More young people will be able to get involved in the First Minister’s Reading Challenge as it expands to include secondary schools, libraries and community groups. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made the announcement at Riverside Primary School in Stirling – the winner of the School and Community Partnership Reading Journey award for its participation in the challenge. Continue reading New chapter for Reading Challenge
A pilot for a single card that can be used in any library has been launched in the north east of Scotland. The pilot gives readers access to more than 120 libraries – and 1.6 million books. Continue reading Sharing our stories: ‘One Card’ library pass to be trialled
AN exhibition charting the life and legacy of influential 16th century mathematician John Napier opens at Edinburgh’s Central Library tomorrow (Monday 2 October).
Napier – eighth Laird of Merchiston, who lived from 1550 to 1617 – had deep interests in astronomy and religion but is best known as the inventor of logarithms, which decoded previously unexplored complexities within mathematics. He also invented a series of calculating devices, including ‘Napier’s Bones’, and made common the use of the decimal point.
The Beyond Logarithms & Bones free exhibition, one of a series of events marking the 400th anniversary of Napier’s passing, will include replica Bones as well as Napier memorabilia.
On display will be a rare Promptuary calculating machine, an extension of Napier’s Bones constructed according to Napier’s instructions, which was donated by New Zealand’s Auckland University, and a cap and feathers worn at the Clan Napier parade at this year’s Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.
The exhibition storyboards and glass cabinet display focus on four specific themes concerning John Napier’s life and legacy – Genesis, Transition, Creativity and Legacy.
The exhibition runs at the Central Library from October 2-16, and Edinburgh’s Eric Liddell Centre from October 19-31.
John Napier 400 was marked earlier this year by a memorial service featuring a new poem about Napier written by Edinburgh novelist Alexander McCall Smith, entitled A Cosmos of Numbers.
The anniversary of Napier’s passing was also commemorated with a public lecture at Edinburgh Napier University this month in which physicist and author Professor Jim Al-Khalili examined scientific advances which will shape the 21st century.
John Napier’s Merchiston Tower family home now lies at the heart of Edinburgh Napier’s Merchiston campus, home to the Schools of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment, and Arts and Creative Industries.
Visitors to Edinburgh’s Central Library will be able to sample a special selection of Nordic noir, as well as sci-fi, history and poetry, thanks to a delivery by the Finnish Institute in London. Continue reading Library receives special consignment of Scandinavian stories
Carnegie UK Trust sets out five-point plan to boost public libraries
A report published today provides both cause for concern and reason for hope for the UK’s pressured public library service. Scotland has the highest level of public library use in the UK, according to the new research, with half of the 1,000 Scots surveyed saying they had visited a library within the past year. Continue reading We love our libraries!
A writer from Edinburgh has come one step closer to having his work published, after being named the recipient of a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award 2017.
Simon Brown (above) is one of the 10 recipients of the coveted award, run by Scottish Book Trust in association with Creative Scotland. The awards provide a selection of talented, unpublished writers with financial support to enable them to concentrate on developing their work, as well as professional guidance to help them move towards publication.
Each of the 10 recipients will receive a £2,000 cash award and support tailored to their needs including mentoring from writers and industry professionals, training in public relations, social media and performance and the opportunity to showcase their work to publishers and agents. The awards also include a week-long retreat at Moniack Mhor. The retreat provides time, space and the freedom to create new work in idyllic surroundings.
Simon, a Library Assistant from the Southside of Edinburgh, has received a New Writers Award in the Fiction & Narrative Non Fiction category.
Simon was born and raised in the Highlands but now lives in Edinburgh. He’s currently working on his third novel, a story about people who work at the Department of Karmic Affairs, while sprucing up his second. He has one publishing credit to his name – a story that appeared in 404 Ink – but will be working hard to improve that this year.
When he’s not writing he can be found working for the city libraries, where he occasionally has to sing at children, or mucking about with a sampler trying to make hip hop. He wrote his first story, The Hair, when he was six years old. It was about hair.
Commenting on the award, Simon said: “I’ve run out of places to pinch myself. Thank you to Scottish Book Trust for giving me this incredible opportunity – I’m going to work so hard to justify the belief that has been shown in me.”
The three judging panels reviewed over 400 entries in total before selecting the final 10. This year’s judges included Don Paterson, Amy Liptrot and Pamela Butchart.
The full list of the 2017 New Writers Awardees is:
Fiction & Narrative Non Fiction
Anna Stewart (Dundee)
Elisabeth Ingram Wallace (Glasgow)
Laura Morgan (North Sutherland)
Sally Huband (Shetland)
Simon Brown (Edinburgh)
Poetry
Ciara MacLaverty (Glasgow)
Lydia Harris (Orkney)
Molly Vogel (Glasgow)
Children’s and Young Adult Fiction
Christine Laurenson (Shetland)
Helen MacKenzie (Linlithgow)
Caitrin Armstrong, Head of Writer Development at Scottish Book Trust, said: “The New Writers Awards exist to support and nurture the talent and spirit out there in Scotland. We’re here to help the writers who might be bowing under the weight of their commitments or who just need some breathing space and encouragement to keep going. Our 2017 awardees have already produced some fantastic writing, and I can’t wait to see what they create over the next year.”
Aly Barr, Head of Literature, Languages and Publishing, Creative Scotland, said: “The New Writers Awards continue to be both a strong indicator of the next big name in Scottish writing and a vital rung on the ladder for authors taking their first steps as professionals.”
Many New Writers Award recipients go on to secure publishing deals. Upcoming 2017 publications from previous awardees include the much-anticipated Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine (HarperCollins) by Gail Honeyman. 2016 publications from previous awardees include Claire Askew with This Changes Things published by Bloodaxe Books, Lucy Ribchester with The Amber Shadows published by Simon and Schuster, Martin MacInnes with Infinite Ground published by Atlantic Books and Helen Sedgwick with The Comet Seekers published by Harvill Secker. 2012 recipient Graeme Macrae Burnet was shortlisted for the 2016 Man Booker Prize for his second novel, His Bloody Project.
Picture: Rob McDougall
Edinburgh’s most borrowed books of 2016 have been published, revealing a penchant for crime and mystery amongst city readers. Psychological thriller The Girl on the Train topped the list of fiction books borrowed from the capital’s libraries last year, followed closely by Ian Rankin’s Even Dogs in the Wild and Peter May’s Coffin Road. Continue reading And Edinburgh’s most borrowed book in 2016 was …
Young entrants to Edinburgh’s Green Pencil Award were immersed in their subject matter at the launch of the annual writing competition yesterday. Preston Street Primary School pupils explored the competition’s theme, Scotland’s Glorious Gardens, during a visit to Princes Street Gardens. Continue reading Children’s writing competition: green fingers required!
CBBC’s Awesome Authors is coming to the capital this weekend, giving Edinburgh’s children the chance to take part in this fun and exciting national event. Continue reading Awesome Authors coming to Edinburgh
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