Agnes Owens

This "terrific collection" presents the beloved Scottish author's complete short stories, plus 14 new tales of bracing honesty and mordant wit (The Times, UK).   A twice-married mother of seven, Agnes Owens had worked for years as a house cleaner, typist, and factory worker before being discovered in a small-town writing workshop. Her first story, "Arabella," announced her great talent to her three instructors: Liz Lochhead, Alasdair Gray, and Jim Kelman. Many more stories followed, filling the now-classic volumes Gentlemen of the West, Lean Tales, and People Like That.   This collection presents the complete contents of those books, plus fourteen previously unpublished stories, presented under the collective title The Dark Side. Owens' talent for pithy, unsettling tales is as sharp as ever, confirming her place as one of Scotland's finest contemporary writers.   "Owens is a gentle writer with a slicing with . . . honest and unaffected." —Sunday Times, UK