Luath Kilmarnock Edition: Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect: 250th Anniversary Edition

Robert Burns

Jul 2013 · Luath Press Ltd

About this ebook

Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, was the first collection of poetry produced by Robert Burns. Published in Kilmarnock in July 1786 it has become known as The Kilmarnock Edition. The contents include 44 of Burns' best known poems including To a Louse, The Cotter's Saturday Night, To a Mouse, The Twa Dogs and To a Mountain Daisy. Released in 2009 to celebrate Burns' 250th birthday, The Luath Kilmarnock Edition brought this classic of Scottish literature back into print, after being unavailable for many years. New material includes an introduction by 'the man who played Burns' -author, actor and Burns expert -John Cairney, exploring Burns' life and work, especially the origins of The Kilmarnock Edition. Looking to the future of Burns in Scotland and the rest of the world, Clark McGinn, world-renowned Burns Supper speaker, provides an afterword that speaks to Burns' continuing legacy. Illustrated throughout with original line drawings by top political satirist Bob Dewar, The Luath Kilmarnock Edition makes a beautiful gift for any Burns enthusiast. "This special illustrated edition celebrates the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns, probably the world's favourite poet. Poems Cheifly in the Scottish Dialect, the only book of his poetry published in his short lifetime, is probably the most significant book ever published from Scotland. Kilmarnock saw that first edition of a young man's poems published in 1786 and Burns has not beeen out of print for a single day since. We are still reading, reciting and enjoying these poems... the writing, life and character of this Ayrshire ploughman inspire deep human emotion around the globe. - FROM THE AFTERWORD BY CLARK McGINN

About the author

Robert Burns, a Scottish poet, was born in Alloway, Ayrshire, Scotland, on January 25, 1759. He received little formal education, but he enjoyed reading and he became familiar with the writings of such authors as Dryden, Milton, and Shakespeare. Burns worked long hours with his father, a tenant farmer. The frustration of watching his father's struggles on the farm is said to have inspired his satirical poetry. When his father died in 1784, Burns moved the family to the farm Mossgiel about one mile north of the town of Mauchline. Here he continued to work as a farmer and to write poetry. In 1786 Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect was published, which described the existence of the Scottish peasant. Burns's popularity was immediate, if short-lived. After a brief period of fame in Edinburgh, Burns returned to Ayrshire. Burns married Jean Armour in 1788. They moved first to a farm in Ellisland, then to Dumfries, where Burns worked as a tax inspector. In addition to his poetry, Burns is well known for his songwriting. He worked with James Johnson on a project to revise old Scottish tunes and created some new songs of his own. Some favorites include Auld Lang Syne, To a Mountain Daisy, and Tam o' Shanter. Robert Burns died of rheumatic fever on July 21, 1796, at the age of 37.