Programmarchiv

Reading and discussion

Martha and Finn’s marriage is hanging by a thread. Martha, crippled by paralyzing climate anxiety, finds herself at odds with Finn, who steadfastly refuses to confront the demons of his past.

In a desperate attempt to repair their relationship, they join a group of privileged tourists on a pilgrimage to The Salt Centre, a mysterious retreat nestled deep within the Bolivian salt flats.

United by a shared quest for spiritual enlightenment, the group embark on a journey guided by an elusive shaman. As a series of salt ceremonies unfold, hallucinogenic episodes force each of them to confront their own versions of reality.

When the final ceremony descends into a nightmare, Martha and Finn are met with an ultimatum. Forced to grapple with the moral implications of their trip they must ask themselves: are some wounds too deep to heal?

Rachelle Atalla will be in conversation with Jane Flett about inhospitable landscapes, climate anxiety, and the things we try to run from. The night will also feature an audience Q&A and book signing. Copies of The Salt Flats will be for sale from Curious Fox!

Reserve ticket

Rachelle Atalla is a Scottish-Egyptian novelist, short story writer and screenwriter based in Glasgow. She has written for BBC Radio 4, is the recipient of a Scottish Book Trust New Writers Award and is the current Dr Gavin Wallace Fellow at The University of Stirling. Her debut novel The Pharmacist was shortlisted for the Scottish Fiction Book of the Year and is now in development for film with Compact Pictures and the BFI. Thirsty Animals is her climate-focused second novel, and her third novel, The Salt Flats, published in August, was shortlisted for The List Rising Star Award.

Jane Flett is a Scottish writer who lives in Berlin. Her fiction has been commissioned for BBC Radio 4, featured in Electric Literature’s Recommended Reading, Highly Commended in the Bridport Prize and performed at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. She’s a recipient of the Scottish Book Trust New Writer Award, the New Orleans Writing Residency and the Berlin Senate Stipend for non-German literature. Her debut novel Freakslaw was published by Penguin in 2024.

We would like to point out that the lift in the building is unfortunately not working at the moment. For this reason, access is currently restricted. We would like to apologise for this.