by Jim Aitken The Scots word ootlin refers to someone deemed a stranger, an outcast, a despised or neglected member of a family. It is an awful... Continue reading
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All posts by Jim Aitken
by Jim Aitken Malibu Mansionslook a bit like Gaza nowbut with more burnt cars. Continue reading
May Day is Jackie Kay’s latest poetry collection. It is addressed to her parents, Helen and John Kay, who adopted her as a baby. They had both... Continue reading
Soil and Soul was first published in 2001 and it was a thoroughly well-received book. In his Foreword to it, George Monbiot described it as ‘a ground-breaking... Continue reading
Jim Aitken introduces Sapling and Wood by David Betteridge, available here A sapling, as we know, is a young tree. If this young tree manages to grow... Continue reading
The current horror in Gaza is just the latest in a long line of such horrors. The present incursion is called Operation Swords of Iron. The metallurgical... Continue reading
Jim Aitken reviews The Orgreave Stations by William Hershaw, illustrated by Les McConnell, some of whose images in the book accompany this review ‘The Orgreave Stations’ , published... Continue reading
Jim Aitken reviews the new antholgy from Smokestack Books, edited by Alan Morrison and Atef Alshaer ‘Poetry is a duty because it records the last stand of... Continue reading
The CPB recently published a short pamphlet with brief essays or ‘provocations’ on a sample of cultural activities, which is available to download below. Here, Jim Aitken... Continue reading
Celtic Connections put on a wonderful concert recently, in memory of Scotland’s great Marxist revolutionary, John Maclean (1879 -1923). Glasgow’s magnificent concert hall had the 2,000 strong audience... Continue reading
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