The Small Isles: Canna, Rum, Eigg and Muck [Paperback]

Denis Rixson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 2001

For many a spectacular skyline and magnificent scenery is their first awareness of the islands off Arisaig and Mallaig, yet their history is as central as their geographic situation to the story of the Hebrides. This is the first book ever to be written on the collective history of the little group of islands between Ardnamurchan and Skye.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Denis Rixson is a schoolteacher, local historian and bookshop proprietor in Mallaig. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Birlinn Ltd; 1St Edition edition (September 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1841581542
• ISBN-13: 978-1841581545
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,738,489 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A lot of facts!, November 3, 2007

By 

K. J. Broekema (Roosendaal Netherlands) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Small Isles: Canna, Rum, Eigg and Muck (Paperback)

I visited Canna twice in 2003 during a one week sailing trip on a classical ship with the name Edda Frandsen. We also sailed close to Rum and Eigg and visited several of the outer islands. I have dear memories of the loneliness of the environment and I have been reading about its history ever since.

This book starts with prehistory and ends with the clearances and emigration. Most chapters start with a pretty short text followed by lengthy quotations from contemporary writers, a graph or a list of numbers. It is not an easy introduction into the history of the isles This is a book for people who already know the history of Scotland in general terms and are interested in as many bare facts as possible. I liked the way in which the Vikings assessed the value of farmland: "Ouncelands" and "Pennylands". I also liked the population statistics showing how densely populated these islands once were, how hard the life at subsistence level really was and how inevitable the decline. I enjoyed the book very much.