A Work of Beauty

Overview

Edinburgh is a city of stories – a place that has witnessed everything from great historical upheavals, to the individual lives of a remarkable cast of characters. Every spire, cobblestone, bridge, close and avenue has a tale to tell.

In this sumptuous new book, Alexander McCall Smith curates his own, distinctive story of Edinburgh – combining his affectionate, incisive wit with a wealth of stunning imagery drawn from Scotland’s national collection of architecture and archaeology. Through a series of photographs, maps, drawings and paintings – many never before published – he takes the reader on a unique tour. 

Just like the city’s architecture, the book can move in an instant from sweeping views to secret, hidden vignettes. This is a story of famous landmarks and lost buildings; the people who made them; the people who lived in them. 

A Work of Beauty is an intimate portrait of a city by one of Scotland’s greatest storytellers.

Author

Alexander McCall Smith

Alexander McCall Smith enjoyed a distinguished career as a Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh, before turning to writing full-time. He is the author of over eighty books on a wide array of subjects, and his books have been translated into forty-six languages.