To Let

John Galsworthy is not on my list of Scottish writers but apparently Scotland has something that could have made a difference in the lives of two characters in his novel To Let.

  Fleur and Jon should have gone to Scotland as they discussed and declared themselves married rather than let their problematic parents ruin their love. 
I didn't know you could go to Scotland and declare yourselves married but the end result might have been happier for the young lovers.

I guess all this is one more example of money (and property) can't buy happiness.

John Galsworthy is an excellent writer and I enjoy reading his works.

Fanny Kemble's Civil Wars

I chose this book because Fanny Kemble belonged to a famous theatrical family that occasionally performed in plays based on the works of Sir Walter Scott.  I did thoroughly enjoy the narratives involving her family and all the challenges they faced in their profession.  I was very surprised at the avenue her life followed after she chose to tour America to help her family resolve a financial crisis.  Marrying a suitor who soon inherited the second largest slave plantation in Georgia unpredictably redirected her life and career.  Her publication of Journal of a Residence on a Georgian Plantation and its effect on her life make this a fascinating read.  This will make our future visit to St. Simons Island more interesting.
The cast of characters in her life made this book even livelier than expected with Henry James thoughts at the very end.
She did play the part of Julia Mannering alongside her father as Guy Mannering in New York City in 1832.  Guy Mannering is one of Scott's more interesting novels.  Fanny Kemble and her father Charles Kemble were noted for their performances of Shakespeare.  The result of Fanny Kemble's American life deprived the Shakespearean and Scott stage of a luminary resulting from the American Civil War and what caused it.

Woodstock or the Cavalier

This novel takes place after the battle of Worcester in which several thousand Scottish soldiers were taken prisoner and sent to New England and the West Indies (not a part of the book but useful if researching genealogy).  I enjoyed the scenes which involved Cromwell and/or King Charles (in disguise of course).  I especially found interesting the revealing section where Cromwell ordered the execution of the Lee family (very bad) and their dog (very, very bad) which fortunately was not carried out.  He totally forgot this and was surprised to hear about this shortly afterwards. 

Alice Lee was another one of Scott's heroines who showed a strength of character which in many cases surpassed the men around her.

I just finished a few books on The Glorious Revolution so I chose this to glean a little from the history a bit earlier short before the Restoration.