Street. 222 7700. 12.30pm. Free. This
week the group discuss Armadillo by William Boyd.
Edinburgh
Cold Night Lullaby Traverse Theatre.
Cambridge Street. 228 1404. 7.30pm. £7
; (£3.50). A benefit night for Kosovo from
which all proceeds will go to Connect
. Humanitarian Agency. this evening of readings and music will encapsulate the
Balkan situation and the experience of
writers in that area plus a Scottish
response to the tragedy from poet Colin
McKay.
, THURSDAY 1 I
Receiving international acclaim for her short stories and two previous novels.
AL. Kennedy reads from her latest book Everything You Need (£16.99) in which
she examines human frailty and grief in this tender account of a man in pain.
Glasgow
' 7pm. £2 (£1) with ticket price redeemable
Christopher Brookmyre Waterstone's. 153—157 Sauchiehall Street. 332 9105.
; against price of book. Brookmyre. who is at the forefront of the Scottish literary
scene. reads from his new novel One Fine
Day In The Middle Of The Night (Little.
, Brown £9.99). a tale of school reunions. hijackers. murder. machine guns and rocket launchers. See review.
suquv 27 I
Glasgow
The Sunday Rhymes Brel. 39—43 Ashton Lane. 342 4966. 3—5pm. Free. Viv Gee hosts this popular afternoon of performance poetry with special guests. Robert Knox Borders Books. 283
Buchanan Street. 222 7700. 8pm. Free. Performance poet Robert Knox hosts this
regular poetry evening giving writers and performers the opportunity to share their work.
Edinburgh
The Shore Poets Canon‘s Gait. 232 Canongate. 556 4481. 8pm. £1 (free for concessions). Readings from Tessa Ransford. director of the Scottish Poetry Library. Nancy Somerville. Knotbrook Taylor with music supplied by Ian Carelton and Bob McLaren.
TUESDAY 29
Glasgow
Gavin Stamp John Smith. 57 St Vincent Street. 221 7472. 6.30pm. Free. Co- curator of the Alexander Thomson exhibition at The Lighthouse. Dr Gavin
Stamp hosts a slide show. Q&A session
and signs copies of his book Alexander Greek Thomson (Laurence King £24.95).
WEDNESDAY 30
Glasgow
David R. Ross Dillons. 174 Argyle
. Street. 248 4814. 7pm. See Thu 24. Edinburgh
Quintin Jardine Waterstone‘s. 128 Princes Street. 226 2666. 7pm. Free. The popular Edinburgh writer talks about his latest 02 Blackstone story Wearing Purple (Headline £16.99).
A.l.. Kennedy Waterstone‘s. George
A Street. 225 3436. 7.30pm. Free.
l A.|.. Kennedy reads from her latest book Everything You Need at Waterstone’s,
George Street. Edinburgh on Wed 30 Jun
m I
Glasgow
Charlie Dimmock John Smith. 57 St Vincent Street. 221 7472. 1pm. Free. More famous for her mammaries than her gardening prowess. Ground Force's Charlie Dimmock reads from her new book Charlie 's Water Garden (BBC £19.99).
Edinburgh
Christopher Brookmyre Waterstone's. 128 Princes Street. 226 2666. 7pm. Free. See Thu 1.
Edinburgh
Eighties Pop Quiz All Bar One. St Vincent Street. 229 6060. 7.30pm. Free by special invitation ticket only. available from Waterstone‘s. Sauchiehall Street.
332 9105. Thea Newcomb hosts another
of her popular quizzes.
‘ Glasgow
Steven Saylor John Smith. 57 St Vincent Street. 221 7472. 7pm. Free. Saylor discusses his new book Rubicon — A Mystery OfAnc‘ient Rome (Robinson
. Publishing £15.99).
Edinburgh David R. Ross The Hub. Edinburgh's
Festival Centre. Castlehill. 473 2000.
' 6pm. See Thu 24.
, TUESDAY 6
Glasgow i Reading Group Waterstone‘s. 153-157 Sauchiehall Street. For more information
contact Tessa Bowler on 0141 332 9105. 7.30pm. Free. The group discuss Woman
In Black by Susan Hill.
WEDNESDAY 7 i
i Edinburgh
Colin Bell Waterstone's. 13—14 Princes Street. 556 3034. 7pm. Free. An evening which promises to be a fascinating view
g of the last hundred years. Scotland's 1 Century (HarperCollins £19.99) is a
i
history book based on interviews recorded for the BBC in which cardinals. judges. cabinet ministers. miners. jute- workers and fishermen give their own insights into living and working in Scotland this century.
Paisley David R. Ross Paisley Central Library. High Street. 887 3672. 7pm. See Thu 24.
THURSDAY 8
Glasgow
Harry Potter Day Waterstone‘s. 153—157 Sauchiehall Street. 332 9105. 2pm. Free. The official launch ofJ.K. Rowling's new book Harry Potter And The Prisoner OfAzkaban (Bloomsbury £10.99). See Kids listings.
East Kilbrido
David R. Ross Ottakar's Bookstore. Unit 1. Princes Square. 01355 217 835. 7-9pm. See Thu 24.