A great, fascinating work from Scottish literary legend Alasdair Gray, beautifully illustrated throughout, chronicling the history of how literature spread and developed throughout the world. This is a unique history of literature as presented through the collected and annotated prefaces of major writers, including commentary by a range of authors including James Kelman, A.L. Kennedy, and Virginia Woolf. The result of a lifetime's reading and creative labour, intellectual and artistic, The Book of Prefaces will delight, amaze and inform both casual browsers and students. Its like will not be seen again for at least another millennium. ‘Superb ... There is no disputing the enormous knowledge, the sheer love of books that is gathered here' SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY Praise for Alasdair Gray 'A necessary genius' ALI SMITH 'One of the brightest intellectual and creative lights Scotland has known in modern times' NICOLA STURGEON