Scotland: 1,001 Things You Need to Know

Covering all the need-to-knows, from bagpipes to Billy Connolly, this collection is the real McCoy, a comprehensive guide to Caledonia and its remarkable people. As the proud possessors of a fiercely independent creative heritage, the Scots were a race apart even before Hadrian built the wall. Scotland has produced an indomitable bunch of fighters, builders, thinkers and drinkers, poets, players, and pedagogues that have shaped the course of modern history. Edwin Moore has gathered together more than 1,000 facts about its monarchs, heroes, and rogues; battles, scandals, and great trials; food and (of course) drink; legends, folklore, and sports—for starters—and presents them here in easily digestible, scone-sized portions. This is the perfect gift for anyone curious about the connection between Homer Simpson and small Scottish town Larbert, or about whether both Barack Obama and John McCain can really be descended from a Scottish Lion.

Edwin Moore was a Collins Reference senior editor for 20 years. He is the author of Brief Encounters: Meetings Between (Mostly) Remarkable People and Lemmings Don't Leap: 180 Myths, Misconceptions and Urban Legends Exploded.