Acid Plaid

Acid Plaid, Harry Ritchie (ed.), Arcade Publishing, 1996

This is a collection of contemporary fiction and poetry from the country of Scotland.

        Perhaps the most familiar name, to American readers, on the contents page, is Irvine Welsh, author of Trainspotting. He contributes a story, written in actual Scottish dialect, about a man who wants nothing more than to stay home and watch the weekend football match on TV. His wife is pestering him to take her and their children out to lunch at a local pub. While there, she overindulges with the alcohol; on their way back, they pass the local train station. She decides to take a walk on the track, with the train coming. She is struck, and grievously injured, by the train, losing both legs. An ambulance comes, and gets them all to the local hospital, where the biggest concern of the husband, the narrator of the story, is the location of the nearest TV so he can watch the weekend football match.

        Other stories are about a very strange job interview and burning an effigy of Elvis Presley.

        This is a really enjoyable anthology from the new literary hot spot. It's full of gritty, beer-soaked writing, and is well worth reading.