Customer Reviews

Off in a Boat: Hebridean Voyage

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Don't let the date of the book fool you. Even if this voyage took place many decades ago, it still is a solid piece of historical writing. It is a journal of a place and a diary of a culture, from a single perspective and through a narrow window, but the richness of detail and the depth of topic would not have it any other way. It is an excellent travel guide, of sorts - no, it won't tell you the latest places to go, and much of the information may be out of date with respect to specific names of people and shops, but some of it won't be out of date in that respect either. What makes it a great travel guide is that you read it for the perspective of culture, distance, clime, and place. You absorb those things, and you will have gotten something that the typical "40 things to see and do" or "Top 10 spots" or "The short-attention span guide" won't give you. You need to still buy your OS Landranger map and get your "40 walks" guide. No doubt. Get the most recent one of those, and keep those updated. But this book - you won't need to update it. You will want to cherish it. But read it for the right reason. To absorb the culture, not as a tourist spot book. But I tell you what - you'll be a better tourist for it. And you'll savor the trip in layers of experience the typical travel guide just can't give. Its a keeper.