“Readers will be carried away on successive waves of pleasure [and] irresistible holistic beauty” in this journey to uncover myths of Selchies (Seamus Heaney, from the introduction). When author David Thomson travelled across the coasts of Scotland and Ireland to seek out the legend of the selchies—mythological creatures who transform from seals into humans—a magical world emerged before him. Thomson was enchanted by tales of men rescued by seals in stormy seas, and others who took seal-women for their wives and had their children suckled by seal-mothers. The People of the Sea is Thomson’s poetic record of his journey into this world, and his encounters with people whose connection to the sea and its fertile lore runs deep. Winner of the McVitie Prize for his memoir Nairn in Darkness and Light, David Thomson offers “a splendid resurrection of a life that has almost vanished.” Timeless and haunting, The People of the Sea retains its spellbinding charm and brings to life the enchanting stories of these mysterious creatures of Celtic folklore (Daily Telegraph, UK).“I know of few books which so ably open a window on the Gaelic scene today or which so faithfully reflect the mind, vigour and courtesy of its people…Pounds on the imagination like surf on a reef”—Observer, UK
Introduced by Seamus Heaney.
David Thomson?s travels in the Gaelic world of the Hebrides and the west coast of Ireland brought him into contact with a people whose association with the sea and its fertile lore runs deep. They told of men rescued by seals in stormy seas, of babies suckled by seal-mothers, and of men who took seal-women for wives ? stories centuries old, handed down to them by their forefathers.
These mysterious and fascinating legends retain their spell-binding enchantment through the luminous quality of David Thomson?s prose. From an early age, he was fascinated by the mysterious interaction between man and the sea. In the Selkie legends he found the perfect expression of a Celtic world where truth and fiction intertwine, and his book is a window onto that vanished world.
?The People of the Sea survives not as a period piece but as a poetic achievement . . . readers will be carried away on successive waves of pleasure . . . these stories have an irresistible holistic beauty.? Seamus Heaney
?A splendid resurrection of a life that has almost vanished.? Daily Telegraph
?I know of few books which so ably open a window on the Gaelic scene today or which so faithfully reflect the mind, vigour and courtesy of its people . . . Pounds on the imagination like surf on a reef.? Observer
