NEW CRIME:
An intriguing new perspective on Tudor Britain will be offered by Steven Veerapen, author of an upcoming historical crime fiction series. Set at the court of the young Henry VIII in the 1520s, the novels feature Anthony Blanke, a member of Cardinal Wolsey’s household and the fictional, mixed-race son of John Blanke: a real historical figure who, as Henry’s royal trumpeter, was one of the first black people recorded as living in Tudor London.
Polygon, an imprint of Edinburgh-based publisher, Birlinn, is to publish the first two novels in the series, beginning with Grace of God. Set during the visit of the Imperial Emperor Charles V to England in 1522, it will be released next spring.
Polygon said the books would explore a well-known period "from a new perspective, that of a figure on the margins, neither black nor white, not quite part of the English system nor outside of it, and from a writer who himself draws on the rich storytelling heritage of a Scottish mother and Mauritian father”.
Born in Glasgow in 1987, Steven Veerapen teaches Renaissance Studies in Strathclyde University's English department and is researching issues of race in the early modern period. “I’m excited and grateful to be able to bring the early Henrician court to life,” he says. “I hope readers will enjoy seeing this vibrant, colourful world from a new and often overlooked perspective.”
Birlinn founder Hugh Andrew added that his work offers "an extraordinary visceral feel for a time both of great splendour and terrible brutality". Veerapen’s second Anthony Blanke novel, Fount of Justice, will be published in 2023.
EVENT:
Animal Farm is the first George Orwell novel to be translated into Gaelic, by award-winning Scottish poet, Aonghas Pàdraig Caimbeul (Angus Peter Campbell). Tuathanas nan Creutairean is published today (August 14) by Luath Press at £7.99 and Caimbeul will be talking about the work at an online event on Tuesday, August 17: the date on which Orwell's novel was originally published in 1945. To book a free place visit eventbrite.co.uk/e/tuathanas-nan-creutairean-animal-farm-goes-gaelic-tickets-161073704787
FESTIVAL: You can also catch Caimbeul tonight (August 14), when he’ll join fellow writers such as Nayrouz Qarmout and Kirstin Innes at the Edinburgh International Book Festival’s opening event, Culture in a Time of Crisis, to discuss the role of the arts during these troubled times edbookfest.co.uk/the-festival/whats-on/opening-night-culture-in-a-time-of-crisis
The Edinburgh International Book Festival 2021 is up and running, offering on-site events for the first time in two years. This week’s big-name highlights include broadcaster Joan Bakewell, historian Prof Tom Devine, crime writer Denise Mina, children’s author Debi Gliori, poets Jackie Kay and Carol Ann Duffy as well as novelists Ali Smith, Salman Rushdie and Pat Barker. Full programme details at edbookfest.co.uk
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