Product Description

From "Lanark" to "The Book of Prefaces", Alasdair Gray, more than any other writer still working, can be claimed as the modern successor to William Blake. As well as being award-winning tales, his books are also works of art, from the embossed boards to his own illustrations: books, not texts. Since "Lanark" appeared in 1981, Gray has produced work of all kinds - novels, short stories, poetry, polemic, plays - all of which retain the sense of humour, Scottish heart, intellectual curiosity and unique style that is Gray's mark. This volume of essays contains a detailed bibliography of Gray's writing and design, illustrations of his artwork and original essays from such diverse hands as the poet Professor Philip Hobsbaum, Kevin Williamson, author of "Drugs" and "The Party Line", and Jonathan Coe, author of "The Rotters' Club". In addition, the illustrated jacket has been designed by Alasdair Gray himself, who is also contributing a personal view of his career to date.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #271984 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

Customer Reviews

If you're a gray fan, you'll love this book
I've been an admirer of Alasdair Gray's unique talents since 1986, when I bought Lanark and Unlikely Stories Mostly on the strength of their spine illustrations. I have since bought each of his books as they've come out and have never been disappointed. This book has helped to fill in many gaps in his own biography that existed for me and the thorough bibliography (interesting in its own right because of the copious annotations) has also pointed me towards books I didn't know existed, some of which I now have on order. In this book you will find approachable, interesting and well-written essays on his fiction, short stories, poetry and painting - essays that would be as useful for students studying Gray as they were interesting for me. The colour plates are a massive bonus and the book itself is designed by Alasdair Gray and so it look fantastic on the shelf beside his first editions.

I particularly liked Elspeth King's essay on the artwork, because it's an aspect of his work I know little about, and the personal remeniscences from Will Self, Jonathan Coe and Kevin Williamson.

If you're a Gray fan, this is pretty much a must-buy.