Customer Reviews

The Scottish Islands: The Bestselling Guide to Every Scottish Island

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Bought this as a Christmas present for my husband. He loves it, very informative and very beautifully illustrated. We both want to head to the islands again soon.

Gives a real flavour of the islands and sufficiently detailed information to encourage you to visit as many as you can.

This book was suggested to me by a friend.

It is truly magnificent and should be read by all planning to go soon and those who have no intention of going at all. Once the latter read this book they will certainly pack their bags and go!

Orkney is fabulous I would move there tomorrow but I would only stay during BST. It is so dark there in the winter I could not cope as a sufferer of S.A.D.

The Isle of Jura is another wonderful Island. Maximum of 6200 inhabitents and 6000 of those are deer. This is where Orwell wrote his book "1984". Jura could not be less like Orwells novel. It is quiet, it is peacful it is far from the maddening crowd. To reach it you have to change ferries at Islay.

Iona is another gem for peace and quiet. Visitors must leave their cars on Mull and cross by ferry which takes 5 minutes. Mull is reached by ferry from Oban and its "capital" is Tobermory, whose High Street is on the shore.

This book tells you so much about the Highlands and Islands you will not be able to stay away!

Without doubt a superlative book, delightfully illustrated and covering many facets of each island described. A mine of information and a joy to read.

As a one-time occasional sailor and island-hopper I dreamt of a book like this decades ago. The reality is that its weight and its quality would probably mean it wouldn't sail with us, but it's unlikely to get put away in a bookcase for long.
A brilliant blend of history, sailing directions and geography make it a must have, and, though initially dubious about the lack of photographs, I now find the author's illustrations a charming alternative. Organised in regions in a logical sequence from Solway round to Forth, it just calls for you to make the journeys and see for yourself. My return trips are already planned!

This is a very comprehensive guide to the islands but could have done with some more photos to make it a bit more user friendly and interesting. Cant fault the detail though. It is quite a heavy book to take island hopping if you are not using a car.

Excellent value. Very detailed, very readable and just makes you want to travel up to Scotland immediately and visit them all!

Highly recommend this book.

I bought this as a present for a family member with sailing interests, also interested in the Islands of Scotland, He had the original version and this is the updated one, I had a preview before I gave it over and must say that I found it full of information with some nice pictures etc, I know he has enjoyed it immensely, A good book to buy for all who enjoy learning about the edges of Scotland and bits of history etc..Good value...and a good dipping into book for five minutes or much longer.

I spend a lot of time sailing the islands that Hamish Haswell-Smith describes and as such it is great to sit down and refresh my memory with this book. The illustratations are first rate and very clear and give a good understanding of Island layout and geography. Even if I have not been to the Island in question I still enjoy looking at it and reading the description - Planning a visit at some point.

However even if you have never been to these islands (You should, the Isles of Scotland are some of the most fantastic on the planet and I can heartily recommend them!) then this is a great book and will provide much coffee table reading with each island having their own unique charactor and history. As one other review mentiond however beware, when you buy this book you will want to buy more to give as presents to people so could be a costly exercise!

What a fantastic book! Really one to dream away by on long, cold winter nights. Superb writing and the illustrations are amazing. Just one minor note: I would have liked some information on what all the signs on the maps meant. For instance, does anybody know what the little crosses mean? But that's just nitpickin', innit? All in all this is a truly impressive book. Much more than just a guide...