Scottish Poetry Library

General information

You are cordially invited to visit the Scottish Poetry Library, founded in 1984, and housed in the current purpose-built award-winning premises since 1999. Tucked away down Crichton’s Close, at the Parliament end of the Royal Mile just round the corner from Starbuck’s) our airy and contemplative space is more than the books and the people it houses: we aim to strengthen the presence and profile of Scottish poetry within Scotland and overseas and promote the writing, reading and appreciation of poetry as an integral part of personal and community life.

We’ve got 40,000 items of poetry, mainly Scottish and contemporary, but with a range of other languages and other centuries, a wide selection of literary journals, CDs, videos, Braille collections. A borrower’s card is free as a bird, as is entry to enjoy our space. We’ve got a sophisticated online catalogue, an indexed reference archive and helpful and informative staff on hand to assist you. As well as all this, we run an events programme, working with cultural partners to explore poetry in all its glorious forms.