THE BEST OF SCOTTISH BOOKS

Originally published in 1990, acknowledges the social as well as the artistic significance of the Glasgow Art Nouveau movement by examining the history of it from its inception through to its demise. By considering the contributions of social theorists like Peter Burger, Theodor Adorno, and Walter Benjamin, the author illustrates how Art nouveau can be located within an avant-garde. The book also reveals to what extent the contract which the Glasgow group had with the Secessionists in Vienna was significant for the development of their work.

Originally published in 1976, this book discusses the relationship of the age of intellectual enlightenment in Scotland to the age of economic improvement and analyses the Scottish Enlightenment from a more sociological point of view. It describes the intense period of high intellectual endeavour and activity that took place in the resorts of the cultural social Scottish elite in 18th and early 19th Century Scotland. It discusses the crucial place of lawyers in 18th Century Scottish society and examines the intellectual features of the Scottish university system, charting the rise of the societies, clubs and other institutions such as the Encyclopaedia Britannica and The Edinburgh Review.

Originally published in 1970, this volume is a valuable source of extensive data concerning Scotland’s railways and locomotives. Material that has appeared in books, technical journals, society and institutional proceedings is here gathered together, enabling the reader to easily trace details of design and construction on the five main railways of Scotland from 1831 until 1923 when all the railways in Britain came together under English control. As well as being of interest to engineers, this volume will also appeal to railway and social historians.

Originally published in 1952, this book analyses the constitutional, religious, economic and social conditions of the two countries in the late sixteenth century and surveys the complicated history of the following century. The Reformation made possible a transformation of Anglo-Scottish relations. Owing to the difference of institutions, traditions, and ideals, the alternative to absolutism was in the earlier instance the Cromwellian Protectorate and in the later the movement toward national separation arrested only by the contract of the Act of Union. This book charts the history of these relations in the light of divergent national traditions and ideals.

Originally published in 1972, this book is an analytical account of the socio-medical tribulations suffered by Glasgow’s east-end elderly leading to referral to geriatric wards. It examines why so many old people suffer from physical, mental and social deprivation in the final years of their lives. It shows by statistical studies and illustrative case histories that the basic cause is the survival into old age of people who are unfit to care for themselves, in such numbers that help from families, neighbours, the social services and the NHS is insufficient. From this study the expression the “geriatric giants” or the four I’s was coined: impairment of intellect (cerebral dysfunction), incontinence, immobility and instability (falls). The term ‘giant’ is seen to refer both to statistical frequency and to the huge personal burden of sufferers, escalating the need for socio-medical intervention. Prophetic in its predictions that the huge and complex social care problem would grow in the future much of this book remains relevant today.

Originally published in 1980, this book gives a concrete description of the development of Scottish companies and Scottish capital through the 20th Century, based on empirical study. The study begins with the major companies of 1904-5 and examines their history and subsequent development. The top companies in a number of periods are also examined and the study concludes with an investigation of the major companies of 1973-4 and their response to the (then) recent oil developments. The book uses both detailed company histories and broad historical interpretations as sources drawing the data together into chronologically ordered sections. Its focus is on the companies and people which make up the system of Scottish capital, seen as a relatively distinct system with its own characteristics and its own pattern of development within the British system.

Originally published in 1977, at a time when Scottish affairs were in a state of flux as the debate over political devolution and self-government was pursued, this book deals with key features of Scottish development. It explores the main issues which were then being considered in the planning of Scotland’s future. The contributors discuss the issues from a global perspective using Scotland as an occasion for detailed focus.

Originally published in 1971, this book gives the real substance of Scotland at the time of Mary Queen of Scots. It describes in extensive and colourful detail the way people of all ranks of society lived, their homes, their food and amusements, the ways they earned their living, cared for the sick and punished offenders. Family life, religion, the structure and activities of the clans and the state of the arts are all discussed. The book gives a true picture of a disturbed and remote country in the sixteenth century – a picture of contrasts and contradictions, as Scotland at that time was a country in transition between the medievalism of the Roman Catholic Church and the new Scotland with a rising merchant class.

Originally published in 1936, and with more than a slightly tongue-in-cheek tone at times, the author of this book declares that Scotland is not educated but merely learned. This book does not deal with education in its narrowest sense: it ranges from the Kirk to Haggis, Tartans and Burns, Whisky and repressed sex in its discussion, proclaiming Calvinism as the root of most of Scotland’s evils. Honest and at times provocative, this volume does give direct access to the emotional roots of Neill’s feelings about Scottish education.

