420 Hours in Edinburgh: The Canongate Popup Shop, Book Sculptures and A Very Special Bookgroup

The EIBF is full of wonderful moments.  Listening to favourite authors, chatting to them at the book signings,  making new discoveries, particularly in the EIBF book shop, catching up with fellow bookworms. From my perspective, most of this is planned, and it does take some planning (particularly if you are to dodge the rain!), though it is no [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: Fictional Biography

When truth is stranger than fiction, there’s no need to make anything up.  But it seems there are as many ways to write a fictional biography as there were authors appearing at the EIBF last week. David Lodge, whose fictional biography about the celibate Henry James Author! Author! I enjoyed very much, has now turned his attention to the distinctly [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: The Charlotte Square Experience

I’ve decided to return home for the weekend after spending 4 consecutive days in Edinburgh. I need a change of clothes and a rest because as wonderful as the EIBF is, it is exhausting. I have a notebook full of scribbles and need to work out a strategy for transferring these to the blog. (I [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: The Ladies of Leipzigburgh

Thursday 18.08.2011 Jenny Erpenbeck 17 days, 757 events, 797 authors: That’s the scope of the EIBF this year. And today I will use the ticket that I placed first in my basket. Sit down and take your seats for Jenny Erpenbeck is in the house! The event was chaired by Michel Faber, whose own review [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: Leipzigburgh

If you’ve read this blog before, you’ll know that I have a bit of a thing for all things Germanic.  You may not know that the most important literary festival in Germany takes places in Leipzig.  I may one day go (if I can brace myself to withstand the winter temperatures of Leipzig in March – average daily [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: Sebastian Barry On Canaan’s Side

Tuesday 16.08.2011 In general I prefer events with as little reading as possible unless the public reading is a performance and adds to the text.  And when Sebastian Barry is reading and then I don’t want any talking at all!  Watch this to understand  …. At this year’s EIBF  he read the shocking scene from the art museum in [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: And Other Stories Launches Down The Rabbit Hole

Have you heard of And Other Stories? If not, I think you soon will, particularly on the strength of their first title, which was launched at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this week. It is such a strong one because it was chosen by reading groups for translation and publication. An original publishing model and one which is set to continue. [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh: The Opening Event (and the books)

All the years I’ve been coming to EIBF, I’ve never attended the opening or closing event.  This year I’ll be at both as they’re both 21st century gothic events, modern day recreations of either Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde or Goethe’s Faust. Richard T Kelly and Kevin MacNeil have both reinterpreted Stevenson’s classic.  Why is it [...]

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420 Hours in Edinburgh – The first 45 minutes

It’s that time of time of the year again.  The Edinburgh International Book Festival!  And if everything does to plan, I will be there at the beginning and still standing at the end!  I have the full 17 days off work and a full itinerary.  Let’s get started. Saturday 13.08.2011 9:30 a.m. The gates open.  Passing [...]

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The Dark Vineyard – Martin Walker

Before we arrive at this week’s Crime on A Europass destination in the Dordogne, we need to take a little diversion. This story starts two year’s ago in Frankfurt am Main where I discovered Martin Walker’s first novel, Bruno, Chief of Police through a review in a German magasine.  I came home to Scotland, borrowed the unabridged audio from the library [...]

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