'We have needed a one-volume history of Scotland for a long time, but it was worth waiting for Mrs Mitcheson's. Hers is a brilliant feat of compression, and into her 488 pages she has crammed more than anyone would have though possible, yet without any sense of strain. Nor does a single one of these pages, form the brilliant demographic description of Scotland with which she begins, to the stimulating discussion of Scottish nationalism with which she ends, give the impression of being taken from stock; on every subject and through every century she is fresh incisive, informative and enlightening. She has produced that rare thing, an original textbook... She has done a real service to Scotland.' Review of the first edition by The Observer
In this revised and updated edition, the author extends her study to explore the issues central to contemporary Scottish history: notably devolution, the discovet of North Sea oil, and Scotland's position within Europe.