Mission in Contemporary Scotland is the first book to fully examine the challenges and opportunities of Christian mission in contemporary Scotland. It covers all of the most important topics and questions engaging the church today, such as the reality of decline, the changing nature of domestic mission, the response of the Church to change, and the different models of mission that are being used today. Describing and analysing a wealth of concrete examples from a Scottish context, this study gives practical guidance to church leaders engaged in Fresh Expressions and church planting in a Scottish context.A major contribution of the book is to envisage ways in which the institutional Church can respond imaginatively to its secular and pluralist context. This is the first work of its kind and fills a significant gap in the market.

There is an enormous need to map cities, rivers, coasts, roads, industrial installations and infrastructure in general, and also vulnerable areas in full three dimensions. It has to be done accurately and in detail. The main technologies for detailed 3D mapping are based on imaging devices (photogrammetry) and Lidar sensors (laser scanning). These geodata acquisition technologies routinely acquire point clouds of billions of points and have matured rapidly since the mid-1990s. They have become key geodata sources for 3D city modelling, creation of digital twins and smart cities, and inspection of roads, railways, and natural features. Many GIS analysts extensively use point clouds in the form of digital elevation models.Pointcloudmetry is the specialized branch of geomatics that encompasses the acquisition and processing of point clouds captured by Lidar devices as well as point clouds derived from photogrammetric images. The technology allows accurate and detailed geo-information about earth-related objects, including the bare earth surface, to be obtained. This book covers the entire chain from the principles of geo-referencing and the basics of electromagnetic energy up to the generation of 2.5D and 3D geoinformation.The book provides vital knowledge about the fundamentals, idiosyncrasies and unparalleled potential of point cloud technology and is an indispensable aid to acquiring competent knowledge on the processing steps necessary for converting raw data into high quality 3D geo-information.

William Balfour Baikie was a surgeon, naturalist, linguist, writer, explorer and government consul who played a key role in opening Africa to the Europeans. As an explorer he mapped and charted large sections of the Niger River system as well as the overland routes from Lagos and Lokoja to the major trading centres of Kano, Timbuctu and Sokoto. As a naturalist, major beneficiaries of his work included Kew Gardens and the British Museum for the rare and undiscovered plant and animal species and yet today he remains largely unknown.On 10th December, 1864 Baikie was on his way back to London and was living in his temporary quarters in Sierra Leone. There he worked to regain his health and to complete the various reports and publications expected by the Colonial and Foreign Offices. He had been away from England for seven years and living conditions in West Africa had caused his health to suffer. While his wife and children waited for his return 600 miles away in Lokoja, the city in Nige-ria he had founded, his father waited for his return to Kirkwall, Orkney. Baikie would never return to his wife, nor ever see his father again. In two days, he would be dead and buried at Sierra Leone before his fortieth birthday.In his short life Baikie became such a hero among the Nigerian people 150 years ago that white visitors to the region today are still greeted warmly as ‘Baikie’. After studying at University of Edinburgh he was assigned to the Royal Hospital Haslar where he worked with the noted explorers Sir John Richardson and Sir Edward Perry. Baikie’s reputation as a naturalist, and the sphere of influence provided by Richardson and Perry, allowed him to enter the elite British scientific community where he also worked alongside the most famous naturalist of the time, Charles Darwin.During his time at Haslar, Baikie made two voyages exploring the Niger and Benue Rivers to establish trading centres for the Liverpool merchant Macgregor Laird. The first was a resounding success. He conducted the first clinical trial using quinine as a preventative for malaria. For the first time in history, his initial exploration of these rivers was conducted without the loss of a single life to fever. Returning to London to a hero’s welcome, he was nominated for one of the Royal Geographic Society’s prestigious awards. His second voyage was a pure disaster. His ship was wrecked; members of the expedition died and he was stranded for over a year in the vast remote territory known as the Sokoto Caliphate. Following his rescue, he elected to remain alone in Africa for what would be his final years in order to complete his personal mission.Although he was born 4,000 miles away in Orkney, Baikie was designated the King of Lokoja by the ruler of the Sokoto Caliphate. This book defines the man and his accomplishments and reveals how he is so fondly remembered by the Nigerians and yet apparently so totally forgotten by the rest of the world.

