Home / Books by Region / Western Isles/Hebrides / From the Alleghenies to the Hebrides From the Alleghenies to the Hebrides by Margaret Fay Shaw From the Alleghenies to the Hebrides SKU: 9781839831041 Categories: 2026 Birlinn Spring Titles, Biography/Autobiography, Birlinn/Polygon, Western Isles/Hebrides £8.99 Margaret Fay Shaw’s life spans a century of change. Orphaned at 11 she left home and school in Pennsylvania and Philadelphia aged 16, crossing to Scotland to spend a year at school near Glasgow. It was there that her love for Scotland was born. After studying music in New York and Paris, she returned to live for six years with two sisters in South Uist. Life on the island had changed little from previous centuries, and material comforts were few. But the island was rich in music and tradition, and Margaret Fay Shaw’s collection of Gaelic lore and song are amongst the most important made this century, whilst her photography evocatively captures the aura of a vanished world. Her autobiography is the remarkable testament of a remarkable woman as well as a powerful plea in defence of a Gaelic culture and world under threat. It is written with a sharpness of observation, directness of humour and zest for life which make it a marvellous record of the twentieth century. Margaret Fay Shaw’s life spans a century of change. Leaving home and school in Pennsylvania and Philadelphia aged 16, she crossed to Scotland to spend a year at school near Glasgow. It was there that her love for Scotland was born. After studying music in New York and Paris, she returned to live for six years with two sisters in South Uist. Life on the island had changed little from previous centuries, and material comforts were few. But the island was rich in music and tradition, and Margaret Fay Shaw’s collection of Gaelic lore and song are amongst the most important made this century, whilst her photography evocatively captures the aura of a vanished world. ISBN: 9781839831041 Publication date: 16/04/2026 Format: Paperback Extent: 192 Categories: 2026 Birlinn Spring Titles , Biography/Autobiography , Birlinn/Polygon , Western Isles/Hebrides You may also like… The Cadence of a Song: The Life of Margaret Fay Shaw £25.00 Not Yet Published - Order will recordGravity of Feathers £14.99 A Companion to the Small Isles - Eigg, Muck, Canna and Rum £12.99
