august 16 

We have profoundly mixed feelings about Scottish author Irvine Welsh. Pro: Few people chronicle tales from the gutter as well as Welsh. Con: You may retch while reading them. You may also laugh, as we did during the drug-retrieval-in-the-toilet scene in "Trainspotting.'' (Probably the best, most realistic and ultimately anti-drug book written.) We've also had to put down Welsh's books - "Porno," "Filth" and "Glue" come to mind - because we just couldn't handle the decadence coupled with the Welsh's penchant for using Scottish phonetic spelling when the characters speak. Welsh's latest is "The Bedroom Secrets of the Master Chefs.'' Food, sex, travel, low-level celebrity, mystery illnesses and male rivalry all factor in Welsh's jolly tale.

He'll be speaking at the Coolidge Corner Theatre on August 16 at 6 p.m. Tickets are $2 and can be purchased in advance at the sponsoring Brookline Booksmith.

Call the Booksmith at 617-566-6660. The theatre is at 290 Harvard St. in Brookline.