Beyond the Swelkie Edited by Jim Mackintosh & Paul S Philippou

Beyond the Swelkie is a collection of poetry and prose in English, Scots and Gaelic celebrating the centenary of George Mackay Brown. Its contributors, including several award-winning poets, are based in Orkney and across Scotland, and each engages with the muse in their own way. Beyond the Swelkie includes a foreword by Asif Khan, Director of the Scottish Poetry Library. The book’s cover incorporates the artist Sandy Moffat’s celebrated portrait of George Mackay Brown.

George Mackay Brown was an Orcadian poet and Booker Prize shortlisted writer. Drawing on island life and lore, religious culture and histories, and the minutiae of life, he produced a poetry and prose that established him as one of Scotland’s greatest writers. Physically centred in Stromness, Brown’s writing radiated far beyond his island home, achieving international acclaim. Upon his gravestone are the lines, ‘Carve the runes/Then be content with silence’. Beyond the Swelkie is a break in this silence, a symphony of praise by Scotland’s contemporary poets and poetical commentators.

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