High and Lonely Place

by Jim Crumley

A classic of Scottish nature writing and of the literature of our mountains

Genres: Nature

164 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1992

About the author

Jim Crumley is a Scottish nature writer with almost 20 books to his name, mostly on the landscape and wildlife of Scotland. He is renowned for his style - passionate, inspiring, visionary, sensitive, majestic - no work of his should be missed. He is also a columnist and presenter of radio programmes.

He has also received the accolade of '...the best nature writer now working in Great Britain...' from David Craig in the Los Angeles Times Book Review.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favourite book that I've read by Crumley.

He writes as one intimately familiar with the Cairngorms and it shows. His writing is poetic, and evocative of feelings that I've felt whilst in the same places. Throughout the book you can see how connecting with these wild lands is an almost spiritual experience for Crumley.

This is a fantastic read and if you've ever been slightly off the beaten track in the Cairngorms you'll love this book. It will transport you there and have you itching to go back.

[Mary Arkless · Rating 3 out of 5]

Borrowed from the library.

This was perhaps the right book at the wrong time. If it had been my book instead of a borrowed one, I might have put it aside to try again later. As it was, I plowed through. Don’t get me wrong, there is some terrific writing here, some amazing personal encounters with nature shared with the reader, but I didn’t really get running with it. I also got slightly annoyed with the person who spends so much time trekking around Cairngorms repeatedly going on about how awful it is that other people want to visit there. Yes, the wilderness is on the one hand fragile (on the other, it can be deadly), and too many people will ruin it, but who decides who is worthy?