Lightly Poached

The Second Hebridean Trilogy #2

by Lillian Beckwith

'The Lord puts the salmon in the river like he puts the berries on the trees. They're there for all of us, not just for the laird.' The Bruach islanders don't consider poaching a crime, more like a natural right. Fishermen Erchy and Hector are experts, but they are not the only ones tempted. Even a visiting vicar succumbs. In this collection of tales about her eccentric island friends, Lillian Beckwith sees the funny side of many a strange situation.

Genres: Fiction, Scotland, Humor, Historical Fiction, Classics

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

About the author

Lilian Comber wrote fiction and non-fiction for both adults and children under the pseudonym Lillian Beckwith. She is best known for her series of comic novels based on her time living on a croft in the Scottish Hebrides.

Beckwith was born in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, in 1916, where her father ran a grocery shop. The shop provided the background for her memoir About My Father's Business, a child’s eye view of a 1920s family. She moved to the Isle of Skye with her husband in 1942, and began writing fiction after moving to the Isle of Man with her family twenty years later. She also completed a cookery book, Secrets from a Crofter’s Kitchen (Arrow, 1976).

Since her death, Beckwith’s novel A Shine of Rainbows has been made into a film starring Aidan Quinn and Connie Nielsen, which in 2009 won ‘Best Feature’ awards at the Heartland and Chicago Children’s Film Festivals.

Reviews

[Shauna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fifth in this delightful series of Lillian Beckwith's Hebridean experiences. The humour is gentle and her great love for the wildlife and landscape of the Scottish Highlands really comes across. Great escapism for those weary of the hustle and bustle of modern urban living.

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another favorite from Lillian Beckwith. I wish she had written another dozen fictional accounts of life on the Outer Hebrides. They are always enjoyable but I believe she had probably run out of colorful stories. Great yarns written in a style that mimic a good story being told amongst friends. Very light hearted and several laughs. Set in the period just after the great war and before great changes came to these beautiful islands.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

"'The Lord puts the salmon in the river like he puts the berries on the trees. They're there for all of us, not just the laird.'

"The way the Bruachites saw it, poaching wasn't a crime though you did have to keep an eye out for the local police. And it wasn't just fisherman like Erchy and Hector who were experts -- even a visiting vicar had been tempted by the fat salmon that filled the island's stream and pools.

"Like her other four, this is packed with the enchanting and hilarious adventures of her island friends."
~~back cover

In which Miss Peckwitt acquires a piano, attends ceilidhs, learns how to make a hay rope to keep hay cocks from coming apart in a gale, comes face to face with a golden eagle, and hosts a ceilidh herself. Wonderful, heart-warming stories and the joys and tribulations of being a crofter in the Hebrides.

[Patty Demaria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always love to escape with Lillian.

[Jill Bowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely, as all of Beckwith’s books are. Vignettes involving Lillian and her island neighbors. A wonderful look at a time and place. I think I’d like to live there.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had always considered Lillian Beckwith's book nonfiction, but apparently GR considers them fiction. Does it make any sense to say that I like them better as fiction? As nonfiction, they seem to play into the "English spinster and quaint natives (in this case, crofters on the Hebrides) condescend to each other" meme. True, not much happens in this book, even if you consider it as fiction. Lillian works on her croft, she visits another island with a boatload of her local friends, a few of them go to an auction and she buys a piano. And, of course, there's the weather, a main concern in the area. It's just one of those gentle books that you can reread with pleasure.

[Adele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beat the backlist reading challenge 2021: from your 2020 backlist TBR
The fifth and equally charming book of tales from Bruach. Each book is a treasure to own simply based on the exquisite jacket designs and chapter decorations.

[Gloria Mitchell · Rating 2 out of 5]

10 little stories in this funny little book Was ok quite enjoyed it

[Mardi D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much like the other Bruach stories, and I enjoyed it. Bit by bit we learn more about the various characters and life in the Hebrides and it once was.

[Esther · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only two to go, Beautiful just! and Bruach Blend, and I still don't know how to pronounce Bruach.

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lillian Beckwith’s books, and the delightful characters within, are a breath of fresh air and never fail to bring a smile to my face.

[Janice Churchill · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun, easy light read as long as you can appreciate a Scottish / Gaelic language

[Brendan Ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Less humour than the last, but still highly
enjoyable

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this volume much more enjoyable than the earlier ones. It’s more a celebration of the people, scenery and life without the snooty looking down

[^ · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of the same. Amusing and undemanding.

[Paul Juniper · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gentler time and place. Living without electricity and running water. On a cold wet isolated island. With a cast of characters. A good read.

[Karen-Leigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

By now Lillian has moved away from the island and is writing stories based on her time..a mixture of autobiographical and pseudonyms.

[Elizabeth Downes]

reread February 2015