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The Herald Scotland
23-04-2025
- General
- The Herald Scotland
We cherish Scotland's right to roam but our freedom is a myth
Red Pockets: An Offering Alice Mah Allen Lane, £20 One of the most unusual and powerful books I've read in a long time. Chinese Canadian-British writer Alice Mah is Professor of Urban and Environmental Studies at the University of Glasgow. Red Pockets – the red envelopes used in China to give money to family and clan members – describes her return to her ancestral village in South China, and the reverberations of that disturbing visit. In a soul-searching narrative that charts her escalating despair over the global climate emergency, she addresses the ways in which the world's plight is connected with unresolved issues from the past. Drawing on the cultural and economic histories of China, Canada, England and Scotland, Mah navigates her own fretful response to her family history and her fears for the future. Clear-eyed and sensitive, Red Pockets is a moving and imaginative memoir of facing up to the wrongs of the past, at the same time asking what we owe to previous generations, and to those who will inherit this planet from us. A Granite Silence (Image: free) A Granite Silence Nina Allan riverrun, £20 The murder in Aberdeen in 1934 of eight-year-old Helen Priestley horrified the nation and had a shattering impact on the over-crowded tenement community where she lived. In this closely researched account, Nina Allan creatively explores the many elements exposed by this dreadful crime. Wild Fictions Amitav Ghosh Faber & Faber, £25 In the run-up to the Iraq War, Indian-born novelist Amitav Ghosh clashed with a well-known American editor, who refused to see the USA as anything but a benign and altruistic force. In the years since he has produced a drawerful of highly-researched pieces, now brought together in this collection. Covering some of the most pressing subjects in recent decades, from 9/11, the ongoing legacy of imperialism, Hurricane Katrina, the refugee crisis and disasters such as the 2004 Indonesian tsunami - the natural and the political cannot be separated, he argues - this is an unflinching portrait of our times from a refreshingly original perspective. Room on the Sea André Aciman Faber & Faber, £12.99 Meeting while awaiting jury selection, New Yorkers Paul and Catherine covertly take stock of each other. She reading Wuthering Heights, he looking every inch the dapper Wall Street type. What starts as nothing more than a brief encounter becomes more serious, and soon a life-changing decision must be faced. André Aciman is a romantic with a melancholy soul and an eye for detail that makes his fiction read as if real. Read more Of Thorn and Briar Paul Lamb Simon & Schuster, £20 'It is during the shortening days of the autumn months, when the September mists return and the morning dew settles on the pastures once more, that the hedger begins his work.' So writes Paul Lamb, for 30 years a hedgelayer in the west country, who lives in a converted horse box. An enlightening and beautifully told monthly journal of following an ancient craft, and the benefits it brings to the countryside. Back in the Day Oliver Lovrenski Trans. Nichola Smalley Hamish Hamilton, £14.99 On publication in Norway in 2023, Oliver Lovrenski's debut novel Back in the Day swiftly became a bestseller. Norway's Trainspotting is a deep dive into the chaos, terror and black humour of teenagers locked in a cycle of deprivation. Ivor and Marco, who live in Oslo, have been on the downward slope since they were 13, when they started getting high. At 14 they were dealing drugs, and a year later began carrying knives. This bleak tale, told with brio, offers a fresh take on what it is to be young in an environment where a positive future is but a dream. Hitler and Mussolini (Image: free) The Einstein Vendetta: Hitler, Mussolini and a Murder That Haunts History Thomas Harding Michael Joseph, £22 Robert Einstein, Albert's cousin, lived with his family in a villa near Florence. One summer's day in 1944, while he was safely in hiding, a unit of soldiers arrived at the villa. When they left, 12 hours later, Robert's wife and children were dead. Their murder has never been solved, but in this scrupulously researched account, Thomas Harding takes on this notorious case, asking who ordered the killings, and why was no-one brought to account? The Eights Joanna Miller Fig Tree, £16.99 In 1920 Oxford University finally admitted female undergraduates. Joanna Miller's debut novel follows a group of young women, all living in rooms on Corridor Eight, who become close friends. From varied backgrounds - privileged, hard-up, politically engaged - all are hopeful of what lies ahead. All, too, are scarred by the recent war. With an influenza pandemic terrorising Europe, their time in Oxford promises to be eventful. Victory '45: The End of the War in Six Surrenders James Holland and Al Murray Bantam, £22 To mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, James Holland and Al Murray have joined forces to illuminate how peace was finally achieved. Between May and September 1945 there were six surrenders: four in Europe, two in Japan. Describing the events leading to each, and telling the stories of the people involved, from generals and political leaders to service men and women and civilians, Victory '45 memorably brings history, and those who made it, to life.