Great Houses of Scotland.(Brief Article)

Having given us The Great Houses of England and Wales (1994. o.p.), the authors -- one of Britain's foremost authorities on historic houses and a photographer specializing in architecture -- head north of the border. From Blair Castle to Ardkinglas, they assay 26 great structures -- houses, castles, and palaces -- carefully distinguishing among the different types and providing both historical and aesthetic context. The result is a lot more fun to read than one might expect; in clear, witty prose, Montgomery-Massingbred takes us on a tour of Scotland, detailing how each house developed, often from a medieval "core," …