Hex House – a feminist horror fairy tale.
Amy Jane Stewart in conversation with Katalina Watt.
7pm Tuesday 28th April, Stow Station House.
We are delighted to welcome Borders-based writer Amy Jane Stewart to Stow for the launch of her debut novel, Hex House. A feverishly told, dark and unsettling Scotland-set fairy-tale about a safe haven for women which transforms them into vessels of revenge.
A woman in the woods alone is never the beginning of the story. It’s usually the end.
So, when a beautiful house appears out of nowhere and a woman beckons her inside, it almost feels too good to be true.
Welcome to Hex House: a refuge, a home, a sanctuary. A place that can only be found by those who truly need it; a place that promises to teach Elly how to access a power more incredible – and more terrifying – than anything she could have imagined.
Free event. Booking essential. Bar available. 18+
Hex House – a feminist horror fairy tale. Tickets, through| Eventbrite
Farewell to Russia
Joe Luc Barnes in conversation
7pm Tuesday 5th May, Stow Station House
We are very excited to be welcoming Joe Luc Barnes to Stow on 5th May, to celebrate his book, “Farewell to Russia“.
Snow, concrete, the KGB: that’s the cliché of the Soviet Union. But its collapse in 1991 sparked a story at once messier and more compelling than any stereotype. Thirty-five years on, Moscow may brim with champagne bars and blacked-out Mercedes – but what became of the other fourteen states that emerged from the ashes?
In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Joe Luc Barnes crossed the former USSR to find out, from the gleaming towers of Azerbaijan to the former gulags of Kazakhstan…
By turns hilarious, angry and heart-stopping, this is a darkly comic, deeply human portrait of a region the West still misunderstands.
Free event. Tickets through Eventbrite – https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/…/farewell-to-russia-joe…
Flichter – new poetry book launch.
Craig Aitchison and Taylor Dyson present an evening of poetry.
7pm Thursday 7th May, Stow Station House.
We are delighted to welcome Craig Aitchison back to Stow for the launch of his debut poetry collection in Border Scots, Flichter.
Joining Craig is writer and performer, Tanya Dyson, host of the Scots Language Awards and creator of Goodbye Dreamland Bowlarama, Ane City and Dolly Parton Saved my Life. Join them for a celebration of Scots and the spoken word and the launch of a great new collection of poems in the Scots language..
Free event. Booking essential. Tickets through Eventbrite. Bar available. 18+
On a Northern Shore: an evening with Janis Mackay
7pm Thursday 14th May, Stow Station House.
Join author Janis Mackay for an evening of storytelling and folklore, celebrating her new novel for adults, On a Northern Shore. A blend of storytelling and book launch, the evening is a celebration of the novel and the folklore that inspired it.
“This far north, they say the dead are with us…
Hogmanay, the far north of Scotland.
Alone on the shoreline, lobster fisherman Rob Sinclair pours a dram into the freezing waters of the North Sea. An offering to the sea spirit, the Selkie.
That same night, a stranger arrives in Rob’s village.
A young woman, Mairi, charged by her dead mother to fulfil three acts of vengeance; bitter payback for deeds done before she was born.
Rob is beguiled by her, but she is elusive, frustrating, her personality shapeshifting.
The only certainty is that Mairi is not who she says she is…”
Free event. Booking essential. Tickets through Eventbrite. Bar available. 18+
Disappearing Acts – The Real Mackay’s Granddaughter
Free author event with writers Helen Graham and Anna Deacon, celebrating “Disappearing Acts” – the follow-up novel to The Real Mackay.
Thursday, Jun 25th June, 7pm
Lottie has lived in a magical world of stories and imagination under the shelter of her beloved grandfather, a famous comic actor – The Real Mackay! – for as long as she can remember. But now he’s dead and sdhe’s stranded in a houseful of cousins, her strict Victorian uncle only noticing her when she steps out of line…
The follow-up novel to her The Real Mackay, Helen Graham’s new novel – based on the real lives of her ancestors – is a gripping look at the Victorian theatrical world.
Free event. Booking essential. Tickets through Eventbrite. Bar available. 18+
The Wedale Folklore Club
Usually meets monthly on the third Thursday of the month from 7pm, The Wild Hare Cafe, Stow.
The Scottish Borders has a rich and stirring history, matched by the often weird and wonderful folklore that surrounds us. We love a story, so have created this free-to-join group inspired by myths, legends and folk-customs. The group meets monthly and is a place to share stories, discover forgotten folklore and strange, fascinating places to visit and revel in the mysterious! Open to all, 18+.
If you love folktales, folklore, myths and legends then this may be the place for you! For further details or to join the group, please email us hello@wedalebooks.scot
poetry circle
Meets monthly on the last Wednesday of the month from 7pm at the bookshop
If you enjoy reading or composing poetry, you may like to join our new monthly gathering at the bookshop on the last Wednesday of the month at 7pm. Free to join, this group is for readers or writers of all abilities who love to write, read, sing, sign or perform poetry! Meets monthly at the Wedale Bookshop. Email hello@wedalebooks.scot for further details or to join as places may be limited. 18+
Authors? Why have your book event in Stow?
Stow of Wedale has excellent transport links (we think we’re the only independent bookshop in the Scottish Borders directly served by a railway station) meaning holding and attending events here that celebrate the written word is ideal. In addition to our bookshop, we have local caterers and facilities that can allow for events hosting from 2 to 176 guests (that’s the capacity of the main space in the Town Hall!). In addition to the town hall, we also have the beautifully refurbished and presented Station House.
The Wedale Book Club.
We have two book groups (one meeting on the 2nd Wednesday and the other on the 3rd Wednesday of every month) hosted in the bookshop. Open to all 18+. 20% off each month’s chosen titles when you buy in-store – contact us or ask next time you pop in!
April’s Book
March’s Book
You can buy books that our Book Groups have been reading from our List on Bookshop.org:
The LGBTQI+ Book Club
We are delighted to host the south’s only dedicated LGBTQI+ bookshop book group (as far as we know!). It’s held in Stow each month. Open to 18+. 20% off each month’s chosen titles when you buy in-store – contact us or ask next time you pop in!