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sir Paul McCartney recalls 'madcap adventures' in new book
Sir Paul McCartney has co-authored a book about his time in Wings. The 82-year-old icon formed the rock band in 1971, after the Beatles split, and McCartney has shared his experiences in a new book called 'Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run'. The chart-topping star - who is set to release the book in November - said: "I'm so very happy to be transported back to the time that was Wings and relive some of our madcap adventures through this book. "Starting from scratch after the Beatles felt crazy at times. There were some very difficult moments and I often questioned my decision. But as we got better I thought, 'OK, this is really good.' We proved Wings could be a really good band. To play to huge audiences in the same way the Beatles had and have an impact in a different way. It was a huge buzz." McCartney formed Wings with his wife Linda, drummer Denny Seiwell, and guitarist Denny Laine. The group released seven studio albums - including 'Band on the Run', 'London Town' and 'Venus and Mars' - between 1971 and 1981. McCartney has co-authored the new book with historian Ted Widmer. Ted said: "Wings was about love, family, friendship and artistic growth, often in the face of tremendous adversity." The book's publisher, Penguin imprint Allen Lane, has also offered an insight into the upcoming release. Allen Lane explained: "The narrative follows the various incarnations of the band as they survive a mugging in Nigeria, appear unannounced at UK university halls, tour in a sheared-off school bus with their children, while producing some of the most indelible and acclaimed music of the decade."
The Guardian
26-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘Madcap adventures': Paul McCartney co-authors book about his time in Wings
An account of Paul McCartney's post-Beatles career at the helm of Wings is to be published later this year. Wings: The Story of a Band on the Run, by McCartney and historian Ted Widmer, will hit UK and US bookshops on 4 November. 'I'm so very happy to be transported back to the time that was Wings and relive some of our madcap adventures through this book,' said McCartney. 'Starting from scratch after the Beatles felt crazy at times. There were some very difficult moments and I often questioned my decision. But as we got better I thought, 'OK, this is really good.' We proved Wings could be a really good band. To play to huge audiences in the same way the Beatles had and have an impact in a different way. It was a huge buzz.' Formed in 1971, Wings released seven studio albums, a live album and a compilation album over the ensuing decade, including Band on the Run, Venus and Mars, and At the Speed of Sound. Alongside McCartney, the band's core members were his wife, Linda, and Denny Laine. 'Wings was about love, family, friendship and artistic growth, often in the face of tremendous adversity', said Widmer, who was a speechwriter in the Clinton White House. Described as an 'oral history', the book will remember Wings' songs, collaborations and performances, drawing on interviews with McCartney and others in the band's orbit. Organised around nine Wings albums, the book 'sheds new light on the immediate aftermath and seismic global impact of the Beatles' break-up', according to its publisher, Penguin imprint Allen Lane. 'The narrative follows the various incarnations of the band as they survive a mugging in Nigeria, appear unannounced at UK university halls, tour in a sheared-off school bus with their children, while producing some of the most indelible and acclaimed music of the decade,' Allen Lane added. The volume will also feature more than 100 photographs, many of which have never been seen before. The book is part of a wider re-examination of the band's catalogue, which has included the theatrical release last year of performance film One Hand Clapping and its accompanying album, 50th anniversary editions of Band on the Run (released last year) and Venus and Mars (released next month), and a forthcoming documentary about McCartney's solo and Wings-related work of the 70s by film-maker Morgan Neville.
