One key factor motivating this study, and manifest throughout our discussions, was the clear divergence of ‘cultural’ and social-scientific stories of devolution. For many literary critics, cultural devolution in the 1980s was the forerunner of democratic renewal. In the words of Robert Crawford, ‘devolution and a reassertion of Scottish nationhood were imagined by poets and writers long before being enacted by politicians’ ( Crawford 2000, 307). Political historians and sociologists tend to offer a different set of explanations, centred on electoral politics, economic factors and largely invisible processes of UK institutional reform ( Bogdanor 2001, Mitchell 2012, Devine 2016). With few exceptions, the first school pays as little attention to the 1973 Kilbrandon Report as the latter does to Alasdair Gray’s Lanark (1981). Perhaps appropriately, the first serious attempt to integrate these stories comes not from academic history but Robertson’s fact-soaked novel. And the Land Lay Still is the fourth novel by Scottish novelist and poet James Robertson. Upon publication in 2010 it was widely praised for its breadth of exploration of Scottish society in the latter half of the 20th century.

For The Independent, the “dizzying grand opus” was “eminently readable” and successful in showcasing “an alternative history of the country told by its everyday people instead of its movers and shakers”. [2] James Robertson's new novel is a highly ambitious work spanning 60 years, looking at the world through a Scottish lens – almost literally, for its framing device is a retrospective exhibition of pictures taken by a renowned Caledonian photographer. And the Land Lay Still examines how the postwar aspirations of many Scots for a socialist Britain gave way to a resurgent nationalism, and a greater demand for home rule.And the Land Lay Still is nothing less than the story of a nation. James Robertson's breathtaking novel is a portrait of modern Scotland as seen through the eyes of natives and immigrants, journalists and politicians, drop-outs and spooks, all trying to make their way through a country in the throes of great and rapid change. It is a moving, sweeping story of family, friendship, struggle and hope - epic in every sense.

It’s 4 am, and St. Andrews School is blanketed in mid-December snow when Alex and his three friends are heading home from a party. Suddenly, they discover a girl’s body. Sir Malcolm Eddelstane, after a prolonged argument with Lady Patricia, succumbed to her advice and stood down prior to the 1964 General Election. The Profumo affair, the general disarray of Macmillan’s government and a wider change of mood in the country, she said, signalled not only that the Conservatives were due for a spell in opposition but also that a more modern type of candidate would increasingly be required to counter the appeal of Labour. Sir Malcolm was only fifty-five, but looked much older, and was definitely on the traditional wing of the party. ‘Choose the time and manner of your departure,’ Lady Patricia said. ( Robertson 2010, 426) Robertson’s And the Land Lay Still is the most fully realised attempt to make a cohesive national story of the period and forces of devolution. Having been politically active in the 1980s, notably through the pro-devolution magazine Radical Scotland (1983–91) – thinly disguised in the novel as Root & Branch – Robertson naturally began with events and debates he had experienced first-hand. But on beginning to revisit this period he encountered a historical problem: Despite, after the decisive referendum of 1997, the oft-quoted appeal to the fact that the parliament was the ‘settled will of the Scottish people’, there had been, in fact, no Scottish political consensus on devolution. It happened, if not quite by chance, then through a series of apparently accidental and certainly unpredictable intersections of trains of events running in often contradictory directions. (ibid.)This classic gothic book tells the story of a respected London solicitor, Gabriel John Utterson, who is investigating the strange occurrences between his friend Dr. Henry Jekyll and the evil Edward Hyde. This one will keep you on the edge of your seat, as it’s been doing to readers for generations! marks a celebration across the nation for Scotland’s Year of Stories – but what is a story without its storyteller? (A question on which I, and the generations of dutiful Unreliable Narrators before me, place much emphasis.)

And the Land Lay Still by James Robertson". The Observer. UK. 15 August 2010 . Retrieved 1 July 2011. If for Craig the ‘effective cause’ of devolution’s endorsement in 1997 was cultural revolution, there is little doubt that the proximate cause was electoral. This part of the story is well-trodden ground, and vividly told in Robertson’s novel: Winnie Ewing’s sensational victory for the SNP in the 1967 Hamilton by-election, and growing alarm within the Labour government at the threat posed by the nationalists, rising sharply after the discovery of North Sea Oil in 1970. Both to allay and defer these pressures, Harold Wilson announced his intention to appoint a Royal Commission on the Constitution in late 1968. The evening of discussion and debate will include playwright Peter Arnott, campaigner and activist Amal Azzudin, Lyceum Artistic Director David Greig, National Theatre of Scotland Dramaturg Rosie Kellagher, acclaimed journalist and writer Joyce McMillan, and author James Robertson, with music from award-winning folk artist Mairi Campbell and extracts of Peter Arnott’s stage adaptation in development, from a recent reading commissioned by National Theatre of Scotland. Showing no regret for his actions, however uncharacteristic, Eric is taken in a taxi to a remote hotel in the Scottish highlands; a place that never sees any guests and the snow never stops falling.Douglas Stuart’s Booker Prize-winning debut novel, Shuggie Bain, is a stunning masterpiece of modern Scottish literature.A book that has shaken the landscape of modern Scottish books, and for good reason.

The questions that In Ascension poses, and the incredibly discoveries made, ask the reader to deeply consider that old cliche: we are all made of star stuff. We begin at a Christmas market in Edinburgh, where protagonist Eric is suddenly and inexplicably drawn away from his fiancee by the allure of a woman named Delia. Without any knowledge of the language or his new home whatsoever, Fagan’s experiences in the seven years he lives in this small Japanese fishing village are humorous and offer countless moments of learning.Dizzying . . . subtle and profound . . . And The Land Lay Still reads like an alternative history of Scotland told by its everyday people instead of its movers and shakers . . . eminently readable ( Independent on Sunday) Scottish literature is some of the best in the world and it’s shaped many incredible writers. If you like reading dark, interesting, and thrilling, then you’ll love these Scottish books. For cost savings, you can change your plan at any time online in the “Settings & Account” section. If you’d like to retain your premium access and save 20%, you can opt to pay annually at the end of the trial. When Glaswegian ex-con Sammy awakens in an alley, disoriented and confused, he struggles to remember the events that happened during his two-day drinking binge. After fighting with some soldiers, Sammy finds himself in a jail cell, badly beaten and completely blind. The destructive obsession with the need to emphasise and preserve the ‘Scottishness’ of our writing far beyond what comes naturally and truthfully to writers will persist for as long as Scotland remains in a political limbo; in other words, it will last until Scotland either becomes a full nation-state, or loses its sense of nationhood altogether. ( McMillan 1983, 70)