THE BEST OF SCOTTISH BOOKS

During WW2 there was a rumour that German spies were landing by parachute in Britain, dressed as nuns…Conradin Muller was an unusual spy. He was recruited in Hamburg in June 1943, much against his will, and sent on his first, and only, mission in late September that year. He failed to send a single report back to Germany, and when the War came to an end in May 1945, he fell to his knees and wept with relief.From a highly reluctant German spy who is drawn to an East Anglian nunnery as his only means of escape, to the strange tale of one of the Cambridge spy ring’s adventures with a Russian dwarf, these are Alexander McCall Smith’s intriguing and typically inventive stories from the world of espionage.

THE SECOND THRILLING NOVEL IN VAL MCDERMID’S NEW SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING SERIESThere’s nothing like a killer story . . .1989. The world is changing, and Allie Burns is still on the front line, covering the stories that count.Although Allie is no longer an investigative journalist, her instincts are sharper than ever. When she discovers a lead about the exploitation of society’s most vulnerable, Allie is determined to give a voice to those who have been silenced.As Allie edges closer to exposing the truth, she travels beyond the Iron Curtain, to East Berlin on the brink of revolution. The dark heart of the story is more shocking than she ever imagined. And to tell it, Allie must risk her freedom and her life . . .The latest Allie Burns thriller, set a decade after the bestselling first novel in the ground-breaking, iconic new series.Praise for 1979’McDermid is at her considerable best’ GUARDIAN’Irresistible’ PATRICIA CORNWELL’A brilliant novel by a supremo of the genre’ PETER JAMES’Outstanding’ SPECTATOR’Another masterpiece’ DAVID BALDACCI’Sensational. One of Britain’s most accomplished writers’ SUNDAY EXPRESS

Scottish Gaelic in Twelve Weeks has been written both as a self-tuition course for beginners and also for use within the classroom. You may want to learn Gaelic because of a general interest in Celtic or Scottish history and culture, or because it was the everyday language of your ancestors. The cynical observer may wonder if the exercise is worthwhile, when only 1.5 per cent of Scotland’s population speak the language.However, Gaelic is far from dead; in some parts of the Highlands and Western Isles it is the everyday language and it represents an important part of the United Kingdom’s cultural mix. There are Gaelic-learning classes in almost every area of Scotland. Each lesson in the book contains some essential points of grammar explained and illustrated, exercises, a list of new vocabulary (with a guide to pronunciation, using the International Phonetics Alphabet), and an item of conversation.This new edition includes an audio download link.

The islands of the Outer Hebrides are home to some of the most remote and spectacular scenery in the world. They host an astonishing range of mysterious structures – stone circles, beehive dwellings, holy wells and ‘temples’ from the Celtic era. Over a twelve-day pilgrimage, often in appalling conditions, Alastair McIntosh returns to the islands of his childhood and explores the meaning of these places. Traversing moors and mountains, struggling through torrential rivers, he walks from the most southerly tip of Harris to the northerly Butt of Lewis.The book is a walk through space and time, across a physical landscape and into a spiritual one. As he battled with his own ability to endure some of the toughest terrain in Britain, he met with the healing power of the land and its communities. This is a moving book, a powerful reflection not simply of this extraordinary place and its people met along the way, but of imaginative hope for humankind.

Polly Pullar has had a passion for red squirrels since childhood. As a wildlife rehabilitator, she knows the squirrel on a profoundly personal level and has hand-reared numerous litters of orphan kits, eventually returning them to the wild.In this book she shares her experiences and love for the squirrel and explores how our perceptions have changed. Heavily persecuted until the 1960s, it has since become one of the nation’s most adored mammals. But we are now racing against time to ensure its long-term survival in an ever-changing world.Set against the beautiful backdrop of Polly’s Perthshire farm, where she works continuously to encourage wildlife great and small, she highlights how nature can, and indeed will, recover if only we give it a chance. In just two decades, her efforts have brought spectacular results, and numerous squirrels and other animals visit her wild farm every day.

A referendum on Scottish independence is only days away, and the campaign has been expertly orchestrated by First Minister Susan Ward. All signs point to victory for the nationalists. But when senior civil servant John Millar is shot in a Glasgow alley on a furiously rain-soaked night, his death triggers a chain of catastrophic events. An incriminating phone number and video are found in his possession.Into this chaos walks reporter Fulton Mackenzie. A man himself blighted by tragedy but also someone used to seeing beneath the surface to find the truth. Who was John Millar? Who wanted him dead? And why? And the biggest question of all – who is trying to alter the future path of an entire nation?

In Pianos and Flowers we are invited to glimpse a world long departed. In these stories, inspired by long-lost photographs, the lives of the people in the frame are imagined and then explored, layer by layer.Three sisters brought up in Penang, caught in the tide of war.A group of small boys in a Glasgow slum – their childhood blighted by poverty, their adult lives taking very different paths.A young woman’s search for love in the unlikely realm of Egyptian antiquities.And through all of these photographs, and all of these stories, there runs the same refrain: the possibilities of love, of friendship, of happiness lie before us.

Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers’ story comprehension and develop vocabulary.The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, a Level 3 Reader, is A2 in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to three clauses, introducing first conditional, past continuous and present perfect simple for general experience. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear on most pages.From finding a diamond in a bird’s stomach, to stealing a racehorse – in these four stories, the famous detective Sherlock Holmes works with his friend Dr Watson. Holmes understands people and he finds many clues. But will he solve the crimes?Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

Tyra gets off to a tough start at her new school. She’s loud and different and nobody seems to be particularly friendly. So when her nan gives her a beautiful china snow dragon, Tyra’s decides to take it to school, hoping that people will think it’s interesting and talk to her. But disaster strikes and the beautiful dragon is smashed. Can Tyra find a way to repair her treasure while also making some new friends along the way?

Tyra gets off to a tough start at her new school. She’s loud and different and nobody seems to be particularly friendly. So when her nan gives her a beautiful china snow dragon, Tyra’s decides to take it to school, hoping that people will think it’s interesting and talk to her. But disaster strikes and the beautiful dragon is smashed. Can Tyra find a way to repair her treasure while also making some new friends along the way?

Join Max and T.Rex for a Choctastic Easter in the nextpicture book in the Dear Dinosaur series, written by Chae Strathieand illustrated by Nicky O’Byrne!When Max finds out that Dinosaurs normally eat twigs, stones andcreepy-crawlies – EW! – he wants them to be able to trya tasty treat for a change. Max sends T.Rex some of his favouritesweets, chocolate buttons, to share with the other dinosaurs!But T.Rex isn’t great at sharing his new favourite foodwith the other dinosaurs … oh no!So Max shows T.Rex that chocolate is THE BEST, but SHARINGit makes it taste better!A brilliant new edition to the bestselling Dear Dinosaur series,with an Easter adventure!Written with a mixture of letters, emails and postcards sentbetween Max and his best friend, T.RexThe perfect gift for dinosaur loving toddlersFunny text with bold and bright illustrations

Join Max and T.Rex for a Choctastic Easter in the nextpicture book in the Dear Dinosaur series, written by Chae Strathieand illustrated by Nicky O’Byrne!When Max finds out that Dinosaurs normally eat twigs, stones andcreepy-crawlies – EW! – he wants them to be able to trya tasty treat for a change. Max sends T.Rex some of his favouritesweets, chocolate buttons, to share with the other dinosaurs!But T.Rex isn’t great at sharing his new favourite foodwith the other dinosaurs … oh no!So Max shows T.Rex that chocolate is THE BEST, but SHARINGit makes it taste better!A brilliant new edition to the bestselling Dear Dinosaur series,with an Easter adventure!Written with a mixture of letters, emails and postcards sentbetween Max and his best friend, T.RexThe perfect gift for dinosaur loving toddlersFunny text with bold and bright illustrations

One of the English language’s best-loved living poets arrays before us here, in chronological order, her favourites among her poems on the theme of love, drawing on work written over four decades, and she adds to her selection one new poem. It makes for a sequence that is sensual, stimulating, irresistible.

Where is Chick hiding? Follow the footprints to find her!Curious little hands will love meeting a host of touchy-feely animals as they find out just WHERE the fluffy chick is hiding. With bright, appealing illustrations and a surprise flap ending, this series is perfect to share with young children.Where’s My Chick? is part of a seek-and-find board book series for toddlers aged 1-3. With an exciting range of characters to explore, these touch-and-feel books will entertain little ones, time and time again. Complete the set and collect them all!Also available in the series: Where’s My Turtle?, Where’s My Dinosaur?, Where’s My Fairy?, Where’s My Llama?, Where’s My Peacock?, Where’s My Puppy?, Where’s My Unicorn?, Where’s My Santa?

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR NATURE WRITING

Wishing to leave behind the isolation of her Orkney island life, Amy Liptrot books a one-way flight to Berlin. She rents a loftbed in a shared flat and starts to look for work – and for love – through the screen of her phone. The Instant tells of the momentous year that follows, encountering the city’s wildlife in the most unexpected places, tracing the cycles of the moon, the flight paths of migratory birds and surrendering to the addictive power of love and lust.

