Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month for May 2018
Shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards
Anyone who wants to understand something of the elemental nature of our history should try to walk through it,should listen for the natural sounds our ancestor's heard,smell the hedgerow honeysuckle... and feel the earth that was once grained into their hands.
In The Hidden Ways,Alistair Moffat traverses the lost paths of Scotland. Down Roman roads tramped by armies,warpaths and pilgrim routes,drove roads and rail roads,turnpikes and sea roads,he traces the arteries through which our nation's lifeblood has flowed in a bid to understand how our history has left its mark upon our landscape.
Combining the lyricism of Robert Macfarlane's The Old Ways with a passionate engagement with his country's history,Alistair Moffat takes readers on a journey to the heart of Scotland's living past.
Moffat's travels along the hidden ways reveal not only the searing beauty and magic of the Scottish landscape,but open up a different sort of history,a new way of understanding our past by walking in the footsteps of our ancestors.
In retracing the forgotten paths,he charts a powerful,surprising and moving history of Scotland through the unremembered lives of those who have moved through it.
Publisher: Canongate BooksISBN: 9781786891037Number of pages: 336Weight: 226 gDimensions: 198 x 129 x 20 mmEdition: Main
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Our ancestors walked everywhere,unless they lived by a river or loch and travelled by boat,or were rich enough to keep a horse or pony. So Moffat will walk. He will walk over much of Scotland,following,sometimes struggling to follow,old roads that are now sometimes hard to find. This book is the story of a dozen such walks. This is a splendidly rich book - a treasure-house of information,memories and speculation'- Allan Massie,The Scotsman
'This fascinating and compelling narrative will leave you spellbound and in no time you'll be looking for your hiking boots and waterproofs... An absorbing and thought-provoking addition to the literature of Scotland's byways.'- Countryfile
'Retracing and walking Scotland's lost paths makes Alistair Moffat reflect upon the country's history in a different sort of way...From Perthshire to Ballachulish,Moffat explores the land in a personal,inquisitive way and searches for evidence of the people who helped shape it'- Outdoor Photography
'A treasure trove of stories.'- The Great Outdoors
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