This is the first full biography of two of Scotland’s most eminent Architects, James Miller and John James Burnet. While born just three years apart into very different circumstances – Burnet was the son of a wealthy Glasgow architect and Miller a farmer’s son – their careers and lives became intertwined as they competed for work and eventually the role of Scotland’s leading architect. Born in 1857 and 1860 respectively, one inherited and the other established successful practices in Glasgow at the zenith of that city’s wealth in the late 19th century.John James Burnet, who was educated at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, and led his profession in Glasgow in the latter years of the 19th and early years of the 20th centuries, produced many of the city’s finest buildings. These include The Athenaeum on Buchanan Street; Charing Cross Mansions; numerous city-centre commercial buildings such as Waterloo Chambers and Atlantic Chambers and the Townhouses on University Avenue. After moving to London, his work included the extension of the British Museum, The Daily Telegraph Building on Fleet Street and Adelaide House by London Bridge. Burnet was knighted and awarded the RIBA’s Gold Medal in 1923 and is recognized as one of Scotland’s finest architects.James Miller is simply Scotland’s most prolific architect. During his long career he designed The Empire Exhibition of 1901, Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Glasgow Central Station, Wemyss Bay Station, St Enoch’s Underground Station, Turnberry Hotel, Peebles Hydro Hotel, Gleneagles Hotel, the interiors of the SS Lusitania and SS Aquitania, Hampden Park, Forteviot Model Village, the Institution of Civil Engineers in Westminster, numerous banks, commercial buildings and churches in Glasgow and beyond as well as schools, country houses, factories and town halls. Despite this extraordinary output and his considerable architectural contribution to Scotland’s heritage, he has received relatively little acclaim, until now.This is a fascinating double biography, the story of Burnet and Miller’s parallel lives and work, set against the background of the booming Empire’s ‘Second City’.

A vibrant, colourful and beautiful book that introduces readers to Impressionism and Post-Impressionism. It explains the difference between the two movements and the main artists associated with each. Illustrations are drawn from the renowned and outstanding collection of French art held by the National Galleries of Scotland and they include a number of rarely seen works.This book tells the fascinating stories of how the key paintings and drawings found their way into the collection.Artists include Monet, Millet, Gaugin, Bastien-Lepage, Charles Jaccques, Troyon, Corot, Degas, Seurat, Van Gogh, Cezanne, Vuillard, Bonnard, Derain, Matisse, Legros and Rodin.

‘Wonderfully funny… the wit flashes as brightly as the scalpels’ Sunday Times’The sharpest, blackest and most original sitcom I’ve heard in years’ ObserverAll 18 episodes of the sitcom set in the fascinating but misunderstood world of the pathology labMeet Dr Anthony Webster and Dr Ruth Anderson, two pathologists attempting to live normal lives in an atmosphere of death, decay and seriously unpleasant smells. Anthony loves his chosen profession, finding every cadaver exciting and surprising: ‘they’re like Kinder eggs that have died’. Ruth, however, longs for a juicy murder mystery, instead of one routine autopsy after another.Together, they perform post-mortems under the watchful eye of their enthusiastic head of department, Professor Donaldson, a man who’s never short of a new initiative or NHS directive to implement. Also keeping the mortuary alive are hard-drinking lab assistant Gordon, no-nonsense secretary Chloe, and ineffectual police sergeant Simon, who unfortunately gets queasy around corpses.Throughout these three series, the team tackle a ‘live’ radio autopsy, a dearth of dead bodies, and a health scare in the lab; find themselves forced to work on Christmas Day due to a department store drama, and witness a retirement, a leaving party, an overdue baby – and a death…Scripted by Laurence Howarth, one of the lead writers on Dead Ringers and co-star of Radio 4’s Laurence & Gus, this delightfully dark comedy is like Silent Witness, only slightly less ridiculous. It stars Peter Davison as Anthony, Tracy-Ann Oberman and Matilda Ziegler as Ruth and Geoffrey Whitehead as Professor Donaldson, with Tom Price as Gordon, Marianne Levy as Chloe and Gus Brown as Simon.Dr Anthony Webster – Peter DavisonDr Ruth Anderson – Tracy-Ann Oberman/Matilda ZieglerProfessor Donaldson – Geoffrey WhiteheadGordon – Tom PriceChloe – Marianne LevySimon – Gus BrownDavid/Patient – Stephen CritchlowElaine/Mrs Fitzherbert/Alison/Mrs Wealands/Mrs Dance – Beth ChalmersMrs Renfield – Rachel AtkinsDaniel Kasper – Laurence HowarthMargaret – Lauren BirdProf Van den Hoogenband – Chris PavloMr Reeve – Nicholas BoultonMrs Anderson – Paula WilcoxNorman – Lewis AaltonenDr Betzatzoglu – Alex LoweMatthew – Steven KynmanMrs Wantage – Felicity MontaguMr Wantage – Kim WallDorothy – Joanna BrookesInterviewer/Mr Dance – Gerard McDermott(c) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2021 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

