We have a well-stocked general fiction section where you can browse old classics, modern classics, some genre fiction and many other spendid novels that have come our way. We are particularly proud to have so many interesting editions: beautiful old Penguins, nicely bound hardbacks and of course books that have been loved, scuffed and are going cheap. We also have some very-nearly-new books at half the price you’ll find them in a chain bookshop.

We have an entire room devoted to all things Scottish. There is Scottish fiction, history, religion, politics, nature, art, architecture, music, general and misc. Also, books about all areas of Scotland, from Orkney to Auld Reekie. There is also a knitted bagpiper and an owl.

Whether you are a committed collector or a bewildered spouse looking for a present for your other half, we may be able to help. We have first editions, fine bindings, books with interesting illustrations and venerable books that have seen the rise and fall of monarchs.

We have a decent military section, with a particularly good range of books on WWII. British history, social history and popular history are in separate sections. History books about Europe and the rest of the world are in the relevant geographical sections.

We have a good classics section which is divided into translations, alpabetically arranged, as well as books which are in Greek and Latin. We also have books on ancient Egypt, Rome and Greece, and on various archaeological digs and ancient historical sites.

Europe, England and Ireland are upstairs, whilst everwhere else is down in the basement and threatening to erupt next door as well. Whether you would like an exciting book on a Himalayan explorer or a serious tome about someone executed in the French Revolution, we can help, providing you are a wee bit flexible in your specifications.

We have a good selection of Christian books with an emphasis on reformed theology. Also, sections on Catholicism, Church History and Eastern Orthodoxy. We also have plenty of Bibles, as well as a large selection of Scottish Church History and Theology.

Politics and philosophy are packed against one wall, bulging with polysyllabic titles and bristling with intelligence and/or verbosity.

Books range from popular and slightly silly, to highly specialised with lots of diagrams. These sections are not enormous, but we do have the largest selection of second-hand science books in Edinburgh.

Parlez-vous Français? We have a range of books in foreign languages, ranging from French to Italian and Russian. We also have a plentiful supply of phrase books in case you’d like to have a stab at ordering a beer or finding the railway station in Bulgarian.

We have a range of £1 books, maps, divided cunningly into ‘Scottish’ and ‘not Scottish,’ some records priced at 50p, greetings cards priced at £2, old stamps from the Isle of Man that we got as a job lot from an auction, and some postcards. Clarence and Graham are not for sale.