Only Here, Only Now by Tom Newlands review – growing up with ADHD
“The prose in Tom Newlands’ debut novel is glorious, managing the feat of being both muscular and airy at the same time. But it is first and foremost the landscape that he stakes out that grabs you by the throat”
—Tom Newlands’ ONLY HERE, ONLY NOW is the Guardian’s Book of the Day
The longlist for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime book of the year 2024 has been announced – congratulations to DV Bishop, SG Maclean, Chris Brookmyre, Charles Cumming, Andrew James Greig, Doug Johnstone, Val McDermid, Abir Mukherjee, CS Robertson, Kim Sherwood, Doug Sinclair, & Douglas Skelton
GREENWICH BARBERS. Retailers of sand from the pits at and about Greenwich, in Kent: perhaps they are styled barbers, from their constant shaving the sandbanks.
A selection from Francis Grose’s “Dictionary Of The Vulgar Tongue” (1785)
RIBALDRY. Vulgar abusive language, such as was spoken by ribalds. Ribalds were originally mercenary soldiers who travelled about, serving any master far pay, but afterwards degenerated into a mere banditti.
A selection from Francis Grose’s “Dictionary Of The Vulgar Tongue” (1785)
GLASGOW BOYS
3 July, National Library of Scotland at Kelvinhall, Glasgow – free
Margaret McDonald will talk about her debut novel GLASGOW BOYS – a story about #mentalhealth, #queerness, & the #Scottish#workingclass – with National Librarian & Chief Executive of the National Library of Scotland Amina Shah
“There’s a kind of liberal fallacy, that we think if we hold the right views, and vote the right way, and mind our language, that we are somehow protected from young people thinking we’re in the wrong.”
—Andrew O’Hagan, interviewed in the New Yorker about his latest novel CALEDONIAN ROAD
CODS. The scrotum. Also a nick name for a curate: a rude fellow meeting a curate, mistook him for the rector, and accosted him with the vulgar appellation of Bol--ks the rector, No, Sir, answered he; only Cods the curate, at your service.
A selection from Francis Grose’s “Dictionary Of The Vulgar Tongue” (1785)
At the store and came across a pretty discounted hardcover copy of "Demon Copperhead" by Barbara Kingsolver. It is worth purchasing a physical copy? I usually try to stick to library books and purchase books I really like, but the library wait list is long and the price is tempting.
About to travel and was looking for something good to read.
JACOBITES. Sham or collar shirts. Also partizans for the Stuart family: from the name of the abdicated king, i.e. James or Jacobus. It is said by the whigs, that God changed Jacob's name to Israel, lest the descendants of that patriarch should be called Jacobites.
A selection from Francis Grose’s “Dictionary Of The Vulgar Tongue” (1785)
A one-day #sciencefiction convention in Perth – a chance to talk about #books, #games, #films etc. with an emphasis on #Scottish writers. Guest of honour Francesca Barbini, founder of Luna Press
Eight years ago, a woman named Laurene asked writer Richard Kelly Kemick to finish her late husband's novel, a book he had planned to finish upon retirement from his career as a surveyor, but never got the chance. Out of embarrassment and naivety, Kemick accepted. "The hard part was already over —the labour of birthing an idea — and all I had to do was towel it off and spank a bit of life into it," he writes for The Walrus.
Here's more on his efforts to finish a dead man's novel and what he learned along the way. "The briefcase novel has taught me nothing about writing; it hasn’t taught me how to sculpt a sentence, how to develop character, not even how to craft a sex scene (from the notebook titled “Personalities”: “They made love, and she died.”). But the briefcase novel, and the surveyor who made it, has taught me everything about being a writer," he concludes.
“Classical literature has been reinterpreted for millennia. Different generations have made these works their own by translating the original Greek or Latin into their vernacular, and every translation brings fresh perspectives. While the earliest appearances of these texts are unattainable, the history of printing is peppered with remarkable Classical firsts from a wide array of translators.”
DOVE-TAIL. A species of regular answer, which fits into the subject, like the contrivance whence it takes its name: Ex. Who owns this? The dovetail is, Not you by your asking.
A selection from Francis Grose’s “Dictionary Of The Vulgar Tongue” (1785)