Calum and Neil are the cone-gatherers – two brothers at work in the forest of a large Scottish estate. But the harmony of their life together s overshadowed by the dark obsessive hatred of Duror, the gamekeeper.
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"This book is a sheer delight. It never flags and every page makes you want to read the next." Sunday Herald; "A witty, ironic, intelligent and charming novel." Punch; "Jenkins laces his themes of greed and selfishness with plenty of lascivious goings-on. For all the humour, this is also a thoughtful novel and a wry look at 'what a mess folk make of their lives'." The Times; "Always a pleasure to read." Herald"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From the Back Cover
A haunting story of violence and love Calum and Neil are the cone-gatherers - two brothers at work in the forest of a large Scottish estate. But the harmony of their life together is shadowed by the obsessive hatred of Duror, the gamekeeper. Set during the Second World War, Robin Jenkins' greatest novel is an immensely powerful examination of good and evil, and mankind's propensity for both. Removed from the destruction and bloodshed of the war, the brothers' oblivious happiness becomes increasingly fragile as darker forces close in around them. Suspenseful, dark and unforgettable, The Cone-Gatherers is a towering work of fiction, a masterpiece of modern Scottish literature. "Let me alert everyone to the best-kept secret in modern British literature. If you love the novel; if you are interested in books that are humane and wise, not slick and cynical; then treat yourself this year to some Robin Jenkins." Andrew Marr "A masterpiece of concision and terrible pathos." Isobel Murray "Like all the great masters, his skill is lightly worn, his sentences singing with what he does not say." The Times "Few novels in our heritage have the bell-like harmonies of this book . . . it has a strange, haunting poetic quality, conjuring from a few props a fable of eternal significance." Iain Crichton Smith Other Canongate Classics: [cover images of Kidnapped, Sunset Song, Lanark] CANON#GATE www.canongate.net £6.99 ISBN 978 1 84195 989 4 Cover design and illustration by James Hutcheson
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By A. C. Walter
Format:Paperback
Originally published in 1955, "The Cone-Gatherers" is set in the middle of World War II on a country estate in Scotland. The estate's wood is to be cut down soon to provide wood for the war effort, and two men have been sent into the wood by the forestry service to collect cones for seed. The men are brothers, and the younger is a simple-minded but very empathetic hunchback with "a face like Lord Byron". Through no fault of their own, the brothers acquire the irrational hatred of the estate's gamekeeper. The wood, itself lying under the shadow of ruin, quickly becomes a dangerous and mysterious setting in which the problem of evil plays out to tragedy.
Jenkin's short novel is the stuff of high literature and evokes associations with Steinbeck's "Of Mice and Men" and the bold themes of Joseph Conrad. Also, the novel exhibits a strong and welcome moral sense not often seen modern fiction today. It addresses the intense issues of character and virtue also seen, for instance, in the works of the mid-century Oxford group "the Inklings", especially the novels Charles Williams (such as "The Descent into Hell" and "All Hallows"), though without the supernatural element. As a story of genuine, concentrated pathos, "The Cone-Gatherers" is the sort of haunting novel that brings the reader to a stark confrontation with the truth of human nature.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By G. McPherson
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
When it was first handed out as our Higher English text I groaned with everyone else. And probably if you read it through you'll think it was boring. But then you go back, read it again and go a little deeper. You see the love between the brothers, the twisted deterioration of Duror, the conflict between the Runcie-Campbell family, both with the outside world and amongst themselves.
Duror is the main character really. The book may be titled after the Cone Gathering brothers but it is Duror and his warped mind and view of reality that make the book. At first it begins as nothing more than an old habit of detesting the imperfect, enhanced by his wifes' morbid obesity. But then it starts to get under his skin. Calum, disfigured and a tad soft in the head, seems to have very little going for him. But he's happy. His life is without luxury, his job poor and generally his life is not brilliant. But he is happy. And this gets to Duror. It slowly eats away at him, gnawing constantly at his sanity, lowering him lower and lower until there is nothing left for him but Calum. He cannot stand the sight of him. But he needs him.
The deterioration that Jenkins shows is both amazing and revolting, even a little scary. Read it once, read it twice and reflect on all the meanings that Jenkins gives you.
Duror is the main character really. The book may be titled after the Cone Gathering brothers but it is Duror and his warped mind and view of reality that make the book. At first it begins as nothing more than an old habit of detesting the imperfect, enhanced by his wifes' morbid obesity. But then it starts to get under his skin. Calum, disfigured and a tad soft in the head, seems to have very little going for him. But he's happy. His life is without luxury, his job poor and generally his life is not brilliant. But he is happy. And this gets to Duror. It slowly eats away at him, gnawing constantly at his sanity, lowering him lower and lower until there is nothing left for him but Calum. He cannot stand the sight of him. But he needs him.
