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debut novel, The Disappearance of Adèle Bedeau, with his second book, His Bloody Project. Released last year, the latter is an ambiguous if ostensibly true story tracing the tale of Burnet’s relative in the form of a memoir. It enchanted and intrigued both critics and fans alike, and was shortlisted for the prestigious 2016 Man Booker Prize. Sure, it might not have won but being the best-selling book on the shortlist and the bookies’ second-favourite brought Burnet plenty of international acclaim. (KS)
of the year, though, as she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, and was a prolii c and popular guest at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. There, she interviewed Nicola Sturgeon, discussed poetry with Carol Ann Duffy, and appeared with Zaffar Kunial in a talk about their work and heritage. (RM)
4 SUMMERHALL
LOTS ALWAYS HAPPENS HERE What The Stage described as Summerhall’s ‘domination’ of this year’s Edinburgh Fringe wasn’t far wrong. The Southside multi-arts venue capped a high-quality and deservedly acclaimed theatrical programme featuring some of the best practitioners in Scotland and beyond with the capture of more than half of the Fringe First awards handed out, four Total Theatre awards and a 30% increase in ticket sales on 2015. Yet this was only part of the story, with a great Fringe art roster headlined by a Joseph Beuys retrospective from the Demarco Archive and a year-round cultural schedule topped by the quality of Nothing Ever Happens Here, arguably Edinburgh’s best live music programme of the year. (DP)
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5 JACKIE KAY POET OF THE PEOPLE
Back in March, poet and novelist Jackie Kay was named as Liz Lochhead’s successor as Scots Makar, becoming only the third writer to have held the honour (alongside Lochhead and original post-holder, Edwin Morgan). This wasn’t her only appointment
3 GRAEME MACRAE BURNET BOOKER BOY RISES
Graeme Macrae Burnet continues to go from strength to strength, following up his
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38 THE LIST 3 Nov 2016–31 Jan 2017