Burning Whins concerns itself with relationships and ownership. Describing the Scottish Parliament, aeroplane travel in the Western Isles, and the destruction wrought by the recent Foot and Mouth epidemic with equal familiarity and fluidity, these poems depict the many faces of contemporary Scotland with grace and intimacy.

Liz Niven is also a poet whose works in Scots give real presence and immediacy to this dynamic and descriptive language. Burning Whins cements Liz’s presence as a contributor to the development of modern Scots and its linguistic place in the nation’s cultural growth patterns.