Antonia Swinson Website

Welcome to my website which I hope will give you information about my work.

You are what you Grow! Life, Land and the Pursuit of Happiness.

"Based on her Allotment Tales column for The Scotsman and New Consumer Magazine, Antonia shares, not only her tips for gardening and allotment management, but also the effect of her time spent there. You are What You Grow is her extraordinary original vision of how the world ticks. Her considerations in these articles explore relevant social issues such as the history of British land ownership, organic produce and self-sufficiency, community building and the psychological benefits she has personally found in her beloved allotment." (Luath Press website). Read More .

Scotch on the Rocks by Arthur Swinson ... Available Now!

This is the true story about Whisky Galore and the boat the SS Politician, which went down on 4th February 1941 with 240,000 bottles of whisky and £3m in Jamaican notes on board. (Published by Luath Press). Read More .

See also www.scotchontherocks.net

'ROOT OF ALL EVIL? — How to make spiritual values count.'

Latest reviews ... Read More .
Just in whose interest is it, for the UK population to be up to its eyeballs in debt? How does our childhood shape our views on money and why are these attitudes so difficult to shift? Just what is 'social capital' and how rich can it make us? These are some of the themes in my first non fiction book out on 2 September 2003 in paperback, published by St Andrew Press. Read More .

"She could become a prophet of our time". — MAGGIE LUNAN in Coracle .

"This is fascinating reading — surely the most remarkable thing to have come from the pen of a financial writer for many a year." — ALEXANDER McCALL SMITH, International best selling author of 'The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency.'

"... chatty and anecdotal in style, but don’t let that kid you ... this is a profound and disturbing book Chapter 5 is dynamite: it could shake the UK to its very foundation." — HARRY REID, former editor The Herald.

"I am very impressed with this book. What a fantastic talent . Swinson writes with great clarity about profoundly complex issues. She reaches out and pulls in any reader — regardless of position or prejudice." — JULIA LANGDON, political commentator, biographer of Mo Mowlam.

"This is not mere gloom-mongering. It is by way of a preface to the second book I picked up: an early copy of a refreshingly eccentric tome by the Scottish financial journalist, Trollope expert and occasional novelist, Antonia Swinson. It is called Root of all Evil? and purports to be a Christian analysis of how money influences every aspect of our lives, how it has got disgracefully out of hand, and should be whipped back into line with our real ethical and personal values. Mr Blair should immediately recruit Swinson to his new faith-and-policy review group, if he has the bottle." — LIBBY PURVES (UK Times columnist, 5 August, 2003). Read More .

"I much enjoyed the Cousin's Tale with all its bad men (and some women too)." — MARGARET ATWOOD

"Swinson is different — almost a new Balzac in the way she conveys the intertwining of money and relationships." — LIBBY PURVES (UK Times columnist)

All three of my novels have a fine art theme but the principal mover is money — and the effect it has on the leading characters. The novels grew out of many years’ experience as a newspaper journalist writing on personal finance and business. It was in developing a nose for patterns of money — and why people react as they do with it — which led me to solving the mystery of Anthony Trollope’s life; just where he was while planning and writing the first part of Barchester Towers. This is covered in The Love Child — with a full factual explanation in the Author's Note.

And for anyone interested in paying less tax, read the land value taxation section and find out more about a fascinating subject which has been carefully airbrushed out of UK history for decades ...

On the 30th January 2003 the Scottish Parliament voted to 'consider and investigate' land value taxation for the Scotland. Read More .

Antonia seen here being presented with her award by Adair Turner Chair Low Pay Unit at the Meridien Hotel Piccadilly London in November.