Well half Scottish. My mother and her whole family are Scottish and proud. My Grandfather was in the Scots Guard, and my Mum travelled round the world with her parents living in military bases in Germany, Ireland, Malaysia and Hong Kong to name a few, until they were station in Surrey in England where my Mum met my Dad and they got married.
Despite the fact my mothers family lived all over the world they kept their Scottish tradition close to their hearts. My Grandfather wore a Kilt with kilt hose (traditional socks),a fur Sporren (pouch worn on the front) and dirk (a knife tucked into the sock) to church every Sunday and worked in a Whiskey distillery after the army. He would take us up the hills on sunny days and from the top we could look down on fields of heather surround by wild flowers and thistles and if you were lucky you might even come across a Muckle Coo, and when we got home my Gran would make mice and tatties and you might even get a Tunnocks Tea Cake.
Top of Dumyat Hill, which my Granddad would often take us up
Tunnock Tea Cakes at the Commonwealth Opening ceremony, a very proud moment for all Scots I am sure.
Although I was raised in England many of my fondest memoires as a child are from my summer Holidays up in Scotland getting to experience that side of my heritage, and Scotland as come to feel more like a home to me then London or England especially since my mother moved up their permanently in 2009.
Now since the Commonwealth games had their opening ceremony this week, and since they are being held in Glasgow, it showcased all the wonderful things Scotland has to offer it got me thinking about what remind me of Scotland and in particular which books remind me of Scotland, as if find one of the best ways to combat missing somewhere is to travel there via the pages of a book. Since we use to drive up to Scotland from our home in Surrey I had a good seven hour car trip in which to get some reading done. So here's my list of top 5 book that remind me of Scotland.
1. Trashy Magazines.
Ok this strictly isn't a book, but whenever I am travelling up to Scotland to see my family I always buy at least two trashy 60p magazines, the sort that have sensational stories on the front such as "My Daughter had Half Her Head Eaten By Wolves But Now She's a World Glass Gymnast" or " My Husband Left Me On My Wedding Day To Run Off With My Maid of Honour Who Was My Identical Twin!" The reason I by them is not to broaden my mind or to stimulate thoughtful conversation with the people around me, but because to coach from London to Stirling is ten hours long and they are easy reading ! Plus at 60p they are a bargain.
2. Give Yourself Goosebumps by R.L Stien
My brother was an avid Goosebumps reader as a kid, and being his little sister I always wanted to do everything he did as I thought he was really cool ( though I would never admit that to him!). One problem though ... I was a total wimp ! I remember my brother saying the Goosebumps book It Came From Beneath The Sink! scared him so much he found it hard to keep reading. So I didn't stand a chance! But the give yourself Goosebumps books gave me some control, they are the sort of book that give you options to turn to certain pages and you decide how the story will go, so if I wasn't feeling brave I always took the safest route! My favourite one was Escape from Carnival of Horrors
( does anyone remember the board game they brought out based on the book? )
3. The Water Horse by Dick King-Smith
I found this book in my classroom Library when I was in Year 5 a school, I liked the cover and decided to give it a read not realising it was set in Scotland (despite the massive Loch Ness Monster on the cover!) and I think it was the first time I remember having a longing to go to Scotland and this was one way to feel like I was there. The thing about Scotland is that is has this magic about it, it is so beautiful and breath taking that the idea of magic and monster existing there doesn't seem too crazy ! It is about a girl who discovers an egg on a beach near her home in Scotland, and it hatches into a Loch Ness Monster. Which I just thought was the most magical and exciting thing in the whole wide world, and from that day forward I may have kept my eyes peeling for monster eggs on our trips up the hills, just in case.
4. The Harry Potter series by J.K Rowling.
A bit of an obvious choice! Rowling is Scottish, she wrote the books while living in Edinburgh and Hogwarts is in Scotland. But the reason it reminds me of Scotland has a story behind it. When I was about 10 I went up to Scotland by myself, I went on a plane all alone and spent two weeks with my Grandparents and had their undivided attention. On my first night there my Aunt brought over the books 1-4 ( basically all the book that were currently out) as a gift, I had never read them, never really showed an interest in them, but as I had so much time to spare while I was there I started to read them and by the time I flew home two weeks later I was half way through the third book, which was pretty good going for a 10 year old. The Potter series really spark my love for reading, and what set my on the path that lead to my doing an English Degree and making this blog !
5. Greyfriars Bobby
If you have so much as a single drop of Scottish Blood in you you probably know this story well. It is a story about the most loyal dog every to grace Scotland. Bobby was a Terrier that belonged to John Grey a police night watchmen in Edinburgh and Bobby was his faithful dog, one day John Gray dies and is buried in a graveyard in Greyfriars Kirk and the Loyal Terrier sat and guarded his friends grave for 14 years capturing the hearts of many until he died. The year after Bobby's death a statue was erected to commemorate the little dog, I think this represents Scotland well its not just the big things that the Scottish celebrate, they love ALL things Scottish whether that be their rich culture and history or the small things such as a teacake or Irn Bru. Scottish people are very passionate and love their country fiercely, whereas in England people would sooner put the country down and mock it. Being in a country that is so proud and full of passion is just amazing and I feel this story embodies that mentality. It is such a touching little story and I think the first book I ever read which didn't have a traditional happy ending which as a child was quite jarring. But an important lesson to learn that although you might not get the happy ending you expected following you heart is the most important thing.
Rella Xx
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