SCOTS Project - www.scottishcorpus.ac.uk Document : 1013 Title : Review of "Voyageurs" (Margaret Elphinstone) Author(s): Liz Niven Copyright holder(s): Liz Niven Text "Voyageurs" by Margaret Elphinstone Pub. Canongate £10.99 pp466 ‘Voyageurs’ is Margaret Elphinstone’s seventh novel. It’s a fine story in weel kent classical mode; the quest o a brither seekin his sister in a faur aff and exotic lan, gey different fae his hame. Mark is a Quaker fae Cumberland whae decides tae gan tae Canada tae fin his sister Rachel. She has merriet a Scotsman, Alan Mackenzie, bit she has suddenly disappearit intae the ‘uncharted wilderness’ in the unsettled regions o North America. The buik opens in the year 1812 an the reader embarks oan a lang journey wi Mark as he tracks across the muckle plains an sails up the rivers wi the canots du maitre. The buik is a wunnerful portrait o Canada oan the verge o the Wars o Independence and in fact we fin oot as the plot unfolds, that Rachel’s husband is gey deeply involvit in the turmoils o the time. The landscape and geography o Canada is intricately depictit and the novelist has researched her setting meticulously then portrayed it graphically.Wi a smatterin o the geography o Cumberlan we see the twa societies an landscapes juxtaposed in a nineteenth centurie time o Press Gangs an perilous sea journeys. Alangside this picter o the fishermen an hunters o the North, trapping bear, dealin in furs, skillfully manouverin thir wey deep intae the territory o the Native Americans an this culture, ither complex themes are explorit. Mark, the central character, fins himself oan a parallel quest; the exploration o his religious beliefs an cultural prejudices. Comin fae a religion similar in monie weys tae the Free Church o Scotland, nae singin, dauncin or general ‘frivolities’, Mark has tae examine his viewpoints. The adornments o hats o fur and beads an ribbons, the storytelling traditions o the Indians (still called this and no yet intae PC jargon), the smoking o pipes an the physical attractions o wimmen, all these delicht bit present him wi a quandary aboot how he views the world aroon him. A must read fir awbodie wantin tae ken mair aboot the gowden lan o maple syrup an fearsome bears. This work is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. The SCOTS Project and the University of Glasgow do not necessarily endorse, support or recommend the views expressed in this document. Information about document and author: Text Text audience Adults (18+): General public: Informed lay people: Audience size: 100+ Text details Method of composition: Wordprocessed Word count: 361 Text medium Magazine (e-zine): Text publication details Published: Publisher: Lallans Magazine Part of larger text: Contained in: Lallans Magazine Text setting Leisure/entertainment: Text type Review: Author Author details Author id: 19 Forenames: Liz Surname: Niven Gender: Female Decade of birth: 1950 Educational attainment: University Age left school: 17 Occupation: Writer Place of birth: Glasgow Region of birth: Glasgow Birthplace CSD dialect area: Gsw Country of birth: Scotland Place of residence: Dumfries Region of residence: E & Mid Dumfries Residence CSD dialect area: Dmf Country of residence: Scotland Father's occupation: Gardener Father's place of birth: Glasgow Father's region of birth: Glasgow Father's birthplace CSD dialect area: Gsw Father's country of birth: Scotland Mother's occupation: Seamstress Mother's place of birth: Glasgow Mother's region of birth: Glasgow Mother's birthplace CSD dialect area: Gsw Mother's country of birth: Scotland Languages: Language: English Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Work / home Language: French Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: With French people / films Language: Scots Speak: Yes Read: Yes Write: Yes Understand: Yes Circumstances: Work / home