Acid Plaid: New Scottish Writing

by Harry Ritchie, Irvine Welsh (Contributor), Alan Warner (Contributor)

The phenomenal success of Trainspotting made Edinburgh the hottest literary spot on the map. A major feature in the New York Times Magazine announced, "From the margins of Scottish society comes a new, beer-soaked, drug-filled, profanity-laced, violently funny literature", and Kirkus writes, "The Scottish beats are already strong contenders for world-class literary status". They have infused their writing with a raw, youthful energy and daring that has attracted an audience in the hundreds of thousands. With what British Esquire calls "an impressive array of Scottish writers", Acid Plaid: New Scottish Writing provides a unique overview of the scene that has revolutionized late-twentieth-century literature; it includes stories by Irvine Welsh, Alan Warner, Janice Galloway, Duncan McLean, William Boyd, and a host of explosively talented writers whose work hits U.S. shores for the first time in here.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1997

About the author

Harry Ritchie (b. 1958) is a Scottish writer and journalist. He is the author of six books, and numerous newspaper articles and book reviews.

Ritchiee attended Kirkcaldy High School and the University of Edinburgh, then studied for a D.Phil. at Lincoln College, Oxford. His doctoral thesis on the literary scene of the 1950s was published by Faber as the book Success Stories in 1988. His subsequent works are the comic travel books Here We Go and The Last Pink Bits, the novels Friday Night Club and The Third Party, and a book about English grammar, English for the Natives (John Murray).

Ritchie edited the anthology New Scottish Writing, and contributed an essay to Nick Hornby's anthology of football writing, My Favourite Year, about his lifelong passion for Raith Rovers, his hometown football club.

Reviews

[keith koenigsberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short stories by modern Scottish authors. The short story is really an American domain (go ahead, argue with me) but here are a bunch of Scots doing a fair job of it. Sometimes they try too hard to redefine the genre, and stuff falls flat. The book is uneven, with lots of stuff to skip, and lots of poetry, but a couple of real gems. If you like vernacular writing as I do, then check this out.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being something of a stranger to Scottish writing, I found this book to be an enjoyable introductory collection. There are poems, essays, short stories and even a short (and rather bizarre) play. My favorite pieces are Iain Crichton Smith's wonderful short story, "The Open University", and Alistair Gray's essay, "The Wasting of Old English Speech And How A New Was Got." And then there is Irvine Welsh's short story, "A Fault On The Line". I will not even try to say anything about this piece. If you know anything about Irvine Welsh you will understand my reticence.
If this nice little anthology comes your way, have a look. It is well worth it.

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the stories in here are really great, some are just so-so, but then, it is an anthology.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining in parts, funny in parts, sad in parts, dull in parts.

Like any anthology.

[Kristine · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some wonderful stories in this collection; however, there are numerous that are absolutely horrific and terribly written.

[Rand · Rating 5 out of 5]

highly eclectic collection for such a seemingly homogenous culture as scotland.
read this book because it will expose you to some wonderful authors you would otherwise never find.