Salmond against the Odds

Alex Salmond is well known in Scotland, the UK and beyond as the leader of the Scottish National Party and Scotland’s First Minister, but little is understood about Salmond as a human being, what makes him a Nationalist, what shaped his political views, and what sort of country he believes an independent Scotland should be.

In this book, acclaimed political biographer David Torrance turns his attention to perhaps one of the most capable and intriguing politicians Scotland has produced. Utilising a raft of published and unpublished material, as well as information from many of the First Minister's close colleagues and friends, he charts the life and career of Alex Salmond, taking the story up to his party's spectacular electoral success in the May 2011 Scottish election and the first six months of the new SNP administration.