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A fascinating insight into the past, and present, of the most southerly Hebridean isle. --Scottish Field
Her words will strike a chord in the heart of many and her book is a must for island-baggers. --Press and Journal
A personal account of a writer's relationship with a unique landscape. --Scots magazine
Her words will strike a chord in the heart of many and her book is a must for island-baggers. --Press and Journal
A personal account of a writer's relationship with a unique landscape. --Scots magazine
Product Description
The island of Gigha lies just off Tayinloan on the Kintyre peninsula and is the most southerly of the true Hebridean islands. The name Gigha is thought to have come from the Norse, and may mean 'God's Island', 'The Good Isle' or, more probably and prosaically, 'The Place of the Good Harbour'. Gigha has an astonishing twenty-five miles of coastline and a great number of small, sheltered harbours. This is the story of the people of Gigha, based on an examination of changing settlement patterns on the island from prehistoric times to the present day. Analysing the written and recorded history in conjunction with the oral and popular traditions of the island, Catherine Czerkawska provides an in-depth account of clan ownership of the island and changing allegiances up to the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Her study carries through to the present day, examining the relationship between a contemporary community which is struggling to become viable once again, and its own rich past. 'The Story of Gigha' is the story of this part of Scotland, in miniature, and God's Islanders' exploration of the history of its people is also an examination of much wider issues, trends and challenges affecting the whole area.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Catherine Czerkawska has done a great job of writing a fascinating book on the people of Gigha. I especially enjoyed Willie McSporrans conversations about his childhood on Gigha. Also I found it interesting to read the peom from "The book of the Dean of Lismore" that is supposedly about Lachlan Galbraith of Leim Farm. The book gives a good insight into what life must have been like for the islanders in the past.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Books about the Hebrides can be as dry as dust. Their authors tend to carry on about tangled genealogies, and spend chapters on opaque clan history. Catherine Czerkowska loves Gigha and it shows: the book reflects an easy familiarity with the land and the people who live there. She is, moreover, a fine writer.
One of the nice things about Gigha (aside from its excellent climate and ravishing flowers), is a rich history, preserved in cairns and standing stones and very ancient tombstones. The Epidii, the Celts, the MacNeills, the Galbraiths and the Grahams and the MacSporrans... all make appearances in Czerkawska's story.
"God's Islanders" describes how and why Gigha's people bought their island in 2002. They had suffered from a series of (often) lackadaisical landowners, and therefore a feudal way of life, for much too long. The Islanders did not own their houses: the Landowner did. So, if the Landowner went into bankruptcy, an islander's home would also be seized by the creditors! It is no wonder that Gigha's population had almost disappeared by the late 1990s. Since 2002, however, the Island has gained energy and population, and a new lease on life that will - hopefully - take it into the future.
One of the nice things about Gigha (aside from its excellent climate and ravishing flowers), is a rich history, preserved in cairns and standing stones and very ancient tombstones. The Epidii, the Celts, the MacNeills, the Galbraiths and the Grahams and the MacSporrans... all make appearances in Czerkawska's story.
"God's Islanders" describes how and why Gigha's people bought their island in 2002. They had suffered from a series of (often) lackadaisical landowners, and therefore a feudal way of life, for much too long. The Islanders did not own their houses: the Landowner did. So, if the Landowner went into bankruptcy, an islander's home would also be seized by the creditors! It is no wonder that Gigha's population had almost disappeared by the late 1990s. Since 2002, however, the Island has gained energy and population, and a new lease on life that will - hopefully - take it into the future.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Having been bored to tears by another book about the Scottish islands I was delighted that "God's Islanders" held my attention throughout and, together with the author's novel "The Curiosity Cabinet", which was set on an island based on Gigha, has really made me want to visit. Catherine Czerkawska has made what could have been dead boring into a really excellent read. It is difficult not to be caught up by her enthusiasm for the island.
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