The literary scene in Edinburgh is something straight out of a book. Maybe you know the city from the pages of a book, or you remember it from Infinity War, or maybe you’ve heard of a wizard born in an Elephant House. Either way, you’ve probably heard something about Scotland’s capital because its magic seeps into the rest of the world, beckoning. When you walk among the cobblestones, there’s something inherently fantastical and eerie living beneath a city watched by the bones of the old castle. Or maybe you don’t know it at all. So I’m here to tell you that the first UNESCO City of Literature is a truly magical place to visit. So without further ado, here are some of Edinburgh’s best bookish sights to keep your bibliophile heart happy and full of stories.
The Sights
The National Library of Scotland
Located on the George IV Bridge, The National Library is Scotland’s biggest library. It was established in the 17th century and you can see that from the variety of new and old buildings that make up the library. It’s been around since as a reference library, which means it doesn’t lend books, but it still has an immense and definitely worthwhile catalogue that you can consult within its reading rooms. It also hosts different exhibitions, workshops and other events you can attend. Even if you don’t have the time to take on a full activity, the building alone is worth the visit as both its walls and its books are full of history.
The Writer’s Museum and Makar’s Court
The museum is located in Lady Stair’s House in Lawnmarket (just off the Royal Mile). From the outside it kind of looks like another apartment building, but inside it houses several objects from three important Scottish authors: Robert Louis Stevenson, Walter Scott, and Robert Burns. There is a wide range of personal objects inside the house belonging to those authors, and even though it’s definitely a museum, it kind of feels like stepping inside one of their homes with its desks and manuscripts and portraits. Right outside lies Makar’s Court, which is basically a monument to literature. It’s full of flagstones with quotes from a wide range of authors. You can walk around and see the immortalized words of so many writers, with your heart skipping whenever you recognize a particularly loved phrase.
Scottish Storytelling Centre
This is a Centre dedicated to preserving and recounting stories. Located in the Royal Mile, it’s basically a literary altar to stories. It celebrates storytelling in all its forms with changing workshops and exhibitions and you can even book storytellers that will fulfill your literary hearts. What’s great about it is that no two stories are the same, so your visit will be a unique experience.
The Bookshops
The Edinburgh Bookshop
This is probably the most well-known independent bookshop in Edinburgh. Located in Bruntsfield, they specialize in children’s books (no, really! They have a children’s specialist and everything!). It’s a very classic bookshop, a literary haven with walls made of books.
Armchair Books
This bookshop located in West Port specializes in rare and secondhand books. It’s the kind of literary heaven that smells like old paper and ink from a mile away (it even has the staple oriental rugs covering the floors). It’s a great place to get lost in for hours, or lifetimes if you find the right book. A post shared by Courtney-Jade (@courtstanbury) on Oct 24, 2016 at 9:09am PDT
Lighthouse
Lighthouse is a very special bookshop. Nestled in West Nicolson Street, it’s a queer-owned and women-led independent bookshop. They are a proudly activist, intersectional, feminist, anti-racist, and LGBTQ+ community space where everyone can share their love for books. It’s literally a radical bookshop, and how many places can say that? Plus they won the Scotland region of the Independent Bookshop of the Year award in 2020! A post shared by VisitScotland (@visitscotland) on Feb 12, 2020 at 4:07am PST
Typewronger Books
Typewronger Books is a hidden gem of the city’s literary scene. Hidden in Haddington, it sells books and typewriters, but that’s not all. The thing that makes this bookshop truly special is the fact that you can book a private browsing in the shop! That means that you get the shop for about half an hour to yourself, free to imagine your bookseller dream. A post shared by Jane Healey (@jane_healey_) on May 28, 2020 at 3:33am PDT
Events
The Edinburgh Literary Pub Tour
This is basically a pub crawl but with a twist. Yes, it’s guided, but the tour guides are actors! They play at this impassioned debate between two fictional characters who are different kinds of literature aficionados. One’s the literary bohemian and the other the clean-cut intellectual. It works as an excellent background for exploring the different pubs that have inspired many Scottish authors! A post shared by 📚 Graham Sillars 📚 (@grahamsillarsreadsbooks) on Sep 7, 2019 at 9:37am PDT
Edinburgh International Book Festival
This is THE biggest literary event in the world. Every year, it brings together around 1,000 authors from around the world during the last weeks of August (which is festival season in Edinburgh). They even made it online this year! Although it’s home is usually in Charlotte Square. This is the place to be to share your literary dreams with other bibliophiles. There are also many walking tours you can take of the city, including the Book Lovers’ Tour, which explores the literary history of the city!
Edinburgh in Literature
You can also visit Edinburgh without any actual travelling—because let’s face it, it’s hard during the pandemic. Books will always be a great way to travel to lands unknown, so here are some books that feature Edinburgh (some of them are historical fiction! So you’ll know a different city than what you see today). Here are 5 other bookish things you can do in Edinburgh and a literary guide to Scotland to satisfy your bibliophile’s heart!
