Island: Diary of a Year on Easdale

by Garth Waite, Vicky Waite

Island is a detailed and lovingly illustrated account of a newly married couple's first idyllic year on the tiny Scottish island of Easdale. It took them 6 years to complete, and it will delight anyone who responds to the romance of life on a remote island.

Genres: Scotland

144 pages, Hardcover

First published February 1, 1986

Reviews

[Ape · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting or hoping for, and really underwhelming. Disappointing for me too. I'd hoped to read a lot about Easdale and about living there in the early 1980s and really, they could have been living anywhere in Scotland by the sea. For the nature lover it doesn't go into massive detail either. It's rather an Edwardian Lady has pleasant thoughts of things she sees in nature over a year. And I'm sure it was a great project for the two of them to work on together - Garth Waite writing and Vicky doesn't all the illustrations (it is packed - rather in the style of an Edwardian Lady's Diary), a love letter to their time when they decided to go live on Easdale. But perhaps one of those 'you had to be there' things. I wouldn't even say you have to write realms to capture a sense of place because I've seen it done with few words. But they don't succeed for me.
I was actually on Easdale for a day trip last year, which was why this book leapt out at me and why I was curious about reading about the life there. It's a really tiny island off the West coast of Scotland, ravaged by the old slate quarry industry, and with (today) a bit of a hipster community living in the old converted long houses that the quarry workers must have lived in at one point. No roads or cars (I did say it was tiny), but a taxi rank style line of wheelbarrows at the ferry pier - but this is all information from me, and not what you'd get from the book.

[Bryn · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a naturalist's journal created by Garth and Vicky Waite, an elderly couple who retired to the small island of Easdale off the Scottish coast in the 1970s. It is sweet, verging on twee; very pretty watercolour pictures of many plants and animals and the ocean, handwritten notes (reproduced as handwriting, sometimes hard to read and full of comma splices that should have been edited out) about the plants and animals, various poetry both quoted and original. I liked it for what it was, but I would have liked it more if it had either had much more non-fictional information about the island, or much more diary-like information about the lives of the writers. I feel fond of the Waites, and I am glad they had the chance to create a book like this, and it was rather soothing to look at, but it did not really add up to much by the end.

[JoAnna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three-line review: This book is the epitome of seeing a passion through to completion. A compilation of Garth's writings and Vicky's artwork, this journal chronicles their observations about the natural environment on the small island of Easdale in the British Isles. Part memoir, part reference book and part reminder to slow down, this is the kind of book I dream of creating in my golden years.

[Ricki Nordmeyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

With beautiful illustrations by his wife, Vicky, Garth Waite chronicles day to day events, flora, fauna and wildlife on a wee Scottish island where they have decided to live. A real comfrt read. Could one leave modern life to live on a secluded island? At least we can do it vicariously.

[Mrs C]

Absolutely beautiful.

[Piepie | The Napping Bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gorgeous book that would be fun to gather inspiration from for meditation or journaling.