It’s Burns Night and we’re celebrating Scotland’s national poet! Did you know the first collected edition of Burns’s writing was published not in Scotland, but in Liverpool? This copy was then bound in Manchester before eventually coming to Dumfriesshire in the library of a late 19th-century owner.

Some academic sexuality material hitting the shelves this cold January morning- we are open til 5 today for all your bookish needs.

Happy birthday John Vanbrugh! Born #onthisday in 1664. As well as a modern paperback, we have a 1735 printing of his 1697 play Aesop.

There are some intriguing delights in today’s new window display, including Dickens’ Italian travelogue, a history of London Fog, a number of books on the history of madness and medicine. And I must say, it looks even brighter and cosier than usual amidst the grey and rain outside.

It’s turned a bit wet outside and these illustrations by Willy Pogany for The Rime of the Ancient Mariner are feeling very atmospheric…

Very taken by the grumpy face of this angelic creature on the spine of a 19th-century manual of reproductive health currently on the #cataloguersdesk

While we’re still deep in winter, I can’t resist opening up this stunning picture book on the plant world from 1857. With text written by English novelist Charlotte M. Yonge, the plates in this book were arranged by Haddington-born Robert Mackenzie Stark, who worked as a nurseryman in Edinburgh.

We rarely manage to keep any Virginia Woolf in stock for long, so it’s a joy to have such a lovely selection of her work out on the secondhand shelves at one time! Come along and have a browse before they all get snapped up!

On the #cataloguersdesk today, a little collection of Arkham House publications including several by H P Lovecraft.

A beautiful book on my desk just now.

All set up at the @yorkbookfair.bsky.social New Year book fair! We’re here until 4.30pm today only with over 100 other booksellers from around the country.

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born on this day in 1892, and his books are so wildly popular they rarely last a week or even a day on our shelves before being snapped up. So here is a little volume in praise of the twentieth century’s ‘most magnificent teller of tales’.

Happy New Year everyone!

We are open today, Christmas Eve, until 5pm! Then closed through 1st January - back from 11am on the 2nd. Enjoy your holidays!

Today, four titles from the recently-priced shelves that could, at a push, also double as episode titles for 90s teen dramas. We’re open until 5pm on Christmas Eve, so there’s still time to treat yourself or a loved one to some books.

Our children’s section is freshly restocked with beloved classics and delightful adventures just in time for a last minute gift for readers of any age. Whether you’re introducing someone small to a new story, or finding something to bring back memories, there’s plenty to discover!

We’ve got penguin, panther, pan & pelican paperbacks galore! Here’s a tree of just a handful of the titles recently priced, but there’s plenty more to peruse. Is there a title or author you’ve been searching for?

Adding to the chorus of birthday commemorations for Jane Austen, born #otd exactly 250 years ago - please enjoy this scarce 1851 edition of Emma - described by Janine Barchas as being produced ‘in defiance of copyright and good manners’.

Take your places please for today’s thing #foundinbooks, a dance ticket inside a 1953 Penguin printing of Virginia Woolf.

We’ve been busy packing up orders the past few days, and we just wanted to remind everyone of our last postage dates! Any international orders placed by end of day Thursday 18th December, and any UK orders placed by end of day Sunday 21st December can be sent out to arrive in time for the holidays.

It’s December already! We’ll be open as usual through Wednesday, Christmas Eve, then closed Christmas Day through New Year’s Day for a holiday break. After Hogmanay normal hours resume from Friday 2nd January.

An explosive bookplate on the #cataloguersdesk this morning, that puts this cataloguer in mind of the soldiers at Pippin Fort in Camberwick Green.

A very intriguing book on the cataloguer’s desk today— psychic Margaret Underhill claims to have received the text here in automatic writing from the psychologist William James. With scant biographical information online, this will be a delightful rabbit hole to disappear into for a short while…

A signed, limited set of Alasdair Gray’s first novel, winner of the Saltire Society book of the year prize in 1982 and a landmark of contemporary Scottish fiction. www.mcnaughtans.co.uk/product/lana...

We are very excited to be working on the new extension of our business. In 2026 we are planning to open Spyglass Books, a new bookshop for children’s and illustrated books.

A previous owner has annotated the index of this 1720 printing of Herodotus with topics he felt should have been included, among them the shape of camels (four thigh bones and four knee bones to the rear, apparently).

I have twice glanced at this yellowback currently on the #cataloguersdesk and seen a grotesque two-headed, eight-legged beast depicted there, only to look closer and see that, more prosaically it is 2 horses, one behind the other.

Absolutely charmed by these illustrations from Orlando the Marmalade Cat’s 1952 Seaside Holiday by Kathleen Hale. These photographs are from a just-landed modern facsimile reprint.

Some highlights from our substantial Classics section.

If you happen to be in Edinburgh...stop by @mcnaughtans.co.uk if you can!

Some lovely vintage Penguin paperbacks currently in available in our shop.

Before and after of our setup at the PBFA Edinburgh one-day book fair today - we’re here at the Augustine Church Hall on George IV Bridge until 4pm!

A window full of Norse and medieval treats to kick off November! And who doesn’t love a book about bog bodies?

Penny for the Guy? Thought this fantastic hand-coloured engraving from an 1804 edition of ‘The Costume of Great Britain’ was appropriate for today. It might be hard to start any bonfires or fireworks in this November rain, though.

Bibliophiles, check out this hot new tote bag now available for purchase in our shop. Design by @spyglassart.bsky.social #booksky

All set up and open at the @abararebooks.bsky.social Chelsea Book Fair! Open 2pm to 7pm today and 11am to 5pm on Saturday.

Some legible and not so legible 17th century handwriting on the cataloguer’s desk today. What can you make out from the second picture?

Happy customer! 😃

New bookish Christmas cards from @spyglassart.bsky.social are now in stock at McNaughtan’s

My favourite book inscription I’ve ever catalogued, to the rear board of a 1748 Bristol printing of Thomas à Kempis edited by John Wesley.

Just a few highlights from the books fresh on the shelves today. It’s a been a lovely, bustling Saturday in the shop— wishing everyone a delightful weekend of bookshop browsing!

Some spooky illustrations currently #onthecataloguerdesk from a scarce book of Tales of Fairy Land from 1847. They represent (in order) “The Unburied Legs”, the Elfin Piper, The Black Spider and Peter Schlemiel.

Delighted by these little characters found in a book by George Cruikshank on the cataloguer’s desk today.

My illustration of @mcnaughtans.co.uk bookshop, where these postcards are now sold, if you’re ever passing that way. #art #illustration

Spooky season is well underway, so it seemed time to feature some of our favourite haunting titles. Come on down for a browse and claim some of these magnificent books before they disappear!

“Reader” #art #booksky

Here at the Georgian House for the Strange Case of 8 Charlotte Square, with our spookiest books in the suitably atmospheric kitchen. OooOooOoOOOOoooh…

A very satisfying pile of parcels ready to go out! Thank you to all who ordered from our most recent lists. If you’d like to join our mailing list and get a sneak peek at rare and antiquarian stock before it hits the shelves or the website, just follow this link: www.mcnaughtans.co.uk/sign-up-form/

Spooky season is here and we are excited to be displaying a selection of relevant books at the Georgian House on Thursday 16th October for their Strange Case of 7 Charlotte Square event. A few tickets might be left: come.ac/Spooky

Soon at McNaughtan’s!