McNaughtan's Bookshop
@mcnaughtans.co.uk
Rare & second-hand bookshop in central Edinburgh, est. 1957.
Open every day 11am to 5pm, and till 8pm on Thursdays.
Open every day 11am to 5pm, and till 8pm on Thursdays.
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.
January 25, 2026 at 8:34 PM
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.
January 25, 2026 at 12:00 PM
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.
January 24, 2026 at 2:48 PM
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.
And I must say, it looks even brighter and cosier than usual amidst the grey and rain outside.
January 22, 2026 at 12:47 PM
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.
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…
January 21, 2026 at 5:12 PM
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
January 17, 2026 at 2:39 PM
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.
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.
January 16, 2026 at 5:10 PM
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.
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!
January 15, 2026 at 1:38 PM
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.
January 14, 2026 at 4:58 PM
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.
January 13, 2026 at 4:23 PM
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.
January 10, 2026 at 10:51 AM
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’.
January 3, 2026 at 4:39 PM
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!
January 1, 2026 at 12:13 AM
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!
December 24, 2025 at 11:48 AM
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.
We’re open until 5pm on Christmas Eve, so there’s still time to treat yourself or a loved one to some books.
December 21, 2025 at 11:38 AM
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.
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!
December 20, 2025 at 12:35 PM
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?
Is there a title or author you’ve been searching for?
December 18, 2025 at 3:43 PM
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?
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’.
December 16, 2025 at 5:00 PM
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.
December 13, 2025 at 3:56 PM
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.
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.
December 11, 2025 at 11:54 AM
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.
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.
December 2, 2025 at 5:30 PM
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.
November 30, 2025 at 12:06 PM
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…
With scant biographical information online, this will be a delightful rabbit hole to disappear into for a short while…
November 26, 2025 at 4:04 PM
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…
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...
www.mcnaughtans.co.uk/product/lana...
November 24, 2025 at 2:20 PM
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...
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.
In 2026 we are planning to open Spyglass Books, a new bookshop for children’s and illustrated books.
November 20, 2025 at 11:43 AM
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.
In 2026 we are planning to open Spyglass Books, a new bookshop for children’s and illustrated books.