In Bed with an Elephant

This book is not exclusively a history book, a travel book, a political tract or another slice of autobiography, rather a blend of all four. Ludovic Kennedy writes about the aspects of Scotland that excite him and in particular Scotland's rather stormy relationship with England over the centuries. From the prehistoric settlement of Skara Brae on Orkney, Kennedy moves to a gripping retelling of the story of the '45 rebellion in which Bonnie Prince Charlie emerges as a less than heroic figure. Other highlights include Boswell's and Johnson's Highland jaunt and the adventures of the Stone of Destiny, its capture by Edward I and subsequent recapture from Westminster Abbey by Scottish patriots in 1950. Ludovic Kennedy illuminates both the famous and the less well-known people and incidents from Scottish history.