Edinburgh Events and Reading Groups
We're delighted to bring our all-year-round Literary Festival to our bookshop in Edinburgh. We have a packed calendar which ranges from readings in the bookshop to evenings with literary stars.
William Coles on Eton Rogue
Friday 3rd May, 7.30pm
Are you ready for a hilarious and shocking story of scandal and rebellion, set in none other than one of the world's most famous schools, Eton …
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Jose Henrique Bortoluci
Friday 3rd May, 7.30pm
It is a joy to be partnering once again with our friends at Fitzcarraldo Editions. This time, we will be celebrating publication of another piece of …
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Nathan Abrams on Kubrick
Monday 6th May, 7.30pm
Everyone knows the name Stanley Kubrick, but how many of us know the man behind the camera? Enigmatic, aloof, and heralded as a cinematic genius, Kubrick …
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Catherine Prasifka
Tuesday 7th May, 7.30pm
We are so thrilled to welcome Catherine Prasifka to the bookshop this May for her new book This is How You Remember It. Catherine's debut novel …
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French Fiction Reading Group
Wednesday 8th May, 7.30pm
L'anomalie, Hervé Le Tellier« Il est une chose admirable qui surpasse toujours la connaissance, l'intelligence, et même le génie, c'est l'incompréhension. »Come join us once a …
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Carys Davies on Clear
Wednesday 8th May, 7.30pm
Please note, this event is now taking place at Pilrig St. Paul's Church.The Scotsman called it 'an astonishing novel' and the Sunday Times named it a …
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Sarah Perry
Thursday 9th May, 7.30pm
Sarah Perry, beloved author of The Essex Serpent and Melmoth, returns in 2024 with her finest novel to date, Enlightenment. Described by Sean Hewitt as a …
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Hillfire Anthology Vol. 3
Friday 10th May, 7pm
It is our pleasure to welcome various contributors to the latest Hillfire Anthology.Hillfire Anthology annually houses a variety of new short stories and poems (and some …
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Poetry Reading Group
Monday 13th May, 7.30pm
Calling all poetry lovers in Edinburgh – come and join us every second Monday of the month for our poetry reading group. From Queer and BAME …
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Jean Findlay
Monday 13th May, 7.30pm
We're thrilled to be launching the paperback of Jean Findlay's The Queen's Lender: winner of Hawthornden Fellowship 2017& Lavigny International Fellowship 2018, and longlisted for Historical …
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Catherine Coldstream on Her Life as a Contemplative Nun
Tuesday 14th May, 7.30pm
This May, we are excited to welcome Catherine Coldstream to the Bookshop to talk about her debut memoir Cloistered which follows her experience of becoming — …
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David Mitchell: Cloud Atlas, 20 Years On
Wednesday 15th May, 7.30pm
When it was first published in 2004, The Guardian called Cloud Atlas ‘a remarkable book’, adding ‘there won't be a bigger, bolder novel this year. With …
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Ingrid Persaud
Thursday 16th May, 7.30pm
Ingrid Persaud is the Costa First Novel Award winning author of Love After Love: a remarkably sensitive exploration of familial love, dissolution, and renewal. It is …
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Juano Diaz
Friday 17th May, 7.30pm
Juano Diaz' Slum Boy is a literary sensation in the making. Already winning the hearts of Andrew O'Hagan and Douglas Stuart, Slum Boy is an endlessly …
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Of This and Other Worlds - Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Group
Monday 20th May, 7.30pm
Heading into 2024, we’ll be continuing our Fantasy and Science Fiction reading group, exploring worlds both fantastical and horrific, monstrous and utopian. Whether your interests lie …
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Caroline Eden for Cold Kitchen: a Year of Culinary Journeys
Monday 20th May, 7.30pm
Please note, this event is now taking place at Pilrig St. Paul's Church.We cannot wait to host Caroline Eden, friend of the bookshop and author of …
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Nicolas Padamsee: An Observer Best Debut Novelist for 2024
Tuesday 21st May, 7.30pm
Nicolas Padamsee's England is Mine is an explosive novel about one of Britain's most pressing issues: violent extremism amongst young men. Nicolas was named by The …
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Michael Peel
Wednesday 22nd May, 7.30pm
Is Britain the idyllic island we think it is? Financial Times foreign correspondent Michael Peel provides a fresh perspective in What Everyone Knows About Britain* (*Except …
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Stig Abell and Val McDermid: The Return of Jack Jackson
