Alastair Horne – författare

An ancient land with a turbulent past and haunting landscape, Scotland’s material culture stretches back to the time of ancient Roman incursions north of Hadrian’s Wall and includes Viking raids, wars with England, and clan wars that still stir the blood today. Now, remnants of the country’s history can be found in every corner of this dramatic land, from the thinly inhabited Western Isles to the remote Highlands and the fishing ports of the North Sea coast. In Abandoned Scotland, discover the ramshackle sanatorium of Glen O’Dee Hospital; see the rusting, neglected rides and rollercoasters of the Loudoun Castle Theme Park, closed after a fatal accident in 2007; quake at the site of New Slains Castle, Cruden Bay, said to be haunted by soldiers and mermaids; venture underground into the massive labyrinth of Cults Limestone Mine, which attracts treasure hunters and potholers, despite the dangers; explore Cramond Ghost Island, and the massive World War II teeth created to block the Firth of Forth in case of invasion; and see one of the country’s many ruined castles, including the 14th century Castle Stalker, set on a tidal islet on Loch Laich, or the atmospheric Buchanan Castle, set close to Loch Lomond. Illustrated with 180 photographs, Abandoned Scotland provides a fascinating pictorial exploration of the little-known corners of this glorious country.

When you think of Paris do you picture the Eiffel Tower? The medieval city of Notre Dame? The elegant boulevards of Baron Haussmann? The Montmartre of Toulouse- Lautrec? The grandeur of the Louvre? The Art Nouveau of the Paris Metro? The Grand Projets of François Mitterrand? Or...? Yes, there is just so much beauty to Paris. In 150 striking images, Paris celebrates the French capital, from its world-famous landmarks to evocative alleyways and corners that might surprise you. You may have heard, for instance, about the Paris catacombs and sewers that you can visit, but did you know about La Petite Ceinture, a disused 19th century railway line that circumnavigates the inner city? From the medieval marvels of Sainte-Chapelle to the 1970s Pompidou Centre to the latest pop-up beaches beside the Seine, the book explores a great many sides to the city. In collecting these images of the city today, we come to understand something of its history – from the executions that took place at the Place de la Concorde during the Revolution to the Arc de Triomphe honouring those who served in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars to the skyscrapers of La Défense. Presented in a landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each entry, Paris is a stunning collection of images celebrating the world’s most romantic city.

When you think of London, what do you see? The Houses of Parliament? The bustle around Piccadilly Circus? Elegant Victorian streets and squares? The Tate Modern? Or even Camden Market? With London, there are so many different aspects to the city. In more than 200 striking images, London celebrates the British capital, from its famous landmarks to atmospheric alleyways, from the top of the Shard to London Underground’s lost ghost stations, from the parks to the canals to the Thames. Exploring both the history and modernity of the city, the book reveals the city’s legacy as a capital and a trading hub, but also looks at how the contemporary city lives and breathes as a multi-ethnic metropolis. Presented in a landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each entry, London is a stunning collection of images celebrating the world’s most interesting city.

When you think of Paris do you picture the Eiffel Tower? The medieval city of Notre Dame? The elegant boulevards of Baron Haussmann? The Montmartre of Toulouse- Lautrec? The grandeur of the Louvre? The Art Nouveau of the Paris Metro? The Grand Projets of François Mitterrand? Or...? Yes, there is just so much beauty to Paris. In 150 striking images, Paris celebrates the French capital, from its world-famous landmarks to evocative alleyways and corners that might surprise you. You may have heard, for instance, about the Paris catacombs and sewers that you can visit, but did you know about La Petite Ceinture, a disused 19th century railway line that circumnavigates the inner city? From the medieval marvels of Sainte-Chapelle to the 1970s Pompidou Centre to the latest pop-up beaches beside the Seine, the book explores a great many sides to the city. In collecting these images of the city today, we come to understand something of its history – from the executions that took place at the Place de la Concorde during the Revolution to the Arc de Triomphe honouring those who served in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars to the skyscrapers of La Défense. Presented in a landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each entry, Paris is a stunning collection of images celebrating the world’s most romantic city.

When you think of London, what do you picture? Westminster Abbey? The electric lights of Piccadilly Circus? The grandeur of Buckingham Palace? Or do you see busy shopping areas, beautiful bridges and buzzing bars and restaurants? Or is it the parks, the boats on the River Thames and the bustling train stations that spring to mind? With London there are just so many intriguing sides to the city. In 200 outstanding images, London celebrates this remarkable capital city, from its world-famous landmarks to cobbled alleyways, from the dizzy heights of The Shard and The Gherkin down to its railway stations and deeper still to the city’s jam-packed underground. Ranging from both classic and modern landmarks, this book covers everything from parks to transportation. From tennis at Wimbledon to shopping at Harrods and afternoon tea at Claridge’s, Alastair Horne explores a plethora of aspects to this sprawling metropolis. Presented in a handy pocket-sized landscape format and with captions revealing many fascinating but little-known facts about the history and culture of this diverse city, London is a stunning collection of images of one of the world’s most iconic cities.

