Don Roberto: The Adventure of Being Cunninghame Graham

by James Jauncey, James Robertson (Foreword)

It would be impossible to invent Don Roberto today – a fantastic combination of Don Quixote and Sir Gawain, Indiana Jones and the Lone Ranger. He was so multi-faceted, so complex, that every chapter in his story reveals some new and contradictory aspect of his personality. He is best known as the co-founder, with Keir Hardie, of the Scottish Labour Party, and later as the founding president of the Scottish National Party. But in a long and extraordinary life he was many other things besides.

352 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2023

About the author

James (Jamie) Jauncey is a Scottish author and great-great-nephew of R.B. Cunninghame Graham. He has published five novels and has contributed to several non-fiction titles. He is a co-founder of Dark Angels, the Creative Writing for Business programme, and served for many years on the board of the Edinburgh International Book Festival. He is also a musician.

Reviews

[Robin Cunninghame Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just brilliant. This is the best accessible biography of R B Cunninghame Graham by far. Jauncey writes in an easy style (unlike that of his forebear, who in Jauncey's own words can be "pretty indigestible at times"), which makes the book very readable and his personal experiences that mirror or touch those of his famous forebear bring a delightful new dimension to the biography.

Jauncey skilfully avoids being definitive, steering his way through the morass of myth, legend and deliberate obfuscation by his subject, by presenting all the possibilities without backing any particular theory, which allows the reader to make their own decision. This is unusual in biographies of Robert and Gabriela, both of whom were complex characters.

This will be the biography I recommend to anyone who wants to know more about this fascinating man.