Wild Places, Wild Encounters: Exploring Edinburgh's Living Landscape by Glen Cousquer (28 June 2024). (Amazon paid link.)
This is a book about reconnecting to nature wherever we find ourselves living and the personal benefits that can ensue. It explores
how we can appreciate the natural world on our doorstep in line with the latest research from a range of disciplines, including
ecology, outdoor and environmental education. It does so by means of a blend of encounter-based photography, connection with nature
and reading the landscape.
Read our full review.
The Last Sunset in the West: Britain's Vanishing West Coast Orcas by Natalie Sanders (4 July 2024). (Amazon paid link.)
Fully revised edition with updated information. In 2014, marine biologist Dr Natalie Sanders joined the crew of the research vessel Silurian
to seek out Britain’s West Coast Community of orca and study them before we lose them forever. Though this orca pod has delighted scientists
and whale watchers for years, we still know relatively little about them, and what we do know comes mostly from citizen science and chance
encounters.
Read our full review.
The Bone Cave: A Journey through Myth and Memory by Dougie Strang (5 October 2023). (Amazon paid link.)
A vivid account of a month-long journey in the Scottish Highlands. Walking and occasionally hitching, Dougie Strang follows a series of folktales
to the locations in which they’re set, encountering along the way a depth of meaning to them that allows him to engage with the landscape from
a different perspective – one where the distinction between history and legend is supple, and where his own narrative becomes entangled with figures both real and mythic.
Read our full review.
Landscape Change in the Scottish Highlands: Imagination and Reality by James Fenton (29 September 2023). (Amazon paid link.)
The Scottish Highlands are now symbolic of Scotland as a whole: a land of mountains, glens and lochs, of golden eagles and red deer; a
land with a rich cultural history of clans and clanship, of kilts and castles, of crofts, crofting, Highland cows and sheep, of music and
dance. But does this imagined landscape relate to the actuality? Is it in fact a wild landscape or does such untrammelled wildness only
reside in the mind?
Read our full review.
Scottish Plant Lore: An Illustrated Flora by Gregory J. Kenicer (21 May 2020). (Amazon paid link.)
Scotland's plants define its landscape. Plants have shaped the country's domestic economy and culture over centuries, providing
resources for agriculture and industry as well as food, drink and medicines. They have even inspired children's games and been
used as components in magical charms. Drawing together traditional knowledge with the work of some of the country's finest
botanical artists, this book is a magnificent celebration of Scottish plant lore.
Read our full review.
The Corncrake: An Ecology of an Enigma by Frank Rennie (29 April 2022). (Amazon paid link.)
Until now there has been no full-length book that attempts to capture all the aspects of the Corncrake's ecology, and to present this
information to non-specialists. As a result many important facts about its lifestyle and behaviour have not been widely known. Although
rarely seen, the Corncrake is well-known due to its characteristic night-time calling, but new discoveries may offer new ways of protecting
and enabling the population of this iconic species to recover, even to thrive in our countryside.
Read our full review.
Planting with Nature: A Guide to Sustainable Gardening by Kirsty Wilson (20 April 2023). (Amazon paid link.)
By re-imagining how we plan and use our gardens, we can all do our bit to support local wildlife, improve our health and help tackle the climate
crisis. This is a practical, easy-to-use guide for anyone who wants to boost nature in their patch and make the world a little greener. It
contains essential information on many topics, from planting nectar-rich borders, native hedgerows, trees and wildflower meadows to creating
rain gardens, green roofs and ponds.
Read our full review.
Tyninghame: Landscapes and Lives by Judy Riley (5 May 2022). (Amazon paid link.)
For many, Tyninghame on the beautiful East Lothian coast means beaches, sea birds and salt marshes. But this place was once an important
monastic site that eventually became the seat of the earls of Haddington. In the early eighteenth century, its landscape was dramatically
changed by a young woman, Lady Helen Hope. Judy Riley reveals a fascinating story, weaving together the different threads which make up this
special place in a corner of East Lothian.
Read our full review.
The Two Headed Whale: Life and Loss in the Deepest Oceans by Sandy Winterbottom (6 October 2022). (Amazon paid link.)
In 2016, Sandy Winterbottom embarked on an epic six-week tall-ship voyage from Uruguay to Antarctica. At a stop in South Georgia, her pristine
image of the Antarctic was shattered when she discovered the dark legacy of industrial-scale whaling. She was enraged by what she found, but
then she stumbled upon the grave of an eighteen-year-old whaler from Edinburgh who she could not allow to bear the brunt of blame. There are
two sides to every story.
Read our full review.
