That the Parliament congratulates the Scots author, James Robertson, of Newtyle in Angus, on winning the £25,000 Sir Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, presented to him by the Duke of Buccleuch at the Borders Book Festival in Melrose, for his book, News of the Dead; recognises that James is the second Scot to win this award and understands that this is the first time that a book set in Scotland has received it; notes that James’ prize novel was commended on its ambition, originality, innovation, enduring appeal and quality of writing; appreciates that the work of Sir Walter Scott played a great influence in James’ own writing, and commends James on his valuable contributions to Scottish literature.
Supported by:
Karen Adam, Clare Adamson, Alasdair Allan, Jeremy Balfour, Colin Beattie, Miles Briggs, Siobhian Brown, Alexander Burnett, Stephanie Callaghan, Maggie Chapman, Jackie Dunbar, Annabelle Ewing, Murdo Fraser, Kenneth Gibson, Pam Gosal, Bill Kidd, Gillian Martin, Stuart McMillan, Jenni Minto, Audrey Nicoll, Paul Sweeney, David Torrance