One year after the death of his beloved musician father, thirteen-year-old Benny Oh begins to hear voices. The voices belong to the things in his house – a sneaker, a broken Christmas ornament, a piece of wilted lettuce. Although Benny doesn’t understand what these things are saying, he can sense their emotional tone; some are pleasant, a gentle hum or coo, but others are snide, angry and full of pain. When his mother develops a hoarding problem, the voices grow more clamorous.At first Benny tries to ignore them, but soon the voices follow him outside the house, onto the street and at school, driving him at last to seek refuge in the silence of a large public library, where objects are well-behaved and know to speak in whispers. There, he falls in love with a mesmerising street artist with a smug pet ferret, who uses the library as her performance space. He meets a homeless philosopher-poet, who encourages him to ask important questions and find his own voice amongst the many.And he meets his very own Book – a talking thing – who narrates Benny’s life and teaches him to listen to the things that truly matter.The Book of Form and Emptiness blends unforgettable characters, riveting plot and vibrant engagement with everything from jazz to climate change to our attachment to material possessions. This is classic Ruth Ozeki – bold, humane and heartbreaking.

The luminous fog drifted slowly off the table, and wavered and flickered across the room. There in the farther and darkest corner it gathered and glowed, hardening down into a shining core.Although best known for the stories of Sherlock Holmes, and despite claiming he preferred his historical fiction, during his writing career of over fifty years Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a remarkable number of weird and supernatural tales. With his belief in spiritualism later in life only adding to his passion for the unknown, pulling at this thread of his fiction reveals a writer deeply fascinated in matters of the occult, the uncanny, and the unexplainable.This new volume collects the very best of Doyle’s strange stories and also includes his never-before-reprinted essay on his own spiritual experiences, ‘Stranger than Fiction’.

*** FINAL COVER TO BE REVEALED ***Pre-order the hilarious memoir from everyone’s favourite Scottish drag queen and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Lawrence Chaaaaaaney.’Gorgeous, hugely talented, funny, charismatic, adorable, Chaney is a goddess and brings us joy.’ – LorraineLawrence Chaney is a testament to the strength that comes from drag. Lawrence (Drag) Queen of Scots celebrates the little boy learning to sew at age seven and his journey to taking the UK by storm. From growing up as the gay class clown and being bullied to finding an outlet in performance and drag, celebrating both his outer curves and inner beauty.The book will showcase valuable life lessons and tricks of the trade, all told in Chaney’s trademark charming style, and will resonate with anyone who holds dreams and aspirations that are bigger than the town they grew up in.’Lawrence Chaney is the funniest queen by a country mile. She has delivered the laughs a locked down nation needed in abundance. But there’s much more to Chaney than her quick wit. Her vulnerability is also part of her natural gift.’ – Vogue

One year after the death of his beloved musician father, thirteen-year-old Benny Oh begins to hear voices. The voices belong to the things in his house – a sneaker, a broken Christmas ornament, a piece of wilted lettuce. Although Benny doesn’t understand what these things are saying, he can sense their emotional tone; some are pleasant, a gentle hum or coo, but others are snide, angry and full of pain. When his mother develops a hoarding problem, the voices grow more clamorous.At first Benny tries to ignore them, but soon the voices follow him outside the house, onto the street and at school, driving him at last to seek refuge in the silence of a large public library, where objects are well-behaved and know to speak in whispers. There, he falls in love with a mesmerising street artist with a smug pet ferret, who uses the library as her performance space. He meets a homeless philosopher-poet, who encourages him to ask important questions and find his own voice amongst the many.And he meets his very own Book – a talking thing – who narrates Benny’s life and teaches him to listen to the things that truly matter.The Book of Form and Emptiness blends unforgettable characters, riveting plot and vibrant engagement with everything from jazz to climate change to our attachment to material possessions. This is classic Ruth Ozeki – bold, humane and heartbreaking.

Spiral Bound explores the potential for yoga as a healing modality by examining the body’s anatomical structure as it has evolved embryonically. With a light touch approach, Karen weaves together threads of development to see how our morphological constraints arise in the earliest moments of life and how this rotation lays the spiral groundwork for rotational kinematics that encompass all tissue. This book sets out to link theory with practice, all at a conversational level richly illustrated with full-color photographs and drawings that bring the biomotion to life for practitioners and teachers of yoga. This book for anyone seeking to simplify the parts-list pedagogy of classical anatomy with contemporary research in fascia literature for an integrated approach especially suitable to postural yoga.