Books: Guide for children to prowl around Capital

Edinburgh Unlocked: A Guide Book For Kids, is published by Unlocked Guides, priced £8.99.

IT'S not that often that children are invited to help create a book designed for them to read.

But when Bruntsfield teacher Colin Chisholm decided to write an Edinburgh guide book for youngsters, he could think of no better place to start.

Based at the time at St Cuthbert's RC Primary, he racked his pupils' brains, asking them where they would encourage other children to visit if they were given the freedom to explore the Capital.

The list was endless, ranging from established attractions such as Edinburgh Zoo, to the more unusual, including the TimeTwisters play centre on Bankhead Drive.

"The whole idea behind the book is that children will want to read it themselves," Colin, 27, explains.

Edinburgh Unlocked is the third book in the Unlocked Guides series, which includes books for children visiting London and the Lake District.

The brightly-coloured guide encourages children to plan visits, make use of the book's "top tips" and then rate the attractions using several pages of sticky gold stars.

"Don't be boring, go exploring," is the motto of the guide which was released this week.