Edinburgh Events and Reading Groups
We're delighted to bring our all-year-round Literary Festival to our bookshop in Edinburgh. We have a packed calendar which ranges from readings in the bookshop to evenings with literary stars.
Irish Fiction Reading Group: Contemporary and Classic
Tuesday 21st January, 7pm
Fáilte romhat! Our next reading group will be Irish Fiction: Contemporary and Classic Novels. We’ll be immersing ourselves in a range of Irish novels, expanding the …
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Feminist Fiction Reading Group
Monday 27th January, 7pm
Happy New Year from Topping & Company Booksellers! And to celebrate this new year, we're going to start our Feminist Fiction Reading Group with a strong …
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The New Gothic: Lucy Rose & Genevieve Jagger
Tuesday 28th January, 7.30pm
Please note, this event is now taking place in Pilrig St Paul's / LARCH on Leith Walk.This January, we are joined by Lucy Rose to celebrate …
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Damascus Station's David McCloskey for The Seventh Floor
Wednesday 29th January, 7.30pm
'A rare combination of experience and talent' ~ Mick HerronThe one-and-only David McCloskey - former CIA Officer, The Rest is Classified podcast co-host and bestselling author …
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Tom Hindle for Death in the Arctic
Thursday 30th January, 7.30pm
'A new heir to Agatha Christie . . . classic crime for the 21st century' ~ Ragnar JonassonA frozen wilderness. A killer in the skies.Tom Hindle …
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Cooks & Books: Michele Roberts for French Cooking for One
Monday 3rd February, 7.30pm
"Part of the beauty of the art of cooking is that it involves transience, making something delightful that then vanishes... Cooking for yourself makes you feel …
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An Evening of Poetry with the Edwin Morgan Poetry Shortlist & Winners
Tuesday 4th February, 7.30pm
Named in honour of Edwin Morgan, poet and translator of the Scottish Renaissance, each year the Edwin Morgan Poetry Award (EMPA) celebrates the talented array of …
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Joe Tucker for The Secret Painter
Wednesday 5th February, 7.30pm
"A timely reminder that art did not originate as an investment opportunity or a get-rich-quick scheme but as a way for human beings to make sense …
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Keon West on The Science of Racism
Thursday 6th February, 7.30pm
Please note, this event is now taking place in Pilrig St Paul's / LARCH on Leith Walk. Polls show that half of us think racism doesn't …
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Cooks & Books: Christina Soteriou for Big Veg Energy
Friday 7th February, 7.30pm
Christina Soteriou is a chef & recipe writer renowned for creating plant-based food for people who love to eat, inspired by the Mediterranean flavours of her …
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Of This and Other Worlds - Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Group
Monday 10th February, 7.20pm
For the second book of 2025, we head to a universe much like our own. An earth like our own. A humanity like our own. Almost …
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The Poor Had No Lawyers: Who Owns Scotland and How They Got it by Andy Wightman
Tuesday 11th February, 7.30pm
Andy Wightman worked as a ghillie, environmental scientist, and an environmental campaigner before becoming a writer and researcher. He is the author of several books, including …
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Poetry Reading Group
Wednesday 12th February, 7pm
Our poetry reading group is returning for 2025! With Zain as our guide, we will be immersing ourselves in a range of exciting voices in the …
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The Transgender Issue's Shon Faye for Love in Exile
Thursday 13th February, 7pm
Join us for an evening with bestselling author of The Transgender Issue, Shon Faye, as she discusses her latest book, Love In Exile. Hailed as 'a …
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Elly Griffiths for The Frozen People
Tuesday 18th February, 7.30pm
Please note, this is now taking place at Pilrig St Paul's Church on Leith Walk. SOME MURDERS CAN'T BE SOLVED IN JUST ONE LIFETIME.Elly is the …
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Tash Aw for The South
Wednesday 19th February, 7.30pm
Twice Booker longlisted author Tash Aw joins us for his new book The South, a radiant novel of the longing that blooms between two boys over …
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The Lost Pianos of Siberia's Sophy Roberts for A Training School for Elephants
Thursday 20th February, 7.30pm
From the acclaimed author of The Lost Pianos of Siberia, comes a new journey, following four 19th century elephants marched from the East African coast towards …
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Samantha Shannon for The Dark Mirror
Friday 21st February, 7.30pm
'Samantha Shannon is a master storyteller and wordsmith' ~ Katherine WebberSamantha Shannon is the New York Times bestselling author of The Priory of the Orange Tree, …
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Nick Makoha for The New Carthaginians
Monday 24th February, 7.30pm
"This book, Nick Makoha has found an otherworldly, visionary voice and diction that arrest you from the first page and never let you go." ~ Jason …
