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Hundreds of events for adults, teenagers and children feature authors, illustrators, musicians, poets, policians, thinkers, prize-winners and rising stars every August.

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    Anthony Horowitz: Shaken, Not Stirred

    Monday 22 August 17:30 - 18:30

    Anthony Horowitz: Shaken, Not Stirred Book
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    • Captioned
    Hugely loved author Anthony Horowitz brings us his third James Bond thriller, With a Mind to Kill. This high-octane tale presents 007 as we have never known him: accused of M’s murder, in custody and smeared as a traitor. His rescue depends on a group...
     

    Stephen May: Stalin, the Young Poet 

    Monday 22 August 17:30 - 18:30

    Stephen May: Stalin, the Young Poet  Book
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    Set during the fifth congress of the Russian Communist Party, Stephen May’s Sell Us the Rope follows a young Stalin as he navigates early 20th century London. With Lenin, Trotsky and Rosa Luxembourg, he attempts to cement the radicalism of the party...
     

    Kathryn Schulz: Love Lost and Found

    Monday 22 August 18:15 - 19:15

    Kathryn Schulz: Love Lost and Found Book
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    Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Kathryn Schulz met the woman who would become her wife just 18 months before her beloved father died. In Lost & Found she explores the intertwining of love and grief, of loss and discovery, via the three families at the...
     

    Amy Liptrot: Traffic Islands Are for Lovers

    Monday 22 August 19:00 - 20:00

    Amy Liptrot: Traffic Islands Are for Lovers Book
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    Amy Liptrot’s first memoir, The Outrun, offered irresistibly readable reflections on alcoholism, sea swimming and solitary sobriety in Orkney. Her new book, The Instant, follows on from The Outrun as Liptrot moves to achingly cool Berlin, yearning for...
     

    Torrey Peters: The Remaking of the Family

    Monday 22 August 20:00 - 21:00

    Torrey Peters: The Remaking of the Family Book
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    Detransition, Baby, Torrey Peters’s Women’s Prize-longlisted debut novel, remakes a classic comedy of manners for the 21st century. When trans woman Reese is approached by her ex-partner Ames (who has detransitioned) with a tantalising chance at...
     

    Edwin Morgan Poetry Award

    Monday 22 August 20:15 - 21:15

    Edwin Morgan Poetry Award Book
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    12 years after his death, Edwin Morgan’s influence continues to challenge and inspire readers and artists of all kinds. This special celebratory event announces the winners of the £20,000 Edwin Morgan Poetry Award for young Scottish poets. It also...
     

    Ian Rankin: Here’s to Absent and Imaginary Friends

    Monday 22 August 20:30 - 21:30

    Ian Rankin: Here’s to Absent and Imaginary Friends Book
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    Even without a Rebus novel, Ian Rankin has had quite a year. The novel co-authored with William McIlvanney, The Dark Remains, hit the spot – both with McIlvanney aficionados and with Rankin’s legions of readers. Then he turned to television with the...
     

    This is Memorial Device

    Monday 22 August 20:30 - 22:00

    This is Memorial Device Book
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    • Captioned
    On Festival nights, we present a new play based on David Keenan’s novel This is Memorial Device. The fictional history of 1980s Airdrie’s mysterious, post-punk legends, Memorial Device, Keenan’s novel has a huge cult following. This stage...
     

    Mystery on the Tracks with M G Leonard & Sam Sedgman

    P4-P7

    Tuesday 23 August 10:00 - 10:45

    Mystery on the Tracks with M G Leonard & Sam Sedgman Book
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    All aboard for a rip-roaring quest with M G Leonard and Sam Sedgman as they introduce the latest instalment of their award-winning Adventures on Trains series. Danger at Dead Man's Pass follows our hero Hal and his uncle Nat as they go undercover to...
     

    Passion Projects

    Tuesday 23 August 10:00 - 10:15

    Passion Projects Book
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    Each day, a Festival author shares an unexpected inspiration or passion. Join them to crack open the curiosity cabinet, revealing the stories behind their books or side projects.