ISBN: 978184502153-5

Publisher: Black and White Publishing

From the heart of Scotland comes this charming little book written by Angus Whitson and wittily illustrated by Graham Lang.  

Each season and month of the year is described by Angus. The winter of 2004-2005 is portrayed by Angus as similar to an Autumn-like morning with the frost of night still glazing the grass. He also tells how he found a sweet little kitten lying by the roadside - or more how Macbeth did (one of his two dogs). Feeling sorry for this “poor beastie” he takes the kitten under his wing and goes to the vet who helps this lovely kitten back to health. A lovely end to this story follows.  A chapter all animal lovers will adore.

The author captures spring- time very clearly in the next section - “the days are lengthening and it gets easier to contemplate bounding out of bed and making the best use of the whole of the day”. He tells us how daffodils are flowering in the woodlands and how the grave of Sheba (his beloved dog who died) is flowering with daffodils which he planted the previous year. He says they are “a fitting memory to an old friend”. How splendid. I have to say, this is one author who readers will love. 

Summer time of 2005 is vividly told inside this collection of tales from the highlands. The wording that Angus uses is amazing. For instance this paragraph sounds quite lovely: “The sea has all the time in the world - the tide ebbs and the tide flows in its own ineluctable cycle.”

You can see Angus is very much a man of nature - he says that there are times when he needs to be near the sea. When one of these moments arrives, he bundles his dogs into the car and drives down to Kinnaber to walk beside the river and follow it to River North Esk.  

I can also clearly see the passion this man has for his dogs. He never talks about them just as a “dog” but as almost a person. “He and I sat, most companionably, on the sand dunes looking out over Montrose Bay and St Cyrus Bay, watching the ebbing tide drift gently away from the shore, leaving a damp strand of sand and pebbles.”

In the Autumn - the start of September - Angus has included a lovely, slightly humorous, poem entitled “My Address to my Solicitor” which was penned for his father by Lewis Thomson. I could read most of this but some of the words are in Scottish dialect so not everything was clear. It does also reflect a little of Scottish social history so I did find it quite interesting, regardless. Read this poem for yourself.

As I came towards the end of this book, I felt a little sad. It is like parting with an old friend who has guided you through the changing seasons. It really is such a lovely gem to own, especially if you have a fond spot for Scotland.  

The illustrations inside are wonderful, funny and well depict life. There are also included recipes too so you can have your very own taste of Scotland. Wonderful!