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Irish Fiction Reading Group: Contemporary and Classic
Tuesday 25th February, 7pm
Fáilte romhat! Our next reading group will be Irish Fiction: Contemporary and Classic Novels. We’ll be immersing ourselves in a range of Irish novels, expanding the …
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Adrian Tchaikovsky for Shroud
Friday 28th February, 7.30pm
'Thrilling, terrifying and fascinating' ~ Tim Peake, British ESA astronautArthur C. Clarke award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky joins us for his new book Shroud, an utterly gripping …
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Pamela Butchart for Diary of a Future Billionaire
Saturday 1st March, 3pm
Bestselling children's author Pamela Butchart joins us this March to celebrate publication of her latest children's novel, Diary of a Future Billionaire. Following the rip-roaring successes …
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Cooks & Books: Nancy Birtwhistle Green and Easy Kitchen
Monday 3rd March, 7.30pm
Nancy Birtwhistle is loved for her no-nonsense guidance and down-to-earth approach on all things eco-friendly. She is a Sunday Times bestselling author, lifelong gardener and Hull-born …
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Queer Reading Group
Tuesday 4th March, 7pm
To kick-start the new year, we are launching another new reading group: Queer Fiction! With Sanna as our guide, we will be immersing ourselves in a …
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Richard Overy for Rain of Ruin: Tokyo, Hiroshima, and the Surrender of Japan
Wednesday 5th March, 7.30pm
'Enemy cities were pulverized or fried to a crisp. It was something they asked for and something they got.'Richard Overy is Honorary Research Professor of History …
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Mordew's Alex Pheby for Waterblack
Thursday 6th March, 7.30pm
Author of the brilliant Mordew and Malarkoi returns with Waterblack, the monumental conclusion to Alex Pheby's Cities of the Weft trilogy.THE DEAD ARE RISING.One thousand million …
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Cooks & Books: Alexina Anatole for Sweet
Friday 7th March, 7.30pm
Ever wondered how to make a dessert extra delicious? Look no further.Alexina Anatole started her career on a trading floor in the City of London, but …
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David Szalay for Flesh
Monday 10th March, 7.30pm
Chosen as a 'Best Book of 2025' by the Guardian, Observer, Financial Times, Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail'Brilliance on every page' ~ Samantha Harvey, author of …
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Poetry Reading Group
Tuesday 11th March, 7pm
Our poetry reading group is returning for 2025! With Zain as our guide, we will be immersing ourselves in a range of exciting voices in the …
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Stephan Malinowski for The Hohenzollerns and the Nazis: A History of Collaboration
Tuesday 11th March, 7.30pm
'Stephan Malinowski's brilliant book strikes a balance between the forensic analysis of individual behaviour and a new understanding of how the toxic political culture of a …
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Cooks & Books: Anna Hedworth for Service
Wednesday 12th March, 7.30pm
"A considered use of fresh, bright flavours and produce is a constant delight throughout this lovely book. It is a beauty, and reflects Anna's soul in …
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Chris McQueer for Hermit
Thursday 13th March, 7.30pm
Chris McQueer is the acclaimed author of the short story collections Hings and HWFG. Stories from Hings were adapted for TV by Chris and shown on …
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Claudia Pineiro for Time of the Flies
Friday 14th March, 7.30pm
"Pineiro is delightfully successful at marrying the joy of a crime novel with the intelligence, and deep characterization, of literary fiction." ~ Words Without BordersLife after …
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Pathfinding: On Walking, Motherhood and Freedom with Kerri Andrews
Monday 17th March, 7.30pm
The desire to walk is something that defines us as human beings, bringing joy and connection and freedom. But what happens to all this when we …
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Callum McSorley for Paperboy
Tuesday 18th March, 7.30pm
Callum McSorley is a writer based in Glasgow whose short stories have appeared in Gutter Magazine, Monstrous Regiment and New Writing Scotland.Squeaky Clean was his debut …
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Grace Curtis for Idolfire
Thursday 20th March, 7.30pm
"You will turn every page hoping for one hundred more."~ Hannah Kaner, Sunday Times bestselling author of GODKILLERGrace Curtis' debut Frontier, a queer space western about …
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Cooks & Books: Darjeeling Express' Asma Khan for Monsoon
Monday 24th March, 7.30pm
"The soul of my cooking is the symphonic layering of vibrant flavours that work together like instruments in an orchestra." ~ Asma KhanAsma Khan is the …
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Xiaolu Guo for Call Me Ishmaelle
Wednesday 26th March, 7.30pm
I must work on a ship as a man... Yes, I must seek a new life, more adventurous than that of my fellows on this desolate …
