Summer begins at Far From The Madding Crowd…

We’ve got three fabulous events coming up, our Summer Reading Challenge is back and bigger than before, and we’re celebrating the reopening of Linlithgow Palace with discounts across our Scottish History titles!

Rural, Rebecca Smith, Tuesday 20th June, 7pm

Bonnytoun Farm by Linlithgow*

Debut author Rebecca Smith lives locally, Rural is her wonderfully crafted and honest account of the lives of the rural working classes, an exploration of our green and pleasant land, and the people whose labour has shaped it. Beautifully observed, these are the stories of professions and communities that often go overlooked. There are no tower blocks in this book, but Rebecca shows the precarity for those whose lives are entangled in the natural landscape, and why perhaps our ideas of 'poverty' need to be broadened.

A long-time friend of Far From The Madding Crowd (Becca has chaired many notable events for us in the past), we can't wait to celebrate her first book with her in the stunning surroundings of Bonnytoun Farm!

*Directions and information about the venue can be found here: www.growwild.co.uk 

Tickets are £8 which includes discount on the book & refreshments

Red Star Over Hebrides, Donald S Murray, Friday 30th June, 7pm

St Peter’s Church

Donald S Murray is an award-winning author, creator, essayist, musician, protector of Scottish storytelling, and all-round inspirational human. We’ve long been fans of his work, and he’s finally coming to Linlithgow in person to discuss his latest work, Red Star Over Hebrides: a collection of stories, songs, and poems inspired by the Russian canon. Join us for an unforgettable evening with this incredible Scottish author!

 Tickets are £8 which includes a discount on book sales and refreshments

This event will be available on zoom, please email: sally@maddingcrowdlinlithgow.com for details.

Witchcraft, Marion Gibson, Wednesday 5th July, 7pm

St Peter’s Church

The world of witch trials and witch-hunts sounds like a long-ago time. But to this day, the misogyny and bigotry which formed the basis for those trials is still alive and well. In her new book Witchcraft, Professor Marion Gibson breaks down thirteen significant trials to lay bare the global history of witch-hunts and examines all the ways that witchcraft and witch-hunts have changed and adapted to survive to this day. 

Tickets are £8 which includes discount on book and refreshments

This event will be available on zoom, please email: sally@maddingcrowdlinlithgow.com for details.

What else is happening this month? Read on people:

• Linlithgow Palace is finally reopening! We can’t wait to have look round the old familiar place again and to celebrate, we’re offering 10% on ALL Scottish History titles from Friday 9th June-Sunday 11th June: welcome back old friend!

• We’re starting a new shop initiative, Safe Harbour. We’re dedicated to providing a safe and quiet space for anyone who needs it on Linlithgow High Street in the evening, so we’ll now be open ‘til 7pm on Wednesdays!

• Independent Bookshop Week is nearly upon us again! As well as our inspiring event with Rebecca Smith at Bonnytoun Farm, we’ll have a whole host of exclusives, offers and goody bags to give away. The fun starts on Saturday 17th June and runs for a week!

• Our Summer Reading Challenge is (nearly) back! After the great success of the Summer Reading Challenge last year, we’re doing it again! And this year, we’re including adult titles too! Watch this space for more information - we’ll be launching ahead of the summer holidays!