Gilly the Ghillie


Book Description

Tall tales of coastal adventures, colourful locals, privileged tourists, and elusive fish abound in this hilariously offbeat sequel to The Codfish Dream. "David Giblin is a marvellous storyteller."—Ian Ferguson, author of The Survival Guide to British Columbia David Giblin's stint as a seasonal salmon fishing guide on Stuart Island provides a seemingly endless supply of hilarious and bizarre stories that reveal as much about the quirkiness of small coastal communities as they do about human nature itself. Now, in his second book of short interconnected stories set in the 1980s, Giblin introduces us to Gilly, the first female fishing guide to grace the tiny island, whose mere presence is enough to shake the foundations of the very insular, all-male guiding community. With the return of delightfully eccentric characters including VOP, Troutbreath, Lucky Peterson, and Wet Lenny, this rollicking maritime adventure will appeal to anyone who ever gutted a fish and lived to tell the tale.




John Brown


Book Description

A century after Queen Victoria's death, debate still rages surrounding her relationship with her gillie, John Brown. Were they ever married? What was the extraordinary hold he had over her? This biography aims to shed new light on these questions and to discover the truth behind Brown's hold on his royal employer. Following the death of Prince Albert in 1861, the Queen found solace in the companionship of John Brown, who had commenced his royal employment as a stable hand. He became "The Queen's Highland Servant" in 1865 and rose to be the most influential member of the Scottish Royal Household. While the Queen could be brusque and petulant with her servants, family and ministers, she submitted to Brown's fussy organization of her domestic life, his bullying and familiarity without a murmur. Despite warnings of his unpopularity with her subjects by one Prime Minister, the Queen was adamant that Brown would not be sacked. The Queen's confidence was rewarded when Brown saved her from an assassination attempt, after which he was vaunted as a public hero. The author reveals the names of republicans and disaffected courtiers who related gossip about Queen Victoria and John Brown and their purported marriage and child, and identifies those who plotted to have Brown dismissed. Based on research in public, private and royal archives, as well as diaries and memoirs of those who knew Brown and interviews with his surviving relatives, this text analyzes the relationship between Queen Victoria and Brown.







The Language of Fly-Fishing


Book Description

First Published in 2000. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.










Buy the Best of Ireland


Book Description

This guide to shopping in Ireland is organized by product--pottrty and china, crystal, jewelry, linens, food and drink,ect. Other more general information covers Value Added Tax, currency, terminology and slang.




Home on the Strange


Book Description

A funny, heart-warming ode to motherhood written by an award-winning journalist and humour columnist. For Susan Lundy, motherhood began when she moved into her boyfriend's Salt Spring Island home at the age of twenty-one. Her new living arrangement came with furniture, a pair of kids, and a biting gerbil named Quasimodo. Susan was a career-oriented budding journalist, eager to write her way to fame and fortune. Becoming a mom was not part of her plan—at least not yet. But after surveying her new domicile with quiet horror at first, she grew into her new role, discarding many of the lessons her mother had given her about keeping house and inventing her own rules as she went along. By the time her two daughters were born, Susan had already fallen deeply in love with motherhood. Moreover, she chronicled her family's topsy-turvy Gulf Island life in a collection of popular newspaper and magazine columns. Home on the Strange follows Susan's journey from pregnancy to parenthood, career milestones to birds-and-bees talks, separation to new love at mid-life, and cross-country road trips to empty nesting during a global pandemic. Charming, poignant, and frequently hilarious, this is the perfect book for mothers or moms-to-be at any stage of their journey.