A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland: with The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides (Everyman's Library) [Hardcover]

Samuel Johnson (Author), James Boswell (Author), Allan Massie (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 26, 2002

(Book Jacket Status: Not Jacketed)

In 1773, the great Samuel Johnson–then 63–and his young friend and future biographer, James Boswell, traveled together around the coast of Scotland, each writing his own account of the 83-day journey. Published in one volume, the very different travelogues of this unlikely duo provide a fascinating picture not only of the Scottish Highlands but also of the relationship between two men whose fame would be forever entwined.

Johnson's account contains elegant descriptions and analyses of what was then a remote and rugged land. In contrast, the Scottish-born Boswell's journal of the trip focuses on the psychological landscape of his famously gruff and witty companion, and is part of the material he was already collecting for his future Life of Samuel Johnson, the masterly biography that would make his name.

Read together, the two accounts form both a unique classic of travel writing and a revelation of one of the most famous literary friendships.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

In 1773, the great Samuel Johnson?then 63?and his young friend and future biographer, James Boswell, traveled together around the coast of Scotland, each writing his own account of the 83-day journey. Published in one volume, the very different travelogues of this unlikely duo provide a fascinating picture not only of the Scottish Highlands but also of the relationship between two men whose fame would be forever entwined.

Johnson's account contains elegant descriptions and analyses of what was then a remote and rugged land. In contrast, the Scottish-born Boswell's journal of the trip focuses on the psychological landscape of his famously gruff and witty companion, and is part of the material he was already collecting for his future Life of Samuel Johnson, the masterly biography that would make his name.

Read together, the two accounts form both a unique classic of travel writing and a revelation of one of the most famous literary friendships.

About the Author

Allan Massie is a novelist, essayist, and critic whose books include The Dark Ages Trilogy and History of Edinburgh.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 528 pages
• Publisher: Everyman's Library (March 26, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375414185
• ISBN-13: 978-0375414183
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 1.2 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,417,115 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars BRINGING WORLDS TOGETHER, September 22, 2011

By 

T. Wasser (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland: with The Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides (Everyman's Library) (Hardcover)

In the Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides, Boswell successfully brought together his two worlds--that of Scotland and that of London. Samuel Johnson is a microcosm of London--with its sophistication, its mental energy, its style, and its prejudices. Boswell was able to bridge, reconcile, and even merge the two worlds by his unwavering reverence for Johnson, and his unshakable belief in the essential goodness of his native Scotland and its inhabitants. Boswell did not try to explain away Johnson's idiosyncrasies (or even his faults) as somehow the result of some misunderstanding on the part of their Scottish interlocutors, and he did not try to disguise the nature of the Scots to Johnson. Boswell also was not embarrassed by the impression Johnson made on the Scots, nor the Scots on Johnson. He simply let everyone be who they were, and assumed the best on everyone's part. Boswell clearly embodies the best of both worlds.

The book is charming in the anecdotes and the reported conversations. I did have much difficulty in distinguishing many of the Scots from one another, as they almost all seemed to be named Mr. M'Leod. However, that probably could not much be helped as the clan name was (is?) so prevalent in the Western islands of Scotland. It was of much interest to see how important the concept of hospitality was in those days before instant communication. The travelers could expect to have meals and lodging provided by their social peers wherever they happened to travel. This book does not provide many descriptions of the geography or scenery of the Hebrides, but is more a memorandum of those with whom Boswell and Johnson dined, and stayed, and conversed. It would be fun while traveling in Scotland in the twenty-first century to have a companion book setting out the route and the stopping places mentioned in the Journal, with references to the particular passages referring to each place, annotated for what has happened to any landmarks that are no longer there, or are substantially modified.