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Heather Parry for Carrion Crow
Thursday 27th March, 7.30pm
'With Carrion Crow Heather Parry deduces an unutterable Gothic horror of class and gender from the pages of Mrs Beeton's Book of Household Management. A festering …
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Cooks & Books: Calum Harris for Proper Healthy
Monday 31st March, 7.30pm
Calum Harris is a cook who started on Instagram in 2019 with the aim to make vegan food simple for everyone to enjoy and try. Since …
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Cooks & Books: Ottolenghi's Noor Murad for Lugma
Thursday 3rd April, 7.30pm
Bahrain-born, London-based and New York trained, Noor Murad joined the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen in 2018, where she worked as a recipe developer for Falastin and Flavour …
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Submarine's Joe Dunthorne for Children of Radium: A Buried Inheritance
Friday 4th April, 7.30pm
'A gripping story of family secrets and chemical warfare [and] a tale of one writer's search for a reliable past... Joe Dunthorne has written a contemporary …
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Queer Reading Group
Monday 7th April, 7pm
For the second installment of our Queer Fiction reading group, we will explore E.M. Forster's Maurice.With Sanna as our guide, we will be immersing ourselves in …
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Contemporary Crime Writing with Ian Rankin, Neil Lancaster, and Mari Hannah
Monday 7th April, 7.30pm
Three award-winning crime writers Ian Rankin, Neil Lancaster, and Mari Hannah join us to celebrate their latest books.Ian Rankin is a legend in his genre. The …
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Poetry Reading Group
Tuesday 8th April, 7pm
Our poetry reading group is returning for 2025! With Zain as our guide, we will be immersing ourselves in a range of exciting voices in the …
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William Coles for Lord Lucan
Wednesday 9th April, 7.30pm
The Lord Lucan Scandal: 50th Anniversary EditionA murder gone wrong. A worldwide police hunt for the killer. And a fugitive who became a legend: The 7th …
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Red Pockets: An Offering with Alice Mah
Tuesday 22nd April, 7.30pm
Alice Mah is Professor of Urban and Environmental Studies at the University of Glasgow. Originally from a small town in northern British Columbia, she has a …
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Rob Cowen with Dan Richards for The North Roads
Monday 28th April, 7.30pm
"A haunting exploration of time, place and memory along the road to London-Edinburgh highway. Radical. Beautiful. Brilliant." ~ Robert MacfarlaneRob Cowen is an award-winning writer and …
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East West Street's Philippe Sands for 38 Londres Street
Tuesday 29th April, 3pm
"A true masterpiece. Utterly compelling, a staggering piece of research and beautifully written." ~ HENRY MARSHBaillie Gifford winner Philippe Sands is Professor of Public Understanding of …
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Cooks & Books: Kenji Morimoto for FERMENT
Tuesday 29th April, 7.30pm
"Kenji is a fermenting guru and this book is a masterclass in fermentation." Tim Spector"An open-hearted collection of stories, practical tips and excellent recipes." Ottolenghi Test …
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Alice Vincent for Hark: How Women Listen
Tuesday 6th May, 7.30pm
Alice Vincent is the author of four books, including Why Women Grow and Rootbound: Rewilding a Life, both longlisted for the Wainwright Prize and named as …
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Cooks & Books: Julie Lin for SAMA SAMA
Tuesday 13th May, 7.30pm
"Food has the power to stir memories, bring people together, transport you to new places, and, most importantly, take you home. Julie captures all of this …
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Sarah Moss for Ripeness
Monday 19th May, 7.30pm
Please note, this event is now taking place in Pilrig St Paul's / LARCH on Leith Walk. 'One of our very best contemporary novelists' ~ Independent'Moss …
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Square Haunting's Francesca Wade on Gertrude Stein
Wednesday 21st May, 7.30pm
From the author of the critically acclaimed Square Haunting comes a biography as unconventional and surprising as the life it tells...Francesca Wade is the author of …
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Francesca Segal for Island Calling
Tuesday 3rd June, 7.30pm
Francesca Segal is an award-winning writer and journalist. She is the author of two critically acclaimed novels, The Innocents (2012) and The Awkward Age (2017), and …
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Electric Spark: the Enigma of Muriel Spark with Frances Wilson
Thursday 12th June, 7.30pm
'Frances Wilson writes books that blow your hair back' ~ KATHERINE RUNDELLA 2025 HIGHLIGHT FOR: Telegraph, Financial Times, Guardian, Observer and Scotsman.From one of our leading …
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Michael Pedersen for Muckle Flugga
Monday 16th June, 7.30pm
Michael Pedersen is a prize-winning poet and author of Boy Friends, which was a Sunday Times Critics Choice and shortlisted for the Saltire Scottish National Book …
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