At 7pm on Thursday 17 February I’ll be giving an online lecture about Sly Cooking: 42 irresistible Gaelic words, hosted by the Royal Celtic Society. It’s free to attend (you can make a Paypal donation if you like), and you can register by e-mailing info@royalcelticsociety.scot.
Ever needed a word for the little bits of dust you see in a ray of sunlight? For squeezing a big thing into a small hole? For the noise made by women when they get together? Sly Cooking revives 42 weird and wonderful Gaelic words collected by 19th century priest, poet and folklorist, Fr Allan MacDonald, in South Uist and Eriskay.
The words were originally published by John Lorne Campbell in 1958, among thousands of others gleaned from Fr Allan’s notes, in Gaelic Words and Expressions from South Uist and Eriskay. Captivated by the dictionary, I set out to breathe new life into my favourites with a pocketbook of linocut illustrations.
The project kept growing, and as well as a book, it became an art exhibition and a TV programme. The book is available from Acair, and the original artworks are available to buy in my Etsy shop.
I hope to see you on the 17th!