New book by award winning Borders writer Alistair Moffat

The book is a charming, lively and often amusing tour of 36 forgotten episodes and overlooked people and places of Scottish history.

While Scotland's history cannot be separated from its kings and queens, saints and warriors, there is a rich story to tell about the country's lesser-known places, people and events.

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Written during lockdown, this colourful history of Scotland tells those other tales, half-forgotten or misunderstood, that have been submerged by the wash of history.

Bringing these stories to light and to life, this entertaining book reveals the richness and complexity of this nation on the northwest edge of Europe.

The author guides us from the geological formation of the land that makes up Scotland to the first evidence of human habitation right up to modern times.

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In the process, we learn about the cave of headless children, the origins of the Scottish kings and the real heroes of Scottish independence, the invention of tartan and the romance of the Highlands, Scotland's answer to Shakespeare, and the many U.S. Presidents with Scottish heritage, among many other fascinating tales brought to life by Joe McLaren's attractive woodcut-style illustrations.

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Even the most knowledgeable Scot will experience a sense of newfound knowledge and appreciation for this unique country, its history and people.

Mr Moffat said: “ It’s principally full of offcuts with journalistic headlines written from bit and pieces I had written in old notebooks plus a lot of research on the internet and the Scotsman and Edinburgh Evening News archives.

“I was commissioned to write it during the first lockdown and it only took around six weeks. And it was great fun to write."