My Scotland by Val McDermid was first published in 2019, it has beautiful photographs by Alan McCredie and a foreword by Nicola Sturgeon, and is published by Sphere.
This is a beautifully produced book, with sumptuous photographs which are linked to some of her book locations. To begin with the focus is on Fife, where Val was born and grew up, there are plenty of places to ignite the imagination of a novelist, and it seems she has been salting away ideas since she was a youngster. This first chapter was all very familiar to me as I lived in Kirkcaldy for 26 years, and in the area where she lived, but it was nice to read of her links with the various places.
The East Neuk coastal communities feature, she mentions that most people probably never get through the doors of the old fishermen’s cottages but by coincidence, I also have relatives who lived in George Street, Cellardyke – as her aunt and uncle did. The atmospheric St Andrews nearby couldn’t be missed out.
There’s a chapter about Glasgow, a place she fell in love with as a young journalist, and then fell in love with again after she had moved away, and returned to find it much changed. It’s a city that’s close to my heart – as I was born there.
Obviously Edinburgh features, often there are excerpts from her books, linked to whichever area the chapter is about, and she mentions that even when a book had a mainly English setting she would feel the need to send her characters to a favourite area, somewhere in the Highlands where she had holidayed. At Loch Leven, by Kinross, Val is photographed on a bench where in a book she had placed a murder victim, overlooking the island where Mary, Queen of Scots had been held prisoner and eventually escaped from.
Linlithgow also gets a mention, for the ugliness of the 1970s/80s buildings that have been stuck right next to beautiful 18th century buildings. It’s one of my favourite towns, it’s so historic, but there’s no doubt you have to avert your eyes from the concrete brutality that was given planning permission in the centre of the town.
Obviously the Isle of Skye features too, a favourite place for lots of people, more than the places though this book is a really entertaining read and Val McDermid comes across as having a really warm and friendly personality. It was good to be in her company while I read it.
I borrowed this one from the library.