The Guardian
12-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Neneh Cherry and Anne Applebaum longlisted for Women's prize for nonfiction
The Buffalo Stance singer Neneh Cherry, historian Anne Applebaum and Labour MP Yuan Yang are among those longlisted for the Women's prize for nonfiction. 16 authors, 11 of whom are British, are in contention for this year's £30,000 prize, which was launched last year to redress the gender imbalance in nonfiction prizes in the UK. Autocracy, Inc. by Anne Applebaum (Allen Lane) Embers of the Hands by Eleanor Barraclough (Profile) The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor (Allen Lane) A Thousand Threads by Neneh Cherry (Vintage) The Story of A Heart by Rachel Clarke (Abacus) Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton (Canongate) Ootlin by Jenni Fagan (Hutchinson Heinemann) Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller (Pushkin) Agent Zo by Clare Mulley (Weidenfeld) By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle (William Collins) Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux (Faber) What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales (Atlantic) The Peepshow by Kate Summerscale (Bloomsbury) Sister in Law by Harriet Wistrich (Transworld) Tracker by Alexis Wright (And Other Stories) Private Revolutions by Yuan Yang (Bloomsbury) The longlisted titles 'boast so many different disciplines and genres', said journalist Kavita Puri, who is this year's judging chair. 'What unites them all is the quality of the writing, the authority of the voice and the originality of their storytelling, and just the depth and incisiveness of the research.' Cherry was longlisted for her memoir A Thousand Threads, while Yang was chosen for Private Revolutions, her portrait of modern China told through the lives of four young women. Applebaum appears on the list for Autocracy, Inc., which explores the kleptocratic financial structures that underlie autocracies. While the selected books are 'all quite different', said Puri, themes that emerged were 'power and control – how it's used, how it's abused', injustice, human connections 'with each other, but also the natural world' and climate change. There are also books featuring 'perspectives that have been overlooked', said Puri, including Indigenous voices, such as By the Fire We Carry by Native American activist Rebecca Nagle which looks at the 'battles of the Muscogee people', while Tracker by Australian writer Alexis Wright is a 'very personal' story of an Indigenous Australian leader. Other 'striking personal stories' include Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, about her experience growing up in care, and The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke, 'an exquisite story about one family giving the heart of their child, so that another can live, and the wonder of science and medicine'. The shortlist of six books will be announced on 26 March, with the winner revealed on 12 June, alongside the winner of the fiction prize, which turns 30 this year. Also on the longlist are What the Wild Sea Can Be by Helen Scales, Wild Thing by Sue Prideaux, Embers of the Hands by Eleanor Barraclough, The Eagle and the Hart by Helen Castor, Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton, Why Fish Don't Exist by Lulu Miller, Agent Zo by Clare Mulley, The Peepshow by Kate Summerscale and Sister in Law by Harriet Wistrich. Sign up to Bookmarks Discover new books and learn more about your favourite authors with our expert reviews, interviews and news stories. Literary delights delivered direct to you after newsletter promotion The nonfiction prize was announced in 2023 following research which found that only 35.5% of books awarded a nonfiction prize over the prior decade were written by women, across seven UK nonfiction prizes. Given that 'female writers in the nonfiction area don't do as well' as their male counterparts in terms of book advances and newspaper coverage, Puri sees this prize as an opportunity to 'elevate brilliant female writing in a whole array of genres'. Women's perspectives on the 'most pressing' issues of the day 'need to be heard', she added. 'So there is a huge need for this prize today'. This year's prize was open to books published in the UK between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. Alongside Puri on the judging panel are the writers Leah Broad, Elizabeth Buchan, Elizabeth-Jane Burnett and Emma Gannon. The inaugural nonfiction prize was won by Naomi Klein for her book Doppelganger.
