The Gift of Reading
Book Recommendations for the Festive Season
We love to give you a bumper BooksfromScotland issue at this time of year to give you as many Christmas gift recommendations as possible. Every kind of book lover should find something here worth putting under their tree, from fiction, humour, biographies and cookery books, to thrillers, art, nature writing, poetry, and a huge variety of books for children. We're spoiling you, so you can spoil yourselves this year. You deserve it. Happy festive season!
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the book is a perfect Christmas gift. So, we start this festive season issue with a collection of book recommendations that will fit snugly in your Christmas stocking, those wee treats that will make you laugh, marvel and share with your friends and family.
Coorie In A tae Z
Published by Wee Book Company, £5.99
Tae coorie in it’s a verb a richt but jist wha does it mean? Books say cuddlin, snugglin, cosy an tight an a’hing in between . . .
Leaf through a wee treasure trove of Scots poems in this A to Z sharing wisdom a’ aboot the muckle great joys o’ bidin a’ hame...
Stanley Baxter is an entertainment legend and his newly released autobiography gives a surprising insight into the man who has made us all laugh for decades. In this extract we follow Stanley trying to make his first steps in the world of entertainment as working down the mines and national service get in his way.
Extract taken from The Real Stanley Baxter By Brian Beacom and Stanley Baxter Published by Luath Press
The pit work involved a conveyor belt delivering a constant line of coal mixed up with stones and Stanley and Co. had to remove the stones, break them up with an 18-pound hammer into smaller pieces and then push them through a grille on the ground. However, as the bars on the grille were fixed close together, it made for far more stone breaking. Naturally, Stanley found this situation to be intolerable.
‘By the time I got the bloody stones broken up other stones had g...
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
‘No other drink is named after a country, which is why whisky is more than just a drink for me. When I’m feeling homesick, I’ll have a dram.’
The Book…According to David Keenan
‘I probably became a writer right then and there, when my dad gave me a book that introduced me to some of the mysteries of the world and that there are more things in heaven and earth.’
Perfect Book Gifts for Children
”When the snaw faws, magic glisters in the air. Wan snawy day a laddie builds a Snawman and in the middle o the nicht the Snawman comes tae life.’
‘The store in question was made of shining black bricks, bricks the colour of midnight that sparkled in the blood-orange light of the setting sun.’
‘Keeping it simple can be key to making something delicious.’
An Insider’s Guide to 44 Scotland Street
‘Instead, he is a celebrant of the good things in life – friendship, art, wit, kindness, comedy and above all a profound love of both Edinburgh and Scotland.’
‘It’s important you chat to someone through the procedure, so we can see which areas of the brain light up.’
‘The room was suddenly charged with emotion, and I felt my lies pressing down on me like lead weights.’
‘I so admire all of Dad’s achievements, and am proud to see what a legacy he has left. It’s exciting to see that people are still fascinated by Dad’s work, more than seventy years after he first anima …
‘I was struck by just how fun, playful and jesting Barrie was. And while I knew they developed a friendship, I didn’t realise just how much the friendship with Stevenson meant to Barrie.’
‘The naming of the configurations of the land is intimately connected with the Gaelic language, and the Gaelic language is intimately reflected in the nature of that indigenous landscape.’
‘Her dreams are full of treasure. She can’t wait to find it tomorrow!’
‘It’s a world of brass bands, lost teddy bears, shy puffins, fluffy sheep, missing dinosaurs, cream buns, mountain railways and Welsh teas.
‘Off the top of my head, would have loved to have met both John Candy and Robin Williams and gave them both a big cuddle.’
‘I’ve never met before, she’s lighting up the shelter like an angel in a holy grotto’
‘Somewhere beyond the door behind Cal, a high-pitched alarm began to chime.’
‘It wasn’t clear whether she was unconscious or dead. There were, in any case, no traces of blood, apparent signs of a struggle or wounds.’
ALSO ON BOOKS FROM SCOTLAND
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Pink Camouflage by Gemma Morgan
‘I had to tell this story for the thousands of other women who have been harmed by the toxic culture …
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The Hollow Tree by Philip Miller
‘The man turned around. His hands were dark with blood.
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David Robinson Reviews: All Before Me by Esther Rutter
‘This then is a book about recovery, about regaining self-confidence and rediscovering joy.’
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QuickFire, Slow Burning by Janette Ayachi
‘Things are shed when people listen to poetry.’
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‘But best of all it is dead silent: no sound of greetin’ weans, no shouting staff, no screaming- dru …
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‘If readers enjoy what you’ve written, they’ll keep on coming back for more.’
FEATURED AUTHOR:
Grisel Miranda
Grisel Miranda is a BA (Hon) graduated Illustrator and Animator currently based in Montrose. Grisel’s work has been featured in various magazines and international exhibitions. After doing freelance work in character design development for Animation an …
FEATURED PUBLISHER:
Tippermuir Books Ltd
Tippermuir Books Ltd is a book publisher based in Perth. Established in 2009, Tippermuir seeks to add to the cultural life of Scotland by publishing interesting and worthy books in English and Scots. Our strength is our smallness and love of the writte …