Thursday 23rd May, 7.30pm
N.B. This event is now taking place at the Royal Scots Club (29-31 Abercromby Pl, EH3 6QE ). All other details remain unchanged.We're delighted to be …
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Amor Towles
Friday 24th May, 7.30pm
N.B. The venue for this event has changed from the Tom Fleming Centre to Ps & Gs Church. If you purchased a ticket before 19th March, …
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Velia Vidal
Monday 27th May, 7.30pm
We are very excited to partner again in 2024 with one of our favourite independent publishers, Charco Press, and celebrate translated fiction together in the Bookshop. …
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Cat Bohannon & Kate Womersley
Tuesday 28th May, 7.30pm
We're honoured to be hosting Cat Bohannon for her Women's Prize for Non-Fiction longlisted Eve: How The Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution.Over …
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Nicola Lamb
Wednesday 29th May, 7.30pm
We're celebrating the craft and comfort of baking with Chef Nicola Lamb. Join us this May to discover her delectable and comprehensive new baking guide, SIFT: …
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A Secret Edinburgh Walk with Hannah Robinson
Thursday 30th May, 3.30pm
Secret Edinburgh WalkA guide to the unusual and unfamiliar with Hannah RobinsonJoin us for an afternoon walk with Hannah Robinson, author of Secret Edinburgh: an Unusual …
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Susan Dennard & S.T. Gibson
Thursday 30th May, 7.30pm
N.B. This event is now taking place at Greenside Church (1b Royal Terrace, EH7 5AB). All other details remain unchanged.Please note that the full cost of …
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Coco Mellors: From Cleo and Frank to the Blue Sisters
Friday 31st May, 7.30pm
Is there anybody who didn't adore Cleopatra & Frankenstein?Beloved by our booksellers and readers alike, Coco Mellors' debut - a Sunday Times bestseller, no less - …
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Marlon James: A Decade Since the Booker Prize
Monday 3rd June, 7.30pm
Who would believe it has been a decade since Kingston's finest, Marlon James, won the Booker Prize? His A Brief History of Seven Killings is a …
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Andrew O'Hagan
Tuesday 4th June, 7.30pm
Andrew O'Hagan has been nominated for the Booker Prize, voted one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists in 2003, and won the E. M. Forster …
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Selva Almada
Wednesday 5th June, 7.30pm
We are thrilled to be welcoming Selva Almada for her latest novel published by the wonderful independent publisher Charco Press. Shortlisted for the Mario Vargas Llosa …
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Claire Daverley
Thursday 6th June, 7.30pm
Claire Daverley won our hearts with her blockbuster debut, Talking at Night. It also won the (perhaps more influential) acclaim of Jojo Moyes and Libby Page, …
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Christos Tsiolkas: The In-Between
Friday 7th June, 7.30pm
We're delighted to be welcoming author and playwright Christos Tsiolkas all the way from the Land Down Under to speak on his new novel The In-Between, …
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Jen Stout: Night Train to Odesa
Monday 10th June, 7.30pm
Join us for an important and highly relevant event on the Russia-Ukraine war with Scottish journalist and radio producer Jen Stout. Jen joins us to present …
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Isabel Greenberg for Young Hag
Tuesday 11th June, 7.30pm
Joining us to talk onYoung Hag, Isabel Greenberg recounts the magical history of our country, and the disillusionment of the present age. Once upon a time …
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Adam Smyth: A Human History of Books
Wednesday 12th June, 7.30pm
If you're a bibliophile, this is your dream! Join us for an evening with Adam Smyth, Professor of English Literature and the History of the Book …
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French Fiction Reading Group
Wednesday 12th June, 7.30pm
Frère d'âme, David Diop« Moi, Alfa Ndiaye, dernier fils du vieil homme, j’ai vu les obus malicieux, les ennemis aux yeux bleus, le ventre ouvert de …
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Kathleen Jamie: Launching 'Cairn'
Thursday 13th June, 7.30pm
N.B. This event is now taking place at Greenside Church (1b Royal Terrace, EH7 5AB). All other details remain unchanged.From Scotland's National Poet Kathleen Jamie comes …
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June Thomas and Alison Bechdel: Six Spaces That Shaped Queer Women's Culture
Friday 14th June, 7.30pm
‘An inspiring celebration of lesbian camaraderie, activism and fun’ SARAH WATERS‘A must-have for any queer bookshelf’ TEGAN QUINWe can't wait to welcome June Thomas to Edinburgh …
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Celebrating Lauren Elkin's Debut Novel
Monday 17th June, 7.30pm