A Journey in Landscape Restoration: Carrifran Wildwood and Beyond by Philip and Myrtle Ashmole (29 May 2020). (Amazon paid link.)
Carrifran Wildwood was the brainchild of local people. When Borders Forest Trust was founded the Wildwood became the Trust's first large land-based
project, and after 20 years of work it has become an inspirational example of ecological restoration. Removal of sheep and goats and planting 700,000
trees launched the return of native woodland and moorland, transforming degraded hill land into something akin to its pristine, vibrant, carbon-absorbing
state.
Read our full review.
The Clydesdale: Workhorse of the World by Mary Bromilow (7 June 2018). (Amazon paid link.)
The Clydesdale has its origin in the working horses of Lanarkshire in the early 19th century, and over the last 200 years have been exported
from Scotland all over the world. This book puts this iconic Scottish breed into context in relation to its development, social history and
popular culture both in the UK and abroad. This is an expanded and fully revised edition of the book, first published by Argyll Publishing
in 2011.
Read our full review.
The Secret Life of the Cairngorms by Andy Howard (1 October 2019). (Amazon paid link.)
Andy Howard is a leading wildlife photographer located in the Scottish Highlands, whose principal subjects are mountain hares, otters,
red squirrels and birds. His new book follows him deep into the Cairngorms National Park and is illustrated with a stunning selection
of his nature photography. He celebrates the wildlife and landscape of the Cairngorm National Park and questions the sustainability
of tourism in such an environment.
Read our full review.
The Nature of Spring by Jim Crumley (4 April 2019). (Amazon paid link.)
Spring is nature's season of rebirth and rejuvenation. Jim Crumley chronicles the wonder, tumult and spectacle
of that transformation, but he shows too that it is no idyll. Climate chaos brings unwanted drama to the lives
of badger and fox, seal and seabird and raptor, pine marten and sand martin. Jim lays bare the impact of global
warming and points the way to a conservation vision that embraces everything from the mountain treeline to a second
spring for the wolf.
Read our full review.
Granite and Grit:
A Walker's Guide to the Geology of British Mountains by Ronald Turnbull (6 January 2011). (Amazon paid link.)
This superb and highly illustrated book is a celebration of what mountains are made of, and how they got there. At last, a geology book for
anyone interested in British mountains.
Read our full review.
Rivers and Lochs of Scotland: The Angler's Complete Guide by Bruce Sandison (24
March 2011). (Amazon paid link.)
This new, comprehensive and completely revised edition describes more than 5,000 freshwater fishing locations complete with access details,
flies and tactics and where to obtain permission to fish. For anyone fishing in Scotland, this book is the angler's bible.
Read our full review.
Collins Scottish Birds by Valerie Thom, Norman Arlott (Illustrator) (3 Mar
2008). (Amazon paid link.)
New edition of this ideal pocket guide to over 180 species of bird found throughout Scotland. Each species is illustrated in full colour with
a comprehensive description, plus the bird's English, Latin and Gaelic names.
Read our full review.
Greyfriars Bobby: The Most Faithful Dog in the World by Jan Bondeson (7 November
2012). (Amazon paid link.)
Although Greyfriars Bobby has been dead for nearly a century and a half, this extraordinary dog has yet to find his biographer. Much fiction
has been based on the myth, but no historian has investigated the authenticity of his story, and sift the facts from a century of exaggeration and
legend.
Read our full review.
Hadrian's Wildlife by John Miles (13 August 2012). (Amazon paid link.)
Hadrian's Wildlife will encourage visitors to the area to enjoy and appreciate the wide selection of these habitats on a year-round basis.
This invaluable guide to the many and varied attractions of the area will take the reader on a voyage of discovery and will be an essential companion for
visitors.
Read our full review.
Castles in the Mist: The Victorian Transformation of the Highlands by Robin Noble (21 April 2016). (Amazon paid link.)
Castles in the Mist reveals how, for better or for worse, the vast sporting estates of the Victorian era created the salmon rivers,
deer forests and grouse moors, transforming the Highlands into the landscape that we recognise today, with its attendant environmental problems.
In a seductive blend of memoir, history and natural history, Robin Noble makes the case for change.
Read our full review.
Ghosthunter: Adventures in the Afterlife by Tom Robertson with Murray Scougall (30
September 2010). (Amazon paid link.)
Tom Robertson has spent a lifetime hunting for ghosts. His quest to uncover the supernatural started at the tender age of seven with his
first terrifying encounter with the Black Lady of Larkhall. Since then, Tom has embarked on countless investigations.
Read our full review.
A Rum Affair: A True Story of Botanical Fraud by Karl Sabbagh (23 June 2016). (Amazon paid link.)
