www.1ist.co.uk/books
Events
Glasgow
FREE Words Off the Page 11illhead Library. 348 Byres Road. 276 1617. lprn 8; 3.30pm. ()pen spoken word session hosted by the Federation of Writers (Scotland). To participate contact Marc at marcsherland(a‘yahtxrcouk
Edinburgh
PIE! Burmese Voices: Our Lives
. . . National Library of Scotland. George W Bridge. 623 4675. 7-<8.30pm. Readings by Burmese writers and Scottish SCii(X)lL‘l1lldfCli. including Sarah Boy-ack MSP. 1)aw Myint Sit and former political prisoner Khaing Maung Maung. to mark the 63rd birthday of imprisoned Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Glasgow FIE! Creative Writing Workshop liillhead Library. 348 Byres Road. 276 1617. 2.30pm. Creative writing workshop led by lnklings and taking inspiration from Iidwin Morgan. Booking required. rm Joolz Oenby Partick Library. 305 Dumbanon Road. 276 1560. 2.30pm. The author of Bil/iv il/lrn‘gun and Burnm'l’rl Light is joined by WF Howes to talk about and read from her work. FREE Snap Rhythm and Rhyme Tron Theatre. 63 Trongate. 552 4267. 7.30pm. Chromatic Voices. a group of six poets. team tip with Paragon Kaleidophone and Streetlevel Photoworks for a multi-disciplinary art event.
Edinburgh
Cities of Reading, Cities of Literature Napier University. (‘raiglockhart Campus. 9am» -5pm. £50. A one-day symposium organised by the Scottish Centre for the Book. Scottish Arts Council and Edinburgh City of Literature Trust. Advance booking required. Further information from a.mccleery (0 napier.ac.uk
Glasgow
rm The Poetry Cafe ()utside Brel. 39-43 Ashton Lane. 586 4958. l—4pm. Open your Poetry Menu and choose which ever verse sounds the tnost appetising. Then relax as one of the poets on hand nourishes your soul.
rm Lobey Oosser Day Lobey‘s Statue. Opposite the Halt Bar. Woodlands. 1pm. 2pm & 3pm. A celebration of the life and good times of cartoonist and poet Btid Neill. with an exhibition. readings. and a trumpet piece by John Maxwell (ieddes.
I'll! Snap Rhythm and Rhyme Tron Theatre. 63 Trongate. 552 4267. 7.30pm. See Fri 20.
Tuesday 24
Glasgow Jenny Colgan Borders Books. Fort Retail Park. 390 Provan Walk. 773 2910. 6.30—8pm. £3 redeemable against purchase. The successful Scottish author reads from new novel. Operation Suns/tine.
Edinburgh
Scarlett Thomas Waterstone‘s. 128 Princes Street. 226 2666. 6—‘7.30pm. £2 redeemable against purchase. Thomas reads from The [ind (if Mr 1’. which is about a cursed book.
Wednesday 25
Glasgow
AL Kennedy Hillhead Library. 348 Byres Road. 276 1617. 7.30pm. £5 (£4). An evening with the darkly humorous Al.
38 THE LIST 19 Jun—3 Jul 2008
Kennedy who will be reading froth her work and taking questions.
Edinburgh
nu Ron Butlln Writers' Museum. Lady Stair‘s Close. Lawnmarket. 529 4901. 10.45am. Meet the acclaimed Edinburgh author who is Makar-designate 2008-201 1. Organised by the Writers' Museum and Scottiin PFIN. To book call ()131 226 5590.
Best of Enemies Scottiin Storytelling Centre. 43—45 High Street. 556 9579. 7pm. £5. Roderick (iraham. author of An Accidental ’I'I‘ugt’rly.’ The Life (t/‘Mury Queen of Scots. offers snippets of historical insight from his book. which he will then sign.
Thursday 26
Glasgow
FREE Best Dressed Words Partick Library. 305 Dumbarton Road. 276 1560. lprn & 3.30pm. Marc Sherland and others host an open ‘spoken word' session organised by the Federation of Writers. To participate contact
marcsherland (d yahtmcouk.
Edinburgh
FREE Ewan Morrison
Waterstone‘s. 128 Princes Street. 226 2666. 6pm. Ticketed. Catch the Strung guy signing his latest novel. Distance. See review. page 37. The Lost Makar Scottish Storytelling Centre. 4345 High Street. 5569579. 7pm. £8 (£6). Party like it's 1299 with poetry and period music inspired by Roull of Corstorphine. performed by [Edinburgh‘s first poet laureate Stewart Conn and musician-jester John Sampson.
Saturday 28
Glasgow
Creative Writing Workshop Borders Books. 98 Buchanan Street. 222 7700.
l lam—-6pm. £25. An opportunity for adults to explore their creative potential. as Alistair Paterson leads this poetry workshop. Booking essential on 07960 823712.
