Look! Books
To understand the literary history of Edinburgh simply open a book.
The festival
Run on generosity and goodwill, rather than on any kind of feasible budget, the West Port Book Festival has evolved from a brittle idea into an impressive reality. Our aim has been to offer free events to a diverse audience who share our passion for books, bookshops and fun. We have also been creative, dipping into the dressing up box, casting our eye around for new talent and transforming local shops into intimate, innovative venues.
The bookshops
Six independent bookshops, one bookbinder; the West Port boasts a concentration of bookshops that is unparalleled in most British cities. Each bookshop has its own atmosphere and ethos, whether rare and respectable or dog-eared and slightly foxed.
All are home to the ineffable workings of serendipity.
The area
The pavements of the West Port have always been imprinted with the memory of conflicting footsteps. Specialist shops sell clothes and painted canvasses; strip joints show unlikely silhouettes in black and pink; secondhand bookshops entice bibliomaniacs.