Review: The Virago Book of Women Travellers
My review of the first book in my 2017 quest to read female-authored travel writing – the Virago Book of Women Travellers.
Preview: The Virago Book Of Women Travellers
My preview of the first title in my “reading female travel writers” project: The Virago Book Of Women Travellers, edited by Mary Morris and Larry O’Connor.
A new reading project for 2017
An introduction to my 2017 project of reading female travel writers.
Knoydart, 2016
Knoydart is one of Scotland’s most beautiful but least accessible areas, where a difficult history of land ownership still casts a shadow over the community’s cautiously optimistic future. I spent a week walking, cycling and exploring there in May 2016. Here are a few posts from the trip.
Plastic Mary and the Nazi sympathiser
An exploration of two of Knoydart’s constructed landmarks – a statue of Mary and a vanity construct by a Nazi sympathiser.
A cycle to Airor
A cycle from Inverie to Knoydart’s other main settlement of Airor.
Luinne Bheinn & Meall Bhuidhe
An account of a cracking day’s hillwalking in Knoydart that took in Luinne Bheinn and Meall Bhuidhe.
Inverie city centre
An overview of Inverie, the bustling wee settlement at the heart of the Knoydart Estate, and – not that it feels like it – mainland Britain’s remotest village.
Todmorden
A visit to the West Yorkshire town of Todmorden. I didn’t get abducted by aliens but I did encounter the pinkest microbrewery ever.
Pordo al Miraklo
Eta artikolo pri Armenio originale publikiĝis en oktobro 2016 en la revuo Esperanto en Skotlando. A wee article about Armenia originally published in October 2016 in the magazine Esperanto in Scotland.
Refugees, hipsters and jumpers
I returned to Armenia for a third visit in September 2016. A theme of this trip was the surprising diversity of the country.
Two books by Tom Coote
A review of two travelogues by Tom Coote – Tearing Up The Silk Road, and Voodoo, Slaves and White Man’s Graves.
Leaving Alexandria, by Richard Holloway
I had the privilege recently of interviewing Richard Holloway, the writer, broadcaster and former leader of the Scottish Episcopal Church. Here’s my review of his memoir Leaving Alexandria, which I read as preparation.
The Outrun, by Amy Liptrot
A review of Amy Liptrot’s powerful memoir The Outrun.
Me And You Again, by Fraser Balaam
A review of the poignant memoir meets witty travelogue, Me & You Again by Fraser Balaam.
Charlotte Street, by Danny Wallace
A review of the very enjoyable debut novel Charlotte Street, by Danny Wallace.
Mind The Gap, by Tim Richards
A review of the immensely fun dimension-shifting fantasy/travel novel Mind The Gap, by Australian travel writer Tim Richards.
The Clava viaduct in three photos
A post about the spectacular Clava viaduct on the train line just south from Inverness, and some photos I’ve taken from (and of) it over the years.
Why (almost) everything is the Labour Party’s fault, and (almost) certainly not Jeremy Corbyn’s
A post on why I feel that the Labour Party is missing the point – and harming the country – in falling out over Jeremy Corbyn. Its problems are, I believe, much, much bigger.
Tramping The Long White Cloud
This is the thirteenth in my occasional series of “Books on the Horizon” – travelogues I dream of researching and writing, though probably never will. This one is about walking the entire length of New Zealand.