The deterioration that Jenkins shows is both amazing and revolting, even a little scary. Read it once, read it twice and reflect on all the meanings that Jenkins gives you.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Duror, gamekeeper on the Runcie-Campbell estate, is a disruptive force in the lives of everyone with whom he comes in contact. His obsession with, and distste for, all that is flawed or imperfect forces him along a path which means certain destruction for himself and the cone-gatherers, Calum and Neil. The novel also gives a wonderful picture of life on the Runcie-Campbell estate during WW2: the master is at war and his lady is trying, with little experience, to run the estate to the best of her ability. However, her over-reliance on the manipulative Duror contributes to the tragedy. Social class and the division between the classes is explored - witness the hope for the future expressed by those who are inferior. Glossary included for Scottish words/phrases.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By "greenisaac"
Format:Paperback
This is vintage Jenkins, pity 5 is the limit. The recurring theme of good over bad and the fact that they are not poles apart, but inextricably linked. While more symbolic than many of his other works, the decisions we all face, morally and emotionally, are timeless.
Softly spoken with a serrated edge, but if you have eyes to see and a heart that still beats...
Makes you think.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
There is a warmth and decency about this book that compensates for its over-schematic and simplistic political agenda. Cleverly structured. Even the most damaged character, Durer, one feels for. It is not surprising that it is a standard text for Scottish pupils and in my experience one that is almost always appreciated and enjoyed. Not comparable, it seems to me, with "Sunset Song", but a thoroughly worthwhile read nonetheless.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Two brothers are sent to collect cones from a Scottish wood during the war to replenish the wood stocks used during combat at a later date. One of the brothers is a hunch back with a beautiful face and a love of the woodland creatures. They clash with the game keeper after releasing several of his animals from his traps and he begins a vendetta against them. The story is essentially one of class as the brothers are poorly treated by the gentry who own the estate they are working on.
A very thought provoking book with a timeless story. The writing style is sparse in places and beautifully descriptive in others. It's a short book, and ends rather abruptly, leaving the reader with lots to think about as non of the things you were expecting seem to happen. It's a story about love in it's purest sense, revenge at it's coldest and the struggle between classes at that time. It's not a musty old classic to be read under duress, it's a book that is very enjoyable and full of twists.
A very thought provoking book with a timeless story. The writing style is sparse in places and beautifully descriptive in others. It's a short book, and ends rather abruptly, leaving the reader with lots to think about as non of the things you were expecting seem to happen. It's a story about love in it's purest sense, revenge at it's coldest and the struggle between classes at that time. It's not a musty old classic to be read under duress, it's a book that is very enjoyable and full of twists.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Should be required reading in all Scottish schools.
My first foray into Scottish literature having come to live in this country and I really loved this book. An insight into a lost past that is still within living memory. Read more
Published 9 days ago by Newscot
5.0 out of 5 stars
Be prepared for a "think"
It's all an allegory, life turning events like war change us, bring out the best and worst in us, reveals who we are and who we can be. Very thought provoking
Published 1 month ago by Anna Duncan
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very good
A very interesting beginning and end, I found it a bit boring on the middle section though, would reccomend definitely
Published 1 month ago by Angus Hutchison
5.0 out of 5 stars
Of Scoittish Mice and Men
An epic story - one of the author's best - and deserving of a place on any literary ranking. Carefully written, precisely told, can't be put down. Would recommend this to anyone.
Published 2 months ago by DGC
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
A very sensitively written account, highlighting feelings and human failings. Beautifully descriptive in how the landscape and forest is depicted.
Published 2 months ago by MRS G M PATERSON
4.0 out of 5 stars
the cone gatherers.
Unusual story, thought provoking and at times quite upsetting. unfortunately showing human nature at
it's worst, with a most sad ending.
it's worst, with a most sad ending.
Published 3 months ago by mrs ra baldwin-charles
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Cone Gatherers
After reading The Changling by Robin Jenkins, which I loved, I had to read another book by him as soon as possible. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Sheebs
5.0 out of 5 stars
Grabs your deepest emotions
I chose to read this book after seeing the production at Dundee Rep though I usually like to do it the other way round. Read more
Published 6 months ago by AMcSmith
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good but abrupt ending
Enjoyed the book, although it was a bit disturbing at times. Sorry it came to such an abrupt ending would have liked it to have continued to tell what became of the other... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mr Ian Lavery
3.0 out of 5 stars
set book
i have not read this book myself, it was for my my 16 year old son as a setbook for school and the best stories are never appreciated. Read more
Published 8 months ago by shazbagz
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