In the 1940s, the eminent British botanist John Heslop Harrison proposed that vegetation on the islands
off the west coast of Scotland had survived the last Ice Age. This flew in the face of what most botanists believed, but Heslop Harrison said he
had proof, the plants and grasses found on the isle of Rum. It
took a tenacious amateur to uncover the truth and reveal a fraud.
Read our full review.
A Saga of Sea Eagles by John A. Love (2 August 2013). (Amazon paid link.)
A much-needed update on a pioneering reintroduction project and its much-celebrated success. It is very much a personal account, based on the
author's own experiences and researches, and liberally illustrated. This intimate account tells all that has happened since the reintroduction of the
White-tailed Sea Eagle first began three and a half decades ago.
Read our full review.
Nature's Peace: A Celebration of Scotland's Watershed by Peter Wright (1 October
2013). (Amazon paid link.)
Nature's Peace celebrates the landscapes of the Scottish watershed as never before through stunning photographs, taking the reader on an
imaginary journey from the English border in the south to the Shetland Isles and Unst in the north.
Read our full review.
Nature's Architect: The Beaver's Return to Our Wild Landscapes by Jim Crumley (16
July 2015). (Amazon paid link.)
Hundreds of years after their extinction in these isles, beavers are back in Britain. As they become established, they are already having a
dramatic effect on our wild landscapes. Here, leading nature writer Jim Crumley reveals the pioneering lifestyle of these intriguing and secretive creatures
and considers the ecological and economic impact of the beaver reintroductions.
Read our full review.
Running Wild by Mike Tomkies (30 May 2014). (Amazon paid link.)
At the age of 86, Mike Tomkies is back doing what he does best - observing our rarest and most dramatic wildlife, unsuspected and from close
quarters, and writing about it with the kind of intimate detail that has earned high acclaim from critics and conservationists.
Read our full review.
Secret Lochs and Special Places: An Angling Memoir by Bruce Sandison (30 September
2015). (Amazon paid link.)
This book by one of Scotland s most respected anglers takes the angler on a journey through some of Scotland s most wonderful areas to
discover little-known lochs and others that are outstanding simply because of their beauty. This book is not about huge trout, although they are there, but
rather about the supreme joy that is fishing.
Read our full review.
Supernatural Scotland (Scotties) by Eileen Dunlop (1 April 2011). (Amazon paid link.)
This title in the Scottie Books series covers: Ghosts and Graveyards; Haunted Houses - such as Haddington House with its ghostly horse;
Witches - good spells and bad spells; Hallowe'en; Fairies and more; Glaistigs and Brownies; and, Merfolk.
Read our full review.
The Secret Life of the Mountain Hare by Andy Howard (18 October 2018). (Amazon paid link.)
Among the most captivating of creatures, the mountain hare has inhabited Britain's upland landscape since the last major ice age.
Andy Howard fell in love with mountain hares on first sight and they have been at the centre of his successful career as a wildlife
photographer. Here he introduces them not only as a species to be held as precious within the great wheel of nature, but also as
individuals with their own, delightful personalities.
Read our full review.
Lies, Damned Lies and Anglers: Fishing Tales and Other Stories by Bruce Sandison
(20 May 2011). (Amazon paid link.)
The latest collection of thoughts and reflections on one of the UK s most popular pastimes, from one of our most respected fishermen. It s
also a practical guide to angling in Scotland which will give readers some great tips on where and when to find the best fish.
Read our full review.
The Ancient Pinewoods of Scotland by Clifton Bain (18 April 2013). (Amazon paid link.)
Scattered across the Scottish Highlands are the last surviving remnants of the Caledonian forest which have survived, naturally seeding and
growing since the last ice age. All are in the Scottish Highlands.
Visiting these ancient woods provides an emotional connection to nature and to the past: and
this superb book shows you how.
Read our full review.
A Handbook of Scotland's Coasts by Fi Martynoga (16 July 2015). (Amazon paid link.)
This handbook offers an inspirational resource for those who want to discover more about the thousands of miles of Scotland's spectacular
coastline - from its stunning geology and diverse marine and bird life to its coastal culture, with its fishing ports, fresh cuisine, arts communities, ancient
monuments and colourful local traditions.
Read our full review.
Glorious Gentlemen: Scotland's Stalkers, Gillies and Keepers by Bruce Sandison (15
October 2012). (Amazon paid link.)
A magical journey as seen through the eyes of some of Scotland's best-known and most respected gillies, stalkers and keepers - men who have
spent their whole lives on river, moor and hill caring for the iconic salmon in our rivers and the red deer on our hills. The stories they have to tell are
full of humour, kindliness and patience.
Read our full review.
