New Scots: Old and New Connections

New Scots: Old and New Connections with Sawsan Al-Areeqe and Iyad Hayatleh. Chaired by Margaret Elphinstone.

CatStrand is participating in Book Week Scotland for the first time with a special event celebrating the writers who have made Scotland their home after being forced to leave their native lands.

Sawsan Al-Areeqe is a Yemeni poet and film-maker who received an international Artist Protection Fund Fellowship hosted by the University of Glasgow. She has received international acclaim for her poetry, in Arabic and English, and her film making has brought her numerous awards.

Iyad Hayatleh is a Palestinian poet and translator. He was born and grew up in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria, and has lived in Glasgow since 2000. He describes his poetry as discussing 'themes of exile and identity, torn between the many places I call home and the struggle to build up a new mixed identity of cultural diversity.'

The writers will speak about the journeys which have brought them to Scotland and will read from their work.

Following the talks, Margaret Elphinstone, a locally-based published author, will lead a writing workshop inviting audience responses to the afternoon's conversation.

Authors Talk –1pm-3pm Writing Workshop – 3.30pm-4.30pm