Greenvoe [Paperback]

George MacKay Brown (Author), Duncan McLean (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2004

Greenvoe, the tight-knit community on the Orcadian island of Hellya, has existed unchanged for generations. However, a sinister military/industrial project, Operation Black Star, requires the island for unspecified purposes and threatens the islanders' way of life. In this, his first novel (1972), George MacKay Brown recreates a week in the life of the island community as they come to terms with the destructiveness of Operation Black Star. A whole host of characters - The Skarf, failed fishermen and Marxist historian; Ivan Westray, boatman and dallier; pious creeler Samuel Whaness; drunken fishermen Bert Kerston; earth-mother Alice Voar, and meths-drinker Timmy Folster - are vividly brought to life in this sparkling mixture of prose and poetry. In the end Operation Black Star fails, but not before it has ruined the island. But the book ends on a note of hope as the islanders return to celebrate the ritual rebirth of Hellya.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"a poetic, distinguished and totally delightful Orcadian story... full of humour and sensitivity and of the unsentimental poetry of raw experience' - Sunday Times"

About the Author

George Mackay Brown is one of the major Scottish literary figures of the twentieth century. A prolific poet and novelist, he took much of his inspiration from the myths and landscape of Orkney, and also from his deep Catholic faith. His collection of short stories A Time to Keep (1971) won the Katherine Mansfield Mentor short story prize and his novel Beside the Ocean of Time was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1994. He died in 1996.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Polygon (November 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 190459817X
• ISBN-13: 978-1904598176
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #353,237 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank goodness it is back in print!, August 6, 2005

By 

Kate (New York, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greenvoe (Paperback)

I read this an undergraduate Scottish lit. seminar. And for years, it has been out of print. That was a terrible shame, not least of which because I now want my own students to read it! It's a gem of a novel, portraying the people of a small community, and their intertwined lives. It's also about the clash between tradition and modernity. George Mackay Brown had an amazing ear for dialogue, and an ability to weave complex tales. The people of Greenvoe are wonderful character studies. One of the greatest Scottish novels...

4.0 out of 5 stars Resisting the Black Star, November 2, 2011

By 

Sentinel (Essex) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greenvoe (Paperback)

This was George's first novel, following magical, glimmering collections of poetry and short stories. Happily, despite the occasional awkward tone and structural problem, it manages to capture that unique vision he has of being able to portray the past, breathing over the shoulder of the present. He depicts the small community of Greenvoe trying to unite against the dark forces of the Black Star development, and paints the effects on individual lives, for whom the natural elements of wind, rain and cold had been their adverseries down the generations.

Interestingly, at the time George was writing this, Orkney was convulsed by opposition to proposed radium mining across her 'green glens and sleeping hills', and the parallels are clear for all to see. If you already know George's shorter work this would make the ideal start point to explore his novels; however, if you're unfamiliar with this 'master wordsmith of isolated places', I'd recommend the superb 'Calendar of Love'Calendar of Love or 'A Time to Keep'A Time to Keep: And Other Stories collections of short stories, or 'An Orkney Tapestry'An Orkney Tapestry (if available), which is a magical evocation of the spirit of Orkney, with beautiful line drawings by Sylvia Wishart.