July 2014

This month we have a duo of books by graduates of the University - a satirical look at American democracy and the published letters of a graduate who served in the First World War.

Andrew Heaton

Andrew Heaton’s savagely funny work on contemporary American democracy is a treasury of political satire. His regular sterling wit and pithy insights are combined with his own unique brand of cartoons, which, as he describes, “are about what I would have produced in my childhood, had I started drinking that early.” He expertly wields his humor to tackle standard libertarian irritants, from indignity over needing a Segway license, to the spectacular failure of cupcake regulation, farm bills, the Drug War, and social intolerance.

Anne Mitchell

Anne Mitchell's book of the letters sent home from the first World War by her uncle, John Oliver, who was on the staff of Moray House in the 1940s and 1950s. These letters are beautifully written and illustrate the maturing attitudes of the young men during four years of war. John was a graduate with an MA and D Litt. from Edinburgh and his nieces and nephews all graduated from Edinburgh. Hard copies are available at the Edinburgh University Library, the Edinburgh City Library and the National Library of Scotland. It has also been reproduced for the web:

Uncle John's Letters