Close Your Eyes

Book Talk

Close Your Eyes, Ewan Morrison's award-winning fourth novel, is the subject of our panel's scrutiny in this month's Book Talk. Moderated by Danny Scott, guests Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival, and cultural critic and New Writers Awardee Lucy Rochester peel away the layers of this onion-like work, searching for the soft centre of this complex book, which tackles a wide range of topics including depression, parenthood, New Age ideals and deep-seated narcissism. The book follows a woman named Rowan, who was abandoned by her mother by the roadside some thirty years earlier. Now a mother herself and grappling with post-natal depression, Rowan leaves her own young family in London and travels to the remote commune in Scotland where she grew up. Paranoid that she'll repeat her mother's mistakes, Rowan delves into her past and tries to get to the bottom of her mother's disappearance. Find out what our panellists had to say about the story and its themes (not to mention its rather frightening depiction of early motherhood), the contrast between life and parenting in the 1970s versus the modern day, and how the book compares to some of Morrison's other work. And why are our guests debating what sort of fruit or vegetable the book reminds them of? You'll have to listen to find out! What are your feelings on Close Your Eyes? Share your thoughts by tweeting us @scottishbktrust or leaving a message on our Facebook page. BookTalk is produced by Colin Fraser of Culture Laser Productions.