We are delighted to welcome award-winning translator and author Lauren Elkin for the publication of her debut novel in English Scaffolding, which writer Sophie Mackintosh celebrated …
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Tom Newlands on Only Here, Only Now
Tuesday 18th June, 7.30pm
Join us to celebrate publication of Only Here, Only Now, an original and unforgettable coming-of-age novel from a formidable new talent, taking the reader inside the …
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Max Hastings
Wednesday 19th June, 7.30pm
This summer we welcome back Military Historian Max Hastings. Known for such gripping and thoroughly researched works as Abyss and Operation Pedestal, we are looking forward …
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Shannon Vallor: How to Reclaim Our Humanity in the Age of AI
Thursday 20th June, 7.30pm
How can we reclaim our humanity in an age of machine thinking?Join us this June to celebrate publication of Shannon Vallor's latest work The AI Mirror, …
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Wyl Menmuir on The Heart of the Woods
Friday 21st June, 7.30pm
Wyl Menmuir is the author of the Man-Booker nominated novel and Observer Best Fiction of the year The Many and Fox Fires. His short fiction has …
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D.J. Taylor on Who is Big Brother? A Reader's Guide to George Orwell
Monday 24th June, 7.30pm
D. J. Taylor is an award-winning novelist, critic, and biographer. His book Orwell: The Life won the 2003 Whitbread Prize for Biography, and Orwell: The New …
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Alice Winn
Wednesday 26th June, 7.30pm
We are excited to welcome the literary darling of 2023, Alice Winn, who exceeded all expectations with her award-winning debut, In Memoriam. Following star-crossed soulmates during …
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David Robson on the Laws of Connection
Thursday 27th June, 7.30pm
David Robson is an award-winning science writer. He is the author of The Intelligence Trap, and The Expectation Effect, which was a Sunday Times and Financial …
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Nick Wallis: Reporting the Post Office Scandal
Friday 28th June, 7.30pm
Join us to celebrate the paperback edition of Nick Wallis' The Great Post Office Scandal, the definitive account of the scandal and 'an extraordinary journalistic expose …
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Jewish Languages and Book Culture with Judith Olszowy-Schlanger and Cesar Merchan-Hamann
Thursday 4th July, 7.30pm
Judith Olszowy-Schlanger is President of the Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies at the University of Oxford. César Merchán-Hamann is the Victor Blank Hebraica and …
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Irvine Welsh & Denise Mina: Resolution
Monday 8th July, 7.30pm
This July, we're over the moon to be hosting Irvine Welsh to celebrate publication of his newest novel. Beloved all over the world but especially so …
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French Fiction Reading Group
Wednesday 24th July, 7.30pm
Chanson douce, Leïla Slimani«Louise ? Quelle chance vous avez d’être tombés sur elle. Elle a été comme une seconde mère pour mes garçons. Ça a été …
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Danny Dorling on Seven Children: Inequality and Britain's Next Generation
Friday 6th September, 7.30pm
Suppose you chose seven typical children to represent today's UK. Who would they be? What would they reveal?Danny Dorling is a social scientist whose books include …
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Callum Robinson on Ingrained: the making of a craftsman
Thursday 19th September, 7.30pm
Callum Robinson makes all manner of things from all manner of woods for some of the most influential brands in the world. He is creative director …
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Smack the Pony's Doon Mackichan for My Lady Parts
Monday 23rd September, 7.30pm
Doon Mackichan is best known for her comedy characters in the hugely popular Brass Eye, Smack the Pony and Toast of London – but throughout her …
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Baillie Gifford winner Craig Brown on A Voyage Around the Queen
Monday 14th October, 7.30pm
Craig Brown has been writing the parodic celebrity diary for Private Eye since 1989 alongside a rich variety of publications, including the Guardian, the New Statesman …
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Jenny Colgan for Close Knit
Wednesday 20th November, 7.30pm
In 2015 Jenny Colgan was inducted into the Love Stories Hall of Fame - and with good reason. Over fifteen million copies of her books sold, …
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Chris Brookmyre for The Cracked Mirror
Tuesday 26th November, 7.30pm
Chris Brookmyre is one of Britain's leading crime writers. His 2016 novel Black Widow won both the McIlvanney Prize and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel …
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