The Darkest Timeline by Bram E. Gieben, published by Revol Press

Serious, thought-provoking, and darkly philosophical, Bram E. Gieben’s collection of essays, The Darkest Timeline: Living in a World with No Future, covers sociopolitical concerns with style, wit, and insight, proffering a considered cultural commentary with references which range from Zizek to South Park, Murakami to Mad Max. Often looking to fiction to help explain and predict the future of our so-called reality, The Darkest Timeline could have been deeply depressing were it not so utterly entertaining. Subjects examined include transhumanism, cyberpunk, liminal spaces, and ‘The War of the Memes’, all the while confirming that continuing to tell stories to each other and ourselves is vital for us as a species, even if only to help pass the time. For Bram E. Gieben, it’s the end of the world as he knows it, and it’s unlikely to be fine.

Matilda In The Middle by Katy Lironi, published by Into Books

Appropriately split into two sides, Katy Lironi’s Matilda In The Middle is a memoir which covers Katy’s early life leading up to her time in the indie band The Fizzbombs who were central to Edinburgh’s thriving music scene of the mid-late eighties, part of what came to be known as the C86 movement. Side Two concentrates on family life, but there’s music still at its core. Katy and husband Douglas collaborate as members of The Secret Goldfish, and on running the indie label Creeping Bent, while also starting a family of five children, with Matilda in the middle, and the memoir is unflinching in its honest depiction of what it takes to raise a family in the present day. By relating the deeply personal Matilda In The Middle taps into something universal, that lives may look one way from the outside, but are completely different to those inside. Still involved in making music – we are promised new material from The Secret Goldfish soon – Katy Lironi has written a memoir which confirms that true, relatable, drama is to be found in the everyday. Matilda In The Middle will warm your heart and soothe your soul. 

All We Have Is The Story: Selected Interviews 1973-2022 by James Kelman, published by PM Press

Best known for his fiction, both novels and short stories, long term Kelman readers will know that his essays and other non-fiction are just as essential, and this latest collection of interviews is no different. Spanning almost 50 years, the range of interviewers reads like a Who’s Who of literary luminaries, including Duncan McLean, Kirsty McNeill, Jeff Torrington, Michael Gardiner, Rosemary Goring, Scott Hames, and Brian Hamill. Long form interviews such as these are all too rare today, and to get such insight into one of Scotland’s greatest ever writers – that is even rarer. While Kelman seems to be ignored by many who should know better in his homeland – his lifetime achievement award at this year’s Saltire Society Awards better late than never – and with much of his back catalogue ludicrously out of print in the UK, we should be incredibly grateful to American publishers PM Press for giving James Kelman a literary home, publishing his recent work including the 2022 novel God’s Teeth and Other Phenomena. If you don’t know the work of Kelman, then this is quite the introduction.

Joshua In The Sky: A Blood Memoir by Rodge Glass, published by Taproot Press

Unlike anything else published this year, or perhaps in any year, Rodge Glass’ Joshua In The Sky is an intensely personal book which will nonetheless inspire empathy in all who read it. Rodge’s nephew Joshua died the same day he was born, and this is an attempt to make some kind of sense of this loss, if that is even possible. Joshua and Rodge share a blood condition called Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT) and this connection is at the core of Joshua In The Sky, which touches, often viscerally, on grief, guilt, and notions of self-worth. Examining a different theme in every chapter, Glass returns to important texts from his life and work, reassing them, and himself, along the way. Ultimately, it’s not so much about finding answers as the process itself. Joshua In The Sky will break your heart, then carefully picks up the pieces to leave you with a greater understanding of your own life, and those of others. 

All author profits from Joshua in the Sky will be donated to Cure HHT or to the UCLH Baby Fetal Unit that cared for Joshua.

Through The Crack In The Wall by Johnnie Johnstone, published by Jaw Bone

Taken from a lyric from their song ‘It’s Kinda Funny’, Through The Crack In The Wall is an apposite title for Johnnie Johnstone’s biography of Scottish post-punk pioneers Josef K who, almost from from the beginning, appeared to be a band who never quite belonged – the outsiders’ outsiders. As a result they would find a deeply committed fanbase, but not necessarily the wider fame and acclaim they deserved. In his idiosyncratic introduction comedian Stewart Lee confirms the band’s reputation and why that appealed to him, and it’s clear his admiration is heartfelt. With Josef K, the question remains, “was cult status gained by accident or design?”. Through The Crack In The Wall examines that central question, and others which result from it. This was a band defined as much by what they weren’t as what they were.