A comprehensive collection of the classic Sherlock Holmes stories starring Carleton Hobbs and Norman Shelley – plus bonus documentaryLegendary actor Carleton Hobbs played the great Baker Street detective for over 17 years between 1952 and 1969, alongside Norman Shelley as Holmes’s friend and companion Dr Watson. Their superb incarnations of the crime-fighting duo were exceptionally popular and are now wonderfully nostalgic.This unique collection contains the existing Sherlock Holmes dramas in chronological order of publication, each a faithful, standalone adaptation of the original tale. Of the 56 short stories in the canon, 51 are included here (‘The Adventure of the Yellow Face’, ‘The Adventure of the Gloria Scott’, ‘The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger’ and ‘The Adventure of the Creeping Man’ were never made, and ‘The Adventure of the Three Students’ is missing from the BBC archives). Also featured are dramatisations of the four novels: A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of the Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles and The Valley of Fear. Among the star casts are Grizelda Hervey, Humphrey Morton, Gudrun Ure, Sylvia Coleridge and Rolf Lefebvre.Concluding our collection is a fascinating 40-minute programme, Chosen Companions: Sherlock Holmes, in which Richard Usborne, one-time assistant editor of The Strand Magazine, selects his favourite extracts from the books (read by Carleton Hobbs) to weave together the story of Sherlock Holmes’ development.NB: Due to the age and nature of some of the recordings, the sound quality may vary.CreditsWritten by Arthur Conan DoyleDramatised by Michael Hardwick and Felix FeltonProduced by Norman Wright, Val Gielgud, Martyn C Webster, Graham Gauld, Frederick Bradnum and Robin MidgleyFirst broadcast on BBC Light Programme/BBC Radio 2 12 May 1959 – 10 July 1969ContentsA Study in ScarletThe Sign of the FourThe Adventures of Sherlock Holmes- A Scandal in Bohemia- The Red-Headed League- A Case of Identity- The Boscombe Valley Mystery- The Five Orange Pips- The Man with the Twisted Lip- The Blue Carbuncle- The Speckled Band- The Engineer’s Thumb- The Noble Bachelor- The Beryl Coronet- The Copper BeechesThe Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes- Silver Blaze- The Cardboard Box- The Stockbroker’s Clerk- The Musgrave Ritual- The Reigate Squires- The Crooked Man- The Resident Patient- The Greek Interpreter- The Naval Treaty- The Final ProblemThe Hound of the BaskervillesThe Return of Sherlock Holmes- The Empty House- The Norwood Builder- The Dancing Men- The Solitary Cyclist- The Priory School- Black Peter- Charles Augustus Milverton- The Six Napoleons- The Golden Pince-Nez- The Missing Three-Quarter- The Abbey Grange- The Second StainHis Last Bow- Wisteria Lodge- The Red Circle- The Bruce-Partington Plans- The Dying Detective- The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax- The Devil’s Foot- His Last BowThe Valley of FearThe Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes- The Illustrious Client- The Blanched Soldier- The Mazarin Stone- The Three Gables- The Sussex Vampire- The Three Garridebs- The Problem of Thor Bridge- The Lion’s Mane- Shoscombe Old Place- The Retired ColourmanChosen Companions: Sherlock HolmesPresented by Richard UsborneReader: Carleton HobbsProduced by Richard KeenFirst broadcast BBC Radio 4, 23 August 1970(c) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd. (P) 2023 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

The borderers – people forged and hardened by endemic warfare over generations, whether by raids and skirmishes or set piece battles – are marked even today as a distinct group. For three savage centuries England and Scotland, both dynamic races, slogged it out upon this arena of nations. Scott might have reinvented the border as a sweep of chivalric romance, but the reality was very different.John Sadler knows this ground and its people; he is one of them. For half a century he has traversed the borderland, and has taught, enacted and written about them. In this book he offers a uniquely personal but highly informed view. He neither praises nor condemns them, but seeks to understand and, perverse as it may seem, admires them.History leaves its imprint and like the proverbial stone cast into still waters, it sends out ripples through time that never quite abate. The feuds were pursued with increasing savagery and even when not in outright conflict, the names on both sides continued their ‘feids’ or vendettas in crazy bloodletting for decades, with cycles of escalating violence creating a dizzying maze of interlocking enmities that was beyond all reason.The late, great George Macdonald Fraser once remarked that the borderers were free in a way we can never imagine. And they were.Here is a book that weighs the evidence from a plethora of sources to provide a compelling history of this border conflict. In the modern political scene, with the issue of a second referendum pending, the theme of a cultural identity, forged in the fury of those Border wars, forms a pivotal theme in the debate.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE McILVANNEY PRIZE’Superb’ The Times Crime Book of the Month’A hardboiled gem’ Guardian’I doubt I’ll read a better book this year’ Val McDermidAuctioneer Rilke has been trying to stay out of trouble, keeping his life more or less respectable. Business has been slow at Bowery Auctions, so when an old friend, Jojo, gives Rilke a tip-off for a house clearance, life seems to be looking up. The next day Jojo washes up dead.Jojo liked Grindr hook-ups and recreational drugs – is that the reason the police won’t investigate? And if Rilke doesn’t find out what happened to Jojo, who will?

Renato Cisneros’s great-great-grandmother Nicolasa bore seven children by her long-term secret love, who was also her priest, raising them alone in nineteenth century Peru. More than a century later, Renato, the descendent of that clandestine affair, struggles to wring information about his origins out of recalcitrant relatives, whose foibles match the adventures and dalliances of their ancestors. As buried secrets are brought into the light, the story of Nicolasa’s progeny unfolds, bound up with key moments in the development of the Republic of Peru since its independence.

Renato Cisneros’s great-great-grandmother Nicolasa bore seven children by her long-term secret love, who was also her priest, raising them alone in nineteenth century Peru. More than a century later, Renato, the descendent of that clandestine affair, struggles to wring information about his origins out of recalcitrant relatives, whose foibles match the adventures and dalliances of their ancestors. As buried secrets are brought into the light, the story of Nicolasa’s progeny unfolds, bound up with key moments in the development of the Republic of Peru since its independence.