Jessie's Journey: Autobiography of a Traveller Girl

by Jess Smith

From the ages of 5 to 15, Jess Smith lived with her parents, sisters and a mongrel dog in an old, blue Bedford bus. They travelled the length and breadth of Scotland, and much of England too, stopping here and there until they were moved on by the local authorities or driven by their own instinctive need to travel. By campfires, under the unchanging stars they brewed up tea, telling stories and singing songs late into the night. Jessie's Journey describes what it was like to be one of the last of the traditional travelling folk. It is not an idyllic tale, but despite the threat of bigoted abuse and scattered schooling, humour and laughter run throughout a childhood teeming with unforgettable characters and incidents.

Genres: Nonfiction, Scotland, History, Biography, Memoir, Travel

245 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 2002

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Elo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m glad I found that book in a little bookshop in Pitlochry before leaving Scotland (for now), as I was looking for a Scottish book to bring home with me and this one is a perfect fit.
Even more as Jessie’s family was from (kinda) Pitlochry and his surroundings so it’s a lucky streak I had when I bought it there.
It’s the story of travellers, « tinker » folks and I think it’s the first book I read about this subject. Every country have traveling communities, even today where the general way to treat them doesn’t differ from the way they were treated before, in Scotland or elsewhere.
As a girl who loves traveling, you see all those people now doing it and it’s so good and well seen from their friends and family, but people that are literally born in traveller communities are seen as « less » and it just baffles me how for many « different=bad/less ». That’s just sad.

But anyway, Jessie’s Journey certainly was not sad. It’s composed of many small stories of her childhood spend traveling in a bus with her parents and sisters. From 5 to 16, in the 50s/60s she’s had such a wonderful childhood and certainly is a free spirit and storyteller at heart, as she was brought up with it.

Some stories are funny, some sad and life was not always perfect for her family and yet it felt by reading a bit of their adventures that it was always full of love and more often than not filled with wonder.

As I’ve traveled in Scotland a bit, and looking forward to go back, it was very pleasant to read about places I’ve been so I knew what she was talking about and left me wanting to see a few other places still to be explored.

[Christina King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hey, this is hands down the best book I’ve read all year. I was needing a book to help me feel a little less bad about the world and oh my God this book did that. I laughed so much through this book it’s unreal. And cried. I 1,000,000%. Recommend this book. I’m really excited to read the next ones but I’m going to read a book in between each one because I am enjoying them so much I don’t really want them to be finished.

[Darla Ebert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jessie's stories are fun and so interesting to read. She makes her past come alive in an entertaining and educational way. It was a way of life that hardly exists anymore. Well written and a study in how some people are forced to live, adapting to their situation and flourishing in many instances.

[Fiona Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book which has it all, and a lot more. I laughed a lot, I cried a lot too. I recognised so many of the places Jessie spoke about and it was strange to think how much has changed in the years between her visits and my own.

[Keila Seaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah what a life dear Jessie has had! The life of a traveller in the days when it was a culture. Now as a traveller I long for the days she had!

[Carmen Surariu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Between a 2 and 3. It was a bit boring at times, especially until I got used to the style, but it's a nice story.

[penelopewanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this to see if I can use it for my class on gypsies.

I found it took me a while to get used to her voice, but once I was there I enjoyed it. As I read it with a specific purpose in mind (whether to use it with an advanced English as a foreign language course), I was a bit frustrated by the liberal use of "unusual" language. There is a one page glossary at the back, but half of the unusual words listed at the back are in fact explained when encountered in the text, whereas dozens of other words which were totally foreign to me were not explained or in the glossary. Despite this I hope to be able to have my class read a few of Jess' adventures, even if the entire book would be too much of a challenge.

[Tarryn Spencer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Bruar's Rest is one of my absolute favourite books and so I was very much looking forward to reading about Jess Smiths own experiences of being a traveller. Jessie's Journey did not let me down. The author is wonderful at taking the reader on incredibly descriptive, touching and humorous tales of her childhood and the photos in the book really made it come to life for me. I can't wait to read the next 2 books in the series!

[Jeannie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I grew up third generation Scottish in NJ. All my older relatives had lovely Scottish accents and the food and culture were a big part of my life. This book let me hear those voices again and learn so much more about my heritage. I loved the family dynamics and the love and humor they shared. In some ways, it reminded me of “A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.” I highly recommend this book.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have read all these books I can find/buy in Scotland. Great history of a long ago life. Sometimes it is romanized for such a way of hard life, often sad, mostly joyous. Going to Perthshire area brings it alive.

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable tale about a long-gone lifestyle. At first I liked the various folk tales woven into the story but eventually they began to pall and I would have preferred more about Jessie's life.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

haven't read it yet don't know how to open the book to read

[Paul Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing read very honest and pure to the way of life back then to the travellers and understand the life

[Iain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Escape into a world of endless summer's in this beautiful account of a childhood on the road around the Scottish countryside.