Saltire Society Book of the Year Winners
At a ceremony held at the National Library of Scotland, the Saltire Society celebrated the 25th anniversary of their literature awards by announcing the winners of the 2006 Book of the Year Awards.
Poet and novelist John Burnside won the Book of the Year award for his autobiography A Lie About My Father. Six other books were shortlisted for the main award:
- The Testament of Gideon Mack by James Robertson
- Rapture by Carol Ann Duffy
- Be Near Me by Andrew O'Hagan
- Bad Shaman Blues by WN Herbert
- Collected Poems by Duncan Glen
- Scott of the Antarctic by David Crane
The First Book of the Year award went to Maggie Fergusson for her biography of Orcadian writer George Mackay Brown. The shortlisted books were:
- Simon Biggam, These Are Only Words by Simon Biggam
- White Ghost Girls by Alice Greenway
- The Observations by Jane Harris
- Demo by Alison Miller
Cynthia J Neville won the Scottish History Book of the Year award for her study Native Lordship in Medieval Scotland: The Earldoms of Strathearn and Lennox, C. 1140-1365. The shortlisted books were:
- The Mineworkers by Robert Duncan
- Wild Scots by Michael Fry
- Seawolves: Pirates & The Scots by Eric J. Graham
- Tourism and Identity in Scotland, 1770-1914 by Katherine Haldane Grenier
- Handful of Rogues by Hector MacMillan
- Before Scotland by Alistair Moffat
- Argyill, 1730-1850 by Robert McGeachy
The Research Book of the Year was presented to John Macinnes and Michael Newton for the essay collection Dùthchas Nan Gàidheal, representing 50 years of recording and collecting the traditions of the Gaels in Scotland and Canada.
-
Add to BasketDuthchas Nan Gaidheal: Collected Essays Of John MacInnes - Hardback -
£30.00
Described by the Rev. William Matheson as the 'the last of the native scholars', Dr John MacInnes is the foremost living authority on the oral tradition of the Scottish Highlands. -
£25.00The Life Of George Mackay Brown: The Life - Hardback -
George Mackay Brown was one of Scotland's greatest 20th century writers, but in person a bundle of paradoxes. Maggie Fergusson interviewed him several times and is the only biographer to whom he gave his blessing. Through his letters and through conversations with his acquaintance, she discovers that his life was vivid and surprising. -
Add to BasketA Lie About My Father - Hardback -
£12.99
This book presents a story about forgiving but not forgetting, about examining the way men are made & how they fall apart, about understanding that in order to have a good son you must have a good father. The author's honesty, thinking & images of beauty & fracture combine to create a moving memoir of two lost men: a father & his child. -
Add to BasketNative Lordship In Medieval Scotland: The Earldoms Of Strathearn And Lennox, C.1140-1365 - Hardback -
£55.00
During the twelfth century Anglo-Norman and European noblemen settled in Scotland. Even after the arrival of the newcomers, however, the native rulers remained a small and powerful group. This book explores the complex nature of the encounter between the cultures of the Gaels and the Europeans.





