James Kelman (2016 Event)

With the publication of Dirt Road, Scotland’s only Booker Prize winner James Kelman joins a Scottish publisher for the first time in decades. This brilliantly accessible road movie of a novel arrives with Canongate’s typical panache, alongside a film adaptation of the book. We proudly welcomed him to the Book Festival to discuss perhaps his most significant novel yet with Brian Taylor. Filmed live at the 2016 Edinburgh International Book Festival.

Book Festival News

Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024 Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024
Sunday 14 April

Enjoying this event? You can help us produce more like it.

Donate

Share

Watch more

Isabel Wilkerson: America’s Unspoken Caste System Isabel Wilkerson: America’s Unspoken Caste System As America seemingly implodes its way toward the 2020 election, pundits and political classes continue to try to understand how the Land of the Free has found itself in such disarray. And — as it has throughout Western democracies — the conversation i… Mohsin Hamid: What Does it Mean to Be White? Mohsin Hamid: What Does it Mean to Be White? Mohsin Hamid joins us on our opening day to discuss The Last White Man. This blistering novel sees Anders, a white man, wake up to find he has turned a ‘deep and undeniable brown’, with clear echoes of Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Hamid’s previous books… Kevin Barry: Looking Across a Bog to the Bluestack Mountains Kevin Barry: Looking Across a Bog to the Bluestack Mountains Sligo, Leitrim and Limerick are some of Ireland’s smaller, less populated counties. So what did they do to deserve the talents of Kevin Barry? The answer lies in the tender and humorous short stories of Barry’s newest collection, That Old Country Musi… Amit Chaudhuri (2015 event) Amit Chaudhuri (2015 event) In Amit Chaudhuri’s entertaining latest novel, Odysseus Abroad, an aspiring poet named Ananda has arrived in London from India and is trying to make sense of what he sees. Chaudhuri crafts a sharply-observed world, inspired as much by James Joyce&rs… David Cannadine at the Edinburgh International Book Festival David Cannadine at the Edinburgh International Book Festival It’s easy to feel fatigued by continual political crises and the nation’s uncertain future. In a world of chaotic news headlines, how can we find understanding and perspective on what is happening? Hear one of Britain’s most renowned historians and … Rory Stewart speaks with Charlotte Higgins at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Rory Stewart speaks with Charlotte Higgins at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Despite coming fourth in the Conservative Party’s leadership contest, Rory Stewart has emerged as one of this strange Summer’s surprise political winners. The International Development Secretary’s refreshing honesty and viral Twitter campaigning won… Interview - Charlie and Robbie (2014) Interview - Charlie and Robbie (2014) Dream team comics creators Charlie Adlard and Robbie Morrison have made their contribution to the Great War centenary with their frank graphic novel White Death. This is a quick interview with the pair before they took to the stage at Edinburgh Internatio… Ma Jian talks to André Naffis-Sahely at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Ma Jian talks to André Naffis-Sahely at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Exile in London hasn’t dulled Chinese author Ma Jian’s anger at the state which permanently banned his work over 30 years ago. His biting satire China Dream takes aim at Xi Jinping’s regime and the mistruths told by the Communist Party today, centri… Etgar Keret and Alain Mabanckou (2015 Event) Etgar Keret and Alain Mabanckou (2015 Event) Two internationally acclaimed novelists who have turned their hands to memoir talk to Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Etgar Keret was declared ‘a genius’ by the New Yorker: The Seven Good Years, translated i… Jonathan Freedland: The Man Who Escaped Auschwitz Jonathan Freedland: The Man Who Escaped Auschwitz Imagine trying to escape from Auschwitz as a teenager, hiding for three days, while 3,000 SS and their bloodhounds search for you. This is the story of Rudolf Vrba, whose report on the atrocity of Auschwitz reached Roosevelt, Churchill and the Pope, savin…