Edinburgh: Picturesque Notes

A brand-new hardback edition of the vintage travel classic by Robert Louis Stevenson. First published in 1878 and now re-issued by Manderley Press, introduced by Alexander McCall Smith and illustrated by Iain McIntosh.

Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) was a travel writer, essayist, novelist and poet. Born and brought up in Edinburgh, he saw himself foremost as a storyteller with a mission to transport the reader to another place, captivating generations of readers, young and old, across the world.

Stevenson is also a trusty, witty and irreverent tour guide. In this book, drawing from his own memoirs of growing up in Edinburgh – and shaped by his interest in social history, legend and myth – he takes the reader on a journey through the city, visiting memorable houses and picturesque areas, bringing to life its most engaging characters and landmarks.

Many of the buildings, places and people he describes in Edinburgh went on to inform the settings of his timeless adventure novels, such as Kidnapped, Treasure Island and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

A ‘sort of Bible’ to all Scots in the 19th century, this gloriously vivid and entertaining portrait of Edinburgh continues to beguile the modern reader 150 years after it was first written.