Read Scotland 2014 discussion

1. The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks
Read today, 8/13/14. Has anyone else read it? I got on Google Maps and tried to find exactly where the story took place until I realized it was a fictional area, haha. Even though I wasn't impressed by The Wasp Factory (I was annoyed that an explanation was given at the end, but I think Iain hadn't learned to trust the intelligence of his readers yet) I do look forward to reading his The Culture series, although I don't think it qualifies as a Scotland read.

I've just finished my first Culture novel 'Excession'. While it was good it was pretty heavy going after about half way through. I should have perhaps started with one of the earlier novels in the series. I think it should count as a Scotland read just because Iain Banks was born in Scotland

Kat wrote: "1. Iain Banks
Read today, 8/13/14. Has anyone else read it? I got on Google Maps and tried to find exactly where the story took place until I realized it was a ..."

The culture series will count, Kat as Banks is Scottish!

Thanks Peggy! Will books which are about Scotland but not written by a Scottish author also count?

2. Edinburgh by Robert Louis Stevenson

Read 8/19/14. A very good description of the city. I will have to read it again if I get to visit there. The photo of the book is the one I have but I am not sure of the publication date.

Jim wrote: "I've just finished my first Culture novel 'Excession'. While it was good it was pretty heavy going after about half way through. I should have perhaps started with one of the earlier novels in the ..."

Thank you for warning me, I will start it when I don't have a ton of things going on to distract me.

Kat wrote: "Thanks Peggy! Will books which are about Scotland but not written by a Scottish author also count?"

Yes, Kat. Written by, set in or about Scotland is the guideline.

Thank you, Peggy. :)

3. by James Ferguson.

Read 9/7/14. James Ferguson, a Scottish astronomer, published this book the same year (1761) as the first transit of Venus was to be observed in multiple locations across the globe in a concerted international scientific endeavor to calculate the distance to the sun from the earth. James Ferguson recounted that his lectures on astronomy and the upcoming Venus transit were "so fashionable that he could easily have filled the seats twice". I read this book in accompaniment with other texts on the transit of Venus. Fascinating stuff.

Kat wrote: "James Ferguson recounted that his lectures on astronomy and the upcoming Venus transit were 'so fashionable that he could easily have filled the seats twice'. I read this book in accompaniment with other texts on the transit of Venus. Fascinating stuff."

This sounds very interesting. I'll have to add it to my list.

P.J. wrote: "This sounds very interesting. I'll have to add it to my list.
"

I do recommend by Andrea Wulf for anyone interested in the transit of Venus. She provides a more comprehensive account of the subject, she writes with an enthusiasm which makes it as exciting as I find it to be, and she includes James Ferguson's charts as well. In fact, I
learned of his book from her extensive bibliography.

4. Celtic Blood by James John Loftus

Read 9/17/14. I would not have known about this book if it hadn't been for this group. To my surprise, my name was also included in the clan histories depicted in the book.

Kat wrote: "I do recommend by Andrea Wulf for anyone interested in the transit of Venus. She provides a more comprehensive account of the subject, she writes with an enthusiasm ..."

Thanks for the recommendation. I'll add it to my list of books to explore.

5. Scottish Independence and the Idea of Britain: From the Picts to Alexander III by Dauvit Broun

Read 11/10/14. This book reads more like the grad papers I once wrote than an interesting historical text-even the sentence structures are similar to those which I so carefully constructed for the purpose of producing a factual and objective work. It is chock-full of original and secondary sources with apposite quotes worked into the text, overflowing with footnotes, and has an impressive bibliography. It is informative-I appreciate all of the meticulous research and organization that went into it-but (and you knew there was a but coming) it is very dry and rather tedious to read. However, I recommend it to anyone who is interested in texts concerning Scotland's history.

6. Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Read 11/22/14. I love the poetic prose in which the reader can feel the ache of the bleak yet beautiful landscape and people.

Kat wrote: "

6. Sunset Song by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Read 11/22/14. I love the poetic prose in which the reader can feel the ache of the bleak yet beautiful lan..."

It is a beautifully written book, Kat!

7. Cloud Howe by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Read 12/4/14. Sequel to Sunset Song. I didn't like it as much as the first book because the setting shifts from the countryside to the town.

Kat wrote: "

7. Cloud Howe by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Read 12/4/14. Sequel to Sunset Song. I didn't like it as much as the first book because the setting shifts..."

I liked the first one best too!

8. Grey Granite by Lewis Grassic Gibbon

Read 12/10/14. The last book in A Scots Quair focused on the politics of the time period and how it affected the local people. I enjoyed the Scots phrases used by the author throughout the series and I hope to find other books which include them as well.

9. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

Read 12/31/14. I read this the last day of the year but was too busy to post it on Goodreads (I was taking care of a sick friend). This is a stream of consciousness style novel which delves into the lives of a large family that is staying at the Isle of Skye in Scotland.

Kat, I read this about ten years ago and I just couldn't get my head round it. I'd always intended to read one of her books, and I kept waiting for something to happen, but there was so much angst over the most trivial events that there was no room for activity. I persisted and read it all but it was one of my least favourite books. Did you enjoy it?