The Keelie Hawk: Poems in Scots

A landmark poetry collection written in Scots, each poem accompanied by an English translation.

Collection by a former “Makar” (National Poet of Scotland), marking a significant event in contemporary Scottish literature.

This volume presents a deeply resonant collection of poems in Scots by Kathleen Jamie — the first time she has published in Scots. Each poem is paired with an English translation, allowing readers to appreciate both the sound and meaning. The poems traverse cycles of nature, migrations of birds and humans, and the intersections of landscape, memory, and identity. The collection invites readers to re-engage with the world by unlearning familiar sightlines and rediscovering a “mouth-music” of literary Scots, renewing language and perception.

“Jamie’s poetry offers a new way of seeing the world and a new form of intelligence about ourselves and other species.” — The Guardian