The beauty and mystique of Scotland's remote Western Isles—the Hebrides—beckon to visitors from near and far. One can only imagine the degree of isolation felt there in the early 1970s before modern advances in communication. Such was the time when MacLeod and her family moved from the London area to the Hebridean island of Papavray in pursuit of a simpler lifestyle. In her capacity as district nurse, MacLeod experienced firsthand how geographical separation has affected the lives of the local people. While delighting in the pastoral innocence that is common among her patients and neighbors, MacLeod learns that tragedy, in various degrees, is always close at hand. She describes how a pervasive sense of community and confidence in humanity saw the locals through many adverse circumstances. VERDICT In her first book, MacLeod proves to be an engaging narrative writer who uses humor and vernacular to her advantage. This account should be of interest not only to medical professionals but to all readers who want to escape to a slower way of life.—Chad Clark, Lamar State Coll. Lib., Port Arthur, TX

Exotic travelogue meets medical adventure in this nostalgic autobiography of an English nurse who left London to embrace the remote Scottish Hebridean island of Papavray. In 1969, the now-octogenarian MacLeod became the isles' medical lifeline, falling in love with its quirky populous and vanishing way of life. Her debut recounts an abundance of local charm and lore, including the sloppy celebration of Hogmanay, to sweetly daft Celtic logic, to brushes with local ghosts. But the stories of gut-wrenching medical and human need are the most evocative. In one case, a 13-year-old girl becomes pregnant through incest and then inexplicably risks her baby's life to reunite with the dad; in another, a 36-year-old woman is found chained and filthy in her family home, abused for over a decade for having an out-of-wedlock baby. Elsewhere, a man beaten by a drunken dad and who lost a beloved wife and son in a shooting ends his days sick with cancer, alone, bitter and "resolved never to love anyone or trust another soul as long as he lived." MacLeod is generously non-judgmental, believing that the wild, rugged islands "are full of odd, reclusive families. Usually it's all right. Just different." (Apr.)

Exotic travelogue meets medical adventure in this nostalgic autobiography of an English nurse who left London to embrace the remote Scottish Hebridean island of Papavray. In 1969, the now-octogenarian MacLeod became the isles' medical lifeline, falling in love with its quirky populous and vanishing way of life. Her debut recounts an abundance of local charm and lore, including the sloppy celebration of Hogmanay, to sweetly daft Celtic logic, to brushes with local ghosts. But the stories of gut-wrenching medical and human need are the most evocative. In one case, a 13-year-old girl becomes pregnant through incest and then inexplicably risks her baby's life to reunite with the dad; in another, a 36-year-old woman is found chained and filthy in her family home, abused for over a decade for having an out-of-wedlock baby. Elsewhere, a man beaten by a drunken dad and who lost a beloved wife and son in a shooting ends his days sick with cancer, alone, bitter and "resolved never to love anyone or trust another soul as long as he lived." MacLeod is generously non-judgmental, believing that the wild, rugged islands "are full of odd, reclusive families. Usually it's all right. Just different." (Apr.)