FREE The Poetry Cate ()utside Brel. 39-43 Ashton Lane. 586 4958. 1' 4pm. See Sat 2 1.
Edinburgh
FREE Book Group \N'aterstone‘s. Cameron Toll Shopping Centre. 6 Lady Road. 666 1866. 5- 6pm. To join in with the discussion of Mir/(llr'srtr by Jeffrey liugenides. please contact Stephen at the branch for more information.
Shore Poets Mai Thai. The Tun. Jackson‘s lintry. l 1 l llolyrood Road. 313 2797. 7.45pm. £3 (£2). The silver tongues of Richard Price. Simon Pomery and Angela McSeveney plus music still to be confirmed.
Edinburgh
nu Aline Templeton Waterstone‘s. 83 George Street. 225 3436. 7.30—8.30pm. Ticketed. The local crime writer discusses the latest in her [)1 Marjory Fleming series. [with to Illt’ Slaughter.
Wednesday 2
Edinburgh
Storytelling Cafe Scottish Storytelling Centre. 43-45 High Street. 556 9579. 7pm. £3. Storytelling. music and song in a relaxed cafe atmosphere.
Thursday 3
Glasgow III! Ewan Morrison Borders Books. 98 Buchanan Street. 222 7700. 7pm. See Thu 26.
Comics
HORROR
STEVEN DEIGHAN & TERRY COOPER Feels Like Stephen King
(Steven Deighan Publications) 00
. till it
Small press printing of young Edinburgh horror author Steven Deighan's short story adapted to comic format. Telling a morbid tale of the publishing industry as a young writer is approached by a jaded publisher with a 'unique' approach to distributing his work. He achieves a palpable creeping unease and while you have to admire his passion for his art and efforts to get his stories into the public domain the horror is not as shocking as you'd hope. Terry Cooper's black and white art (with one colour page to drive home a gruesome plot reveal) is spirited but in need of refinement. However. this is a young writer and while naive in places it displays distinct promise. Ordering details from stevendeighanco.uk (Henry Northmore)
SHORT STORIES LEAH HAYES Funeral of the Heart (Fantagraphics) oooo
Welcome to the weird world of Leah Hayes. Where an elderly couple digs mysterious tunnels at night. Where a young male kitchen hand becomes a duck-
slaughtering expert when his girlfriend develops an unusual illness. Or where the hairiest man in the world can become a beloved author. Brooklynite Hayes has a penchant for the odd and the unsettling. the bizarre and the morbid. Her stories are awash with themes of obsession. recurrence. coincidence and tragedy. If her writing (which often stretches out over many black blank pages) bears comparison to contemporary Miranda July then her illustration is the bizarre meeting point of Hogarth. Paula Rego and David Shrigley.
Hayes. who also makes a living from her band Scary Mansion is clearly a freak talent. a scratchboard renaissance woman with a gift for subtlety and menace. (Paul Dale)
SUPERHERO
STEVE NILES AND KELLEY JONES
Batman: Gotham After Midnight No 1
(DC) 0
GOTHKM’-'."MID\
In the arena of American superhero comics. Batman and the X-Men's Wolverine are probably the most over-saturated characters. It can be a minefield trying to guess which titles featuring either character on the cover are actually worthwhile. although the fact that Steve 30 Days of Night Niles is the writer of this new 12-issue limited series will swing a lot of people towards it.
The emperor's new bat-cape. and all that. If you don‘t object to a line of dialogue like 'my tolerance for poison is high . . . and my tolerance for petty crime is at an all-time low' (no. seriously). then this bland and exposition-
heavy first chapter could be for you. From the Scarecrow stealing a mysterious artefact to a bunch of Tommy gun- brandishing hoods meeting at a dockside bar. this is a torrent of Bat-cliches. Read Grant Morrison‘s Current. superb run on the Batman monthly to see how it should be done. (David Pollock)
HORROR VARIOUS Fantasy Classics: Graphic Classics Volume 15
(Eureka Productions) .0.
Graphic novel adaptations of classic works of literature are becoming more popular these days. and American series Graphic Classics pack in more updating for your buck with an anthology format. They're not quite in the premier league of a genre which includes the UK's Classical Comics and recent adaptations of RL Stevenson's work by Alan Grant and Cam Kennedy. but the strips in this volume do their job with efficiency. Abridged versions of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. L Frank Baum's The Glass Dog and HP Lovecraft's The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath use the original dialogue in a way which can be enjoyed by adults yet understood by younger readers. The art on each veers towards the cartoonish rather than the realistic. suggesting that the latter audience is the target. although Nigel Hawthorne's appacc/ni 's Daughter breaks up the book as a fairly ill-designed illustrated text piece. Altogether. a book which offers a quick- read introduction to a couple of authors who don‘t appear on any school curriCuIa. (David Pollock)