- Paperback: 240 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd; New Ed edition (28 Sep 1989)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0140109331
- ISBN-13: 978-0140109337
- Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 12.8 x 1.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 86,114 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Review
"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.
Review
"Jenkins is quite simply a major contemporary writer." The Herald "Treat yourself this year to some Robin Jenkins... he is simply wonderful." Andrew Marr "Like all the great masters, his skill is lightly worn, his sentences singing with what he does not say... he is the great old man of Scottish letters." The Times"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
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.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
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
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.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Cone Gatherers and humanity
Cone gatherers is an excellent novel that just about covers all aspects of human life from the standpoint of two highly disadvantaged brothers (the cone gatherers) living in a hut... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Stephen John Newton
Unpretentious quality.
There is a warmth and decency about this book that compensates for its over-schematic and simplistic political agenda. Cleverly structured. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Bluecashmere.
Thought Provoking
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. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Michelle Routledge
The Cone-gatherers
This was a used book but was in perfect condition. Thoroughly enjoyed it - unusual story but excellently written. Very touching story. Author not well enough known
Published 9 months ago by Mrs. Agnes Matthew
The Cone Gatherers
The Cone Gatherers was a book i bought for my son who was doing an English essay on this book. He read the book and thought it was excellent and was able to do his essay so much... Read more
Published on 30 Mar 2010 by Debs
The Cone Gatherers by Robin Jenkins
Hi,I also purchased this book for my daughter who is studying it for her higher english exam,she loves it and i would recommend buying "used" as the item was in pristiene... Read more
Published on 5 Oct 2009 by Gwen
Challenging statement of twentieth century morality
This short novel must rightly be regarded as a modern classic. It has been compared to 'Of mice and men', but the focus is not just on the cone gatherers, but also the complex... Read more
Published on 8 Jun 2009 by Peter Buckley
a masterclass in storytelling.
World War II, and in a Highland Estate, two brothers arrive to collect seed from trees about to be felled for the war effort. Read more
Published on 14 May 2008 by doublegone
BEAUTIFUL
This novel is a beautiful piece of literature which most mature readers will understand and enjoy.
The story is one of deepest emotions, both positive and negative, and the... Read more
The story is one of deepest emotions, both positive and negative, and the... Read more
Published on 1 Oct 2005 by E.V.M
Masterful character study
Robin Jenkins has the uncanny ability to get inside the psyche of his characters. This is a dark but highly skilful evocation of culture clash with parallels to Steinbeck's Of Mice... Read more
Published on 16 Mar 2004 by Peter Evans
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