Ashes & Stones: in conversation with Allyson Shaw
Join us at Night Owl Books on Sunday, 24th September at 7.30pm, when we'll be in conversation with author Allyson Shaw, discussing her fascinating book Ashes and Stones: A Scottish Journey in Search of Witches and Witness.
Pre-order a copy of Ashes and Stones, which will be published in paperback on the 31st August, and receive a free ticket to our event - while spaces last!
Allyson Shaw will be joining us for a Q&A, followed by a book signing.
Select 'local collection' to pick up your copy from Night Owl Books.
About the book:
A moving and personal journey, along rugged coasts and through remote villages and cities, in search of the traces of those accused of witchcraft in seventeenth-century Scotland. In Ashes and Stones we visit modern memorials and standing stones, and roam among forests and hedge mazes, folklore and political fantasies.
From fairy hills to forgotten caves, we explore a spellbound landscape. Allyson Shaw untangles the myth of witchcraft and gives voice to those erased by it. Her elegant and lucid prose weaves together threads of history and feminist reclamation to create a vibrant memorial.
This is the untold story of the witches' monuments of Scotland and the women's lives they mark. Ashes and Stones is a trove of folklore linking the lives of contemporary women to the horrors of the past, a record of resilience and a call to choose and remember our ancestors.
‘Allyson Shaw has built a monument in words to the thousands persecuted as witches in Scotland. A fascinating and necessary book.’ - Peter Ross
‘A compelling and intimate pilgrimage across Scotland.’ - Helen Callaghan
Softcover, published 31st August 2023.
About the author:
Allyson Shaw has worked as a professional writer for the last thirty years. Her writing on folklore and history has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, including Monster Verse: Poems Human and Inhuman in the Everyman's Library Pocket Poets series, Rituals & Declarations and The Bottle Imp.
She spent her formative years in California and now lives in Orkney.
- Where will we be meeting?
The event will be held at Night Owl Books, 1 Bridge Street, East Linton, EH40 3AG.
A note on Covid precautions: if you can, please take a lateral before attending, and if you feel unwell on the day, please err on the side of caution.