At first glance this is a witty and comical collection of poems. But the eccentric nature of many of the poems nevertheless belies the often serious historical and moral issues contained within. As close to Hogg's final copy as possible, this collection includes many poems which have never been studied critically before. "The 1994 Queer Book is much more than a reprint of the 1832 text... Hogg boasted to William Blackwood 'it will be a grand book for thae Englishers for they winna understand a word of it'." Journal of James Hogg Society