Books
The battle of humanity vs nature on South Uist
Documenting the fragility of life on South Uist in the 1950s, modernist photographer Paul Strand spent three months on the island. Here, he took the time to research the juxtaposition between landscape and man, documenting how islanders have embraced and thrived off the rugged imperfection of their environment. Tir A’mhurain – ‘the land of bent…
Read MoreA memoir account of dealing with grief
Marram: Memories of Sea and Spider-Silk is a candid memoir of Leonie Charlton’s experiences in the Outer Hebrides in 2017. Seven years after her mother’s death, Marram is a heart-wrenching account of coming to terms with grief. But aside from her journey of acceptance lies her deep concern for wildlife, in particular for horses, and…
Read MoreA gripping thriller in the Scottish Highlands
Fantastically eerie and atmospheric, this Gothic thriller set in the Highlands had me hooked from chapter one. Following the life of ten-year-old Lauren, who lives with her father in the Highlands, she struggles to cope with the disappearance of her mother; a woman she greatly admires but has little memory of. On Halloween, a gaunt,…
Read MoreEscape to the wilderness with 28 fantastic bothies
When out in the wilderness, there is no sight more welcome than a bothy on the horizon – a place to dry out your kit and toast a few marshmallows round the fire. With this in mind, Allan follows on from his award-winning Scottish Bothy Bible, this time guiding his readers through a mix of…
Read MoreBilly Connolly – a life packed full of laughter
It has been a long time since I genuinely laughed out loud while reading a book – quite uncontrollably, I might add – and I should have known it would come from this hero of Scottish comedy. A master of storytelling, observation and digression, Connolly recently announced his retirement from live comedy after 50 years…
Read MoreTurning back the clock to Dundee’s tram years
I love looking at old photos that are full of character, and Lost Tramways of Scotland: Dundee is full of them. Dusting down historic images of Dundee’s tramways – which survived from the late-1800s until the mid-1950s, when their removal met substantial opposition – Waller’s book is largely a photographic record of the beautiful trams…
Read MoreA real celebration of Scotland’s women of note
An unwillingness to acknowledge women or their achievements is a thread woven through history in every corner of the globe. It’s with this in mind that Stevenson has written a collection of poems which celebrate and pay tribute to the many women who have contributed to Scottish history, from queens and scientists to salt-sellers and…
Read MoreThe roles of two Scots in the rise of British India
Scotland and the Indian Empire: Politics, Scholarship and the Military in Making British India is an academic account of two Scots. It centres on Neil Edmonstone, acting Governor-General of India and Chief Intelligence Officer of the East India Company, and John Baillie, political agent for Bundelkhand. Author Alan Tritton details precisely how they oversaw the…
Read MoreWhen a family went to war with itself over Jacobite Rising
There are books aplenty detailing the Jacobite Rising of 1715, but Rosalind Anderson’s The Jacobite Rising of 1715 and the Murray Family: Brothers in Arm stands out from the crowd. Looking at it through the lives of an influential Perthshire family, the Murrays, she traces the brothers’ rebellion against their father to follow the Jacobite…
Read MoreA gripping read with a contemporary feel
Stay Mad, Sweetheart’s synopsis didn’t sell it to me. Exploring issues of workplace discrimination and ‘the grey areas of consent’, Kist’s book is highly addictive thanks to a plot full of suspense and fascinating protagonists who face uphill struggles with gender inequality. Laura, a skilled yet modest data scientist, decides to put her technological know-how…
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