"Beautiful as she is, she is not so much beautiful as interesting. She is pre-eminently Gothic, and all the more so since she has set herself off with some Greek airs, and erected classic temples on her crags. In a word and above all, she is a curiosity." First published in 1879, Edinburgh: Picturesque Notes is among the most vivid of Robert Louis Stevenson's writings. His passion for Auld Reekie never clouded his wry wit, and his enthusiasm for the picturesque detail and the savory anecdote will delight readers today as much as they scandalized his contemporaries. Perhaps best known as the author of Treasure Island and other children's literature, Robert Louis Stevenson (18501894) was a prolific novelist, playwright, essayist, and travel writer.