Karl Marx is buried in London, John Keats in Rome and Leon Trotsky in Mexico. Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris is today known for the graves of Jim Morrison, Victor Hugo and Oscar Wilde, but when it opened in the early 19th century the owners felt that they needed some star names to make it a desired burial site – and so they had Molière’s body transferred there. Arranged thematically into 75 entries, Graves of the Great and Famous tours the world exploring the resting places of leading artists, thinkers, scientists, sportspeople, revolutionaries, politicians and pioneers. Some, such as communist leaders Ho Chi Minh and Vladimir Lenin, are interred in great mausoleums, where they are visited by millions each year; others are buried in little-known country graveyards. From lives cut short through assassinations – Martin Luther King and Abraham Lincoln – to those who suffered terrible accidents (Princess Diana), from mobsters such as Benjamin ‘Bugsy’ Siegel and John Gotti to Napoleon and his mistress Marie Walewska, from Nelson Mandela to Eva Peron, Graceland to Highgate Cemetery, the book provides a guide to some of the most famous and unusual graves of the great and the good. Featuring 150 photographs of graves, cemeteries, graveyards and mausoleums, Graves of the Great and Famous is a compact guide to the final resting place of the famous – and infamous.

Graveyards, burial sites and cemeteries are as old as human civilization, resting places and memorial sites for loved ones, the great and sometimes the infamous. Some of these places retain a poignant atmosphere that tells of heroic or deadly deeds – the 210 men of George Custer’s command are remembered by graves scattered around the memorial marking their defeat at Little Bighorn in Montana, USA. Other, older graveyards retain a haunting quality that tells of the long history of their country and people – the 16th century Greyfriars Kirkyard in Edinburgh was soon filled with the bodies of victims of bubonic plague. Graveyards reveals both the universality of death, and the diversity of how we commemorate or memorialize our dead, from the hanging coffins of Sagada, Philippines, where, among the jungle-clad peaks of the stunning Echo Valley, hundreds of wooden coffins are hung from impossibly sheer rock faces, to the Old Jewish Cemetery in Prague, testament to the huge Jewish community that lived in the Czech capital before the Holocaust. Readers can marvel at the Cairo Necropolis, known as the ‘City of the Dead’, a series of vast Islamic-era tombs and cemeteries dating back more than a thousand years, and enjoy the Merry Cemetery in Romania, famous for its brightly coloured tombstones with paintings describing, in an original and poetic manner, the lives of the people who are buried there. With detailed captions explaining their history and often ghostly past, Graveyards is a vivid pictorial exploration of the best-known, most-haunted and quirkiest burial places in the world today.

The joy of chess lies in its endless possibilities. With each move, you immerse yourself in a world of strategy, calculation and creativity. Every game presents a unique challenge, testing players’ intellect and intuition to the maximum. Chess is also known for its ornate and beautiful pieces as much as it is for strategy and tactics. Even many people who don’t play will often display a polished wooden set in their homes. Chess Illustrated offers a compact, accessible introduction to the pieces, classic sets and basic moves of this supreme game of strategy. Learn about the Staunton chess pattern, which provides a model for most modern chess sets; marvel at the Isle of Lewis chess pieces, which offer a fascinating insight into the culture and wider connections of medieval Scotland; and understand how skilled players use pawns to control the centre of the board. The book also includes features on some of the great players and classic games of the modern era. Beautifully produced in traditional Chinese binding with 100 illustrations and photographs, Chess Illustrated will fascinate anyone interested in the material culture of one of the world’s oldest and most widely played games.

Although stories of these creatures date back to the earliest history of humanity, they are no less fascinating or popular today as a steady stream of books, games, movies, television shows, and other media revisit their stories and reinterpret the myths. But what lies behind these myths and legends?In Dragons & Mythical Beasts, discover the fascinating tales behind the most formidable mythical creatures ever imagined. Did these bizarre animals once exist in ancient times, inspiring the accounts and stories that have kept them alive? Or do these creatures large and small reflect the characteristics of the cultures in which they were created?If you have a love for the myths and want to learn about the unique beasts that dwell within them, this book is a great way to do it. Not only will you learn about ones you may have never heard of, but you will also be able to draw parallels between cultures and see how they interpreted their surroundings through stories of mythical creatures and magical beasts.Dragons & Mythical Beasts is intricately decorated, packed with beautiful images and full of fascinating tales.

The joy of chess lies in its endless possibilities. With each move, you immerse yourself in a world of strategy, calculation and creativity. Every game presents a unique challenge, testing players’ intellect and intuition to the maximum. Chess is also known for its ornate and beautiful pieces as much as it is for strategy and tactics. Even many people who don’t play will often display a polished wooden set in their homes. Chess offers a concise, accessible introduction to the pieces, classic sets and basic moves of this supreme game of strategy. Learn about the Staunton chess pattern, which provides a model for most modern chess sets; marvel at the Isle of Lewis chess pieces, which offer a fascinating insight into the culture and wider connections of medieval Scotland; and understand how skilled players use pawns to control the centre of the board. The book also includes features on some of the great players and classic games of the modern era. A compact edition featuring more than 100 illustrations and photographs, Chess will fascinate anyone interested in the material culture of one of the world’s oldest and most widely played games.