Ootlin by Jenni Fagan, published by Hutchison/Heinemann

We know Jenni Fagan as one of the great contemporary writers, whether in poetry or prose, so it should come as no surprise that her memoir Ootlin is one of the books of the year. The ‘Prologue’ begins “This is a story about stories.”, and no one tells stories as Jenni Fagan does. Despite this being her own you feel utterly involved right from the start. Honesty is often mentioned with reference to the best memoirs – I’ve done it elsewhere on this page – but rarely is it conveyed with the artistry evident in Ootlin. Begun 20 years before as something very different, and using childhood diaries and social work files, it sets out Fagan’s time in the UK care system which began at birth, and while it tells of her individual experiences it also is a comment on the systematic failures which allowed these events to occur. While this is not an easy read, and nor should it be, it is a compelling one. You have to turn the next page until, before you know it, it’s the last. This is in part because ‘Jenni Fagan’ is as charasmatic as any character from her fiction, with an indomitable spirit which endures. Ootlin is at times harsh and harrowing, yet there is always hope. 

Edinburgh: The Autobiography by Alan Taylor, published by Birlinn Books

With Edinburgh: The Autobiography, Alan Taylor does for the nation’s capital what he has previously done for Glasgow, and gives the city the documented history it deserves, a timely undertaking in this its 900th anniversary. In the introduction Taylor quotes Hugh MacDiarmid who described the city as ‘a mad god’s dream’, which is a wonderful evocation not only of the place, but the people who have shaped it. Told across many of those years, Taylor proves to be the most welcoming of editors, his introductions to every chapter lending them a warm and personal touch, while putting what follows into a wider context. If you think you know Edinburgh, think again. Through judicious use of the words of others this autobiography informs, educates, and entertains as we are taken on a journey through place and time.

Postcards From Scotland by Grant McPhee, published by Omnibus Press

Some will know some of this story, they may even know most of it, but I’m willing to bet very few know it all. Most music biographies concentrate on the bands and names the wider public will have heard of. What Grant McPhee has done is to go deep and wide and tall to fill in all the silences, meaning that for every Primal Scream, Jesus and Mary Chain, Cocteau Twins, and Soup Dragons there are Meat Whiplash, The Hardy Boys, The Fizzbombs, The Wendys, The Styng Rites, and countless others, all with their own fascinating stories to tell. That’s part of the joy – thinking about bands, gigs, nights out, and those who shared them, perhaps for the first time in years. For me, and those like me, this is as close to an essential read as I can imagine.

Made In Scotland: Studies in Popular Music Eds: Simon Frith, Martin Cloonan and John Williamson, published by Routledge

If you can judge a book by those who edit it, then Made In Scotland: Studies in Popular Music was always going to be a notable entry in the Routledge Global Popular Music Series as Messrs Frith, Cloonan and Williamson are three of the most respected and revered music academics around. As well as their own contributions, there are chapters by musicians Carla J. Easton, Dave Hook (better known to some as Solareye), Diljeet Kaur Bhachu, Sean McLaughlin, and Graeme Smillie. Part 1 examines histories which include music TV, indie labels, girl bands, Gaelic performance, and jazz. In Part 2 the politics and policies are scrutinised, while Part 3 looks to the future. As well as the essays there are a number of insightful interviews, including an Afterword where some of the central figures in Scottish music today offer their thoughts. If you’re interested in the past, present, and future of music made in Scotland, this book ticks all the boxes.

The Contini Cookbook by Carina Contini, published by Birlinn Books

I always like to include at least one cookbook in these roundups as it is something close to my heart; and heart and soul are evident in The Contini Cookbook, from Edinburgh restaurateur Carina Contini. Written over a period of 10 years, this is not only about the food and drink, but a culture and way of life which takes the traditional and brings it bang up to date. Carina Contini delves deep into her own family’s history to look not only at a culinary legacy but the wider Italian/Scots experience. Genuinely engaging in a manner rare for the genre, it’s also full of recipes begging to be made. This is one of the finest Italian cookbooks I have read, one to always to have to hand, and destined to be food-splattered and dog-eared before you know it. 

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