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273 ratings | 234 reviews | avg rating:4.96

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Ronald Mackay

Goodreads Author

Born

Coupar Angus, Scotland

Genre

Memoir, Travel

Member Since

May 2014

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Ronald Mackay caught the travel bug early when he biked all over Scotland as a schoolboy. Within a couple of decades he'd lived and worked in the Kingdom of Morocco, Franco's Spain, Ceaușescu 's Romania, Zhivkov's Bulgaria, Echeverría's Spain and Trudeau's Canada -- and that was only the start.

After a lifetime of working internationally, he and his Peruvian wife spend most of their time at their home near Peterborough, on the Shores of Rice Lake in Ontario. ...more

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Ronald Mackay’s books

Average rating: 4.64 · 197 ratings · 87 reviews · 15 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Kilt Behind the Curtain: A Scotsman in Ceausescu’s Romania 4.59 avg rating — 78 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Fortunate Isle: A Memoir of Tenerife 4.77 avg rating — 66 ratings — published 2017 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Windows On My Worlds: A Collection of Short Stories 4.75 avg rating — 20 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Tenerife con Cariño really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	English for Specific Purposes: A Case Study Approach 4.33 avg rating — 3 ratings — published 1978 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Languages for Specific Purposes: Program Design and Evaluation liked it 3.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Native student dropouts in Ontario schools (Student retention and transition series) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Reading in a Second Language: Hypotheses, Organization and Practice 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — published 1979	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	ISNAR's (International Sevice for National Agricultural Research) achievements, impacts, and constraints: An assessment of organizational performance and institutional impact 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mystery of the Banshee Towers 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Ronald Mackay…

Ronald is Currently Reading

Ronald Mackay is currently reading

How to Be a Conservative

by Sir Roger Scruton

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Oct 15, 2026 11:56PM

Ronald Mackay is currently reading

How the World Ends

by Joel Varty (Goodreads Author)

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Sep 11, 2026 11:31AM

Ronald Mackay is currently reading

Descendant

by Joel Varty (Goodreads Author)

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Sep 11, 2026 11:31AM

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Ronald’s Recent Updates

Ronald Mackay rated a book it was amazing When Sirens Beckon by Shane Joseph (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
In “When Sirens Beckon””, Martin James the protagonist in the first of this gritty, two-part series (“The Ulysses Man”), returns to his home in Sri Lanka from the comfortable home he has made as an immigrant to Canada. It’s 2019 and the occasion is h ...more
Oct 17, 2026 09:25PM · 1 like · like · see review
Ronald Mackay is currently reading How to Be a Conservative by Sir Roger Scruton	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 15, 2026 11:56PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How to Be a Conservative by Sir Roger Scruton. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How to Be a Conservative by Sir Roger Scruton <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ronald Mackay is currently reading When Sirens Beckon by Shane Joseph (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 05, 2026 08:38AM · like
Ronald Mackay rated a book it was amazing Pets On The Prowl by Malcolm D Welshman	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Attention all pet owners and animal lovers: “Pets on the Prowl” is pure delight! With “Pets on the Prowl”, Malcolm Welshman confirms his reputation as a veterinarian with a gift for telling funny, poignant, warm stories about his many and varied exper ...more
Oct 03, 2026 09:12PM · 1 like · like · see review
Ronald Mackay rated a book it was amazing A Man's Journey through Grief: The Candid Memoir of a Jesus-Follower’s Struggles to Rebuild His Life after His Wife’s Death by Eric E. Wright (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Accompanying Eric E. Wright on his journey is an illuminating, revealing and instructive experience. His poignant account is an insight into what it means for a Christian to embrace the sacred, to grieve the passing of our beloved, and to continue li ...more
Sep 14, 2026 10:10PM · like · see review
Ronald Mackay and 2 other people liked Shane's review of Ways of Seeing: "A concise way to view and appreciate art, illustrated with about 150 famous European paintings and 50 photographs, and presented in four text-photo essays and three image-only essays. The text essays cover Visual Art in general, Nudes, Oil Painting, a" Read more of this review »
Sep 14, 2026 09:12PM · see review
Ronald Mackay is currently reading How the World Ends by Joel Varty (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 11, 2026 11:31AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of How the World Ends by Joel Varty. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — How the World Ends by Joel Varty <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ronald Mackay is currently reading Descendant by Joel Varty (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 11, 2026 11:31AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Descendant by Joel Varty. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Descendant by Joel Varty <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Ronald Mackay rated a book it was amazing Carrier to Classroom: My Unexpected Path from Petty Officer to Professor by James H. O'Connor (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Occasionally, very occasionally, I have met a man or woman who is truly a competent human being. James H. O’Connor is one. The compelling story he tells in “Carrier to Classroom: My Unexpected Path from Petty Officer to Professor” and the way he tell ...more
Sep 11, 2026 06:34AM · 1 like · like · see review
Ronald Mackay rated a book it was amazing The Human Mind Revealed: A Biological Perspective by Michael Sharwood Smith	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I read The Human Mind Revealed as one of those ‘general, curious readers’ for whom Michael Sharwood Smith has explicitly chosen to write in an intentionally accessible manner. I was not disappointed. Nevertheless, I had to read and reread it before I ...more
Sep 10, 2026 03:01AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Human Mind Revealed by Michael Sharwood Smith. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Human Mind Revealed by Michael Sharwood Smith <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">