Reading Round Edinburgh

A unique guide with child-friendly maps to help children and adults discover Edinburgh and its children's books.

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'My love affair with writing in this city culminated in having the book launch of the sixth Harry Potter at Edinburgh Castle, easily my favourite launch so far.'
-- J. K. Rowling
'A glimpse of a lit room as one passes by is like seeing a little tableau. I don't want to be invited in and shown it in detail. I only want an impression. My imagination can do the rest.'
-- Joan Lingard, author of The Sign of the Black Dagger and Tilly and the Badgers
'Did you know that if Robert Louis Stevenson had never written 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde', there might be no big, green, angry superhero called the Hulk? In fact, there's a good chance we wouldn't have an evil Jedi Knight called Darth Vader either.'
-- Keith Gray, author of The Runner and Creepers
'I decided to poke gentle fun at some of the ladies who'd lived beside us. I turned them all into one Mrs McKitty. These ladies all wore hats from Jenners, and were afraid of nothing and no one. And of course they all had the famous Morningside "Panloaf Accent"!'
-- Aileen Paterson, author of the Maisie books
From its secret underground streets to the top of Arthur's Seat, the city of Edinburgh has been the inspiration for many children's books and writers.
This unique guide will help children and adults to discover Edinburgh through its children's books -- and to discover new books and writers through their city. With full-colour, child-friendly maps for different areas of Edinburgh, the book can be used as an informative walking guide around Edinburgh, or read as a fascinating overview of the city's rich contribution to children's literature.
The contributors to the book represent the cream of Edinburgh children's writing, from Joan Lingard and Mollie Hunter to Keith Gray, Gill Arbuthnott and Nicola Morgan. Each writer talks about why Edinburgh is such a perfect setting for their work, and introduces the area closest to their heart. There's also an Introduction by J. K. Rowling.
This book is a great present for children (and their families) who live in Edinburgh, or who are visiting the city. It is also a required purchase for libraries as the definitive guide to Edinburgh's literature for children.