ABOUT THIS BOOK
PUBLISHER: Oldcastle Books
ISBN: 9780857306357
RRP: £10.99
PAGES: 224
PUBLICATION DATE:
October 27, 2026
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Callum, Reine, Sylvie and Sparrow
by James Yorkston
From rural Scotland and the west coast of Ireland to Paris and beyond, musician and journalist Callum retraces the people, places and moments that have shaped him.
Reine, Sylvie and Sparrow are among those whose paths become entwined with Callum’s, each leaving an indelible mark on his understanding of love, loss and what it means to find a place in the world.
From bitterly cold Irish loughs and Parisian flea markets to discos, bird hides and the Top of the Pops studio, Callum’s memories gather and overlap, revealing a life in vivid fragments.
Wry, tender and quietly life-affirming, Callum, Reine, Sylvie and Sparrow is a celebration of the people who shape us, the places that stay with us and the unexpected paths that lead us home.
James Yorkston (Author)
James Yorkston is a singer-songwriter and author from the East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. Since signing to Domino Records in 2001, James has released a steady flow of highly acclaimed, multi-instrument, acoustic based albums. James’ 2021 album The Wide, Wide River was called ‘another fascinating, curious contribution to the Scottish musician’s constantly eddying catalogue’ by the Guardian, ‘a beautiful experience’ by Clash and ‘another career highlight’ by the Scotsman. In 2014 Yorkston began playing with with Yorkston/Thorne/Khan, a trio embracing jazz, traditional folk, krautrock, the poetry of Ivor Cutler and Indian classical music. Their album Navarasa – Nine Emotions was named the Guardian’s ‘Folk Album of the Year’ in 2020. In 2011 James’ debut book It’s Lovely to be Here – The Touring Diaries of a Scottish Gent was published by The Domino Press / Faber, and in 2016 Freight Press published James’ first novel 3 Craws. His second novel, The Book of the Gaels, was published by Oldcastle Books in 2021. James also runs the music and poetry night ‘Tae Sup wi’ a Fifer’, and co-hosts the podcast 46-30, dedicated to ‘Quality Music of No Fixed Abode’.