Jackie Kay: Critical Essays offers the first full-length critical study of Kay’s work. It brings together a range of essays by international scholars to examine the work of a writer who has expanded the scope of British literature.

Jackie Kay is the author of 30 works, including plays, poetry, prose, children’s literature, and short stories. She was the Scots Makar (the national poet) from 2016-2021 and has won or been shortlisted for over 20 literary awards and prizes. This collection addresses the full range of Kay’s writing, from her earliest poetry and fiction of the 1980s through to her most recent publications, including her lesser-examined works such as her dramas and her writing for children. Significant themes and concerns, including race, national identity, family and life writing, gender and sexuality, are all examined in new critical essays that greatly expand understanding of Kay’s canon. The contributors show that Kay’s work is remarkable for its range of genres, its consistent reinvention of forms, and its marriage of intimate, domestic depictions of individual lives with broad political and philosophical themes.

This book is aimed at students and scholars of contemporary British fiction, Black British literature, Scottish literature, and contemporary women’s writing.