Christine De Luca lives in Edinburgh. She writes in English and Shetlandic, her mother tongue. She was appointed Edinburgh’s Makar (poet laureate) for 2014-2017. Besides several children’s stories (in Shetlandic) and one novel, she has had seven poetry collections and four bi-lingual volumes published (French, Italian, Icelandic and Norwegian) and has been active in translation. She has also co-authored/edited two books including her poems, most recently Paolozzi at Large in Edinburgh (Luath Press, 2018).
Website: www.christinedeluca.co.uk
Northern alchemy – Shetlandic poems with versions in English
A bi-lingual collection of 40 poems, each in the original Shetlandic, along with a version in English. Shetlandic is a unique ‘dialect’ or language, a blend of Old Scots with strong Norse vocabulary and sound; the most distinctive within Scotland. Nordic poets, when they hear it, describe it as a ‘cousin language’.