Archive for the 'Edinburgh International Book Festival' category

Festival City Display

Posted August 5, 2011 5:01 pm by Andrew Martin | Permalink

Regular visitors to our main National Library of Scotland site at George IV Bridge in Edinburgh will know that we usually have a small changing display just in front of the doors to the Reading Rooms.

We currently have a small display for Edinburgh’s Festival month of August featuring examples of guides, programmes, and ephemera from various early International, Film, Fringe, and Book Festivals from 1947 onwards. The display is based on the photo feature in the current issue of Discover NLS

There is an assortment of brightly coloured marketing for the Festivals – but a monochrome Maria Callas takes pride of place in her 1957 performance as La Sonnambula at the King’s Theatre.

And if you have 4 spare minutes you can hear what she (and the audience) sounded like on the night …
here!

Categories: Edinburgh International Book Festival Edinburgh International Festival

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NLS presents James Robertson

Posted June 18, 2010 12:49 pm by Andrew Martin | Permalink

And the land lay stillThe programme for the Edinburgh International Book Festival was announced yesterday. Most of the Scottish big names seem to be on offer and there’s a rare appearance from Ronald Frame, but pride of place has to go to the National Library of Scotland’s own literary event on 14 August. This year we are presenting one of our very best writers James Robertson in conversation with James Naughtie. His new and much-anticipated novel is And the land lay still, described as “an epoch-defining story of life in 20th century Scotland.”. It promises to be a “big” book in more than one sense, and a tantalising proof copy has just landed with a thud on my desk. The title comes from The Summons by Edwin Morgan. Meanwhile the versatile James has also brought out the wee gem that is The Hoose at Pooh’s Neuk, in which some kenspeckle A.A. Milne characters return, speaking Scots of course.

Categories: Edinburgh International Book Festival James Robertson

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