SCOTLAND HISTORY

The Highlands and Islands of Scotland by Angus MacDonald, Patricia MacDonald

Synopsis
Ice-carved Cairngorms, Ben Nevis with the sheer cliffs of its hidden north face, and magical Loch Lomond: the Scottish highlands and islands showcase some of Europe's most breathtaking scenery. From the landscape to the people, from the dramatic past to the ancient stones and fabled castles, here is a voyage of visual splendor through an extraordinary country.

The Mother Town: Civic Ritual, Symbol, and Experience in the Borders of Scotland by Gwen Kennedy Neville

Synopsis
Horses with riders trailed by foot processionals, silver bands and pipe bands, furling medieval banners, lavish costumes, and singers and actors--the "Common Riding" is an elaborate, little-studied ritual phenomenon of the border towns of Scotland. In this vividly written and insightful analysis, Gwen Kennedy Neville uses this civic ceremony as a window for glimpsing the process of ritual, symbol, and experience in the development of the concept of "the town" in Western culture. Based on extensive fieldwork in the town of Selkirk, The Mother Town looks at the Common Riding in detail, uncovering pre-Reformation symbolism and pageantry--often medieval and Catholic--in a region that has been Protestant for over four hundred years. Neville shows how the ceremony is a model of the way civic ritual serves to construct a system of towns which gives rise to the modern world. Further, she contends that these civic rituals create a ceremonial setting in which the contradictions between tradition and modernity can be temporarily resolved and where past and present live side by side. Neville offers a provocative and illuminating study of how the ritual of Common Riding makes a dramatic statement about local strife, communal independence, and Protestantism in the towns of the Scottish Borders.

Islay, Jura and Colonsay: A Historical Guide by David H. Caldwell

Synopsis
The story of Islay, Jura, and Colonsay is one of the most fascinating among all the Hebrides. They have had substantial human occupation since earliest times and man has left many relics across the islands. With over eighty line illustrations and extensive maps and plans, the book brings to life these beautiful and fascinating islands.