Donald S Murray’s new book ‘The Loch of the Bees’ out next week owes much of its inspiration to a conversation with Chris Murray, a former Royal Navy diver who now lives in the Isle of Lewis.
Clearly, someone who has retained his skills over the years, Chris has explored many of the lochs within the island he now calls his home, including Loch Langabhat and Loch Airnish.
In these numerous dives, he has discovered a range of items, including a set of extraordinarily well-preserved Early/Middle Neolithic pots on the bed of various lochs. Many have lain hidden within its waters for endless centuries.
It is not only that thought which emerged from their discussion. Chris also spoke about the crannogs (artificial islands) that can be seen in various lochs throughout the Highlands and Islands, and indeed Ireland and elsewhere.
Many of these custom-built islands, created by humans, date back to 3640 to 3360 BC. They have also been employed by people many times over the centuries, for both sanctity and self-protection, shelter from the various conflicts and other issues that have occurred over the centuries.
While a conversation with Chris was one of the main sources of inspiration, Donald was also fascinated in different ways by many of the lochs seen throughout his lifetime. They range from Barra to Uist north and south, villages like Shader and Bragar, locations too like Orkney and Shetland.
However, the chief source of inspiration is Loch Dibadale, which lies close to his childhood village of South Dell. That particular setting has been transformed by imagination. Its name, altered to ‘Loch nan Seillean’ or Loch of the Bees, has been both stretched and deepened within the pages of the book. It also now possesses a small crannog or island within its length. An ‘airigh’ or shieling also stands close to its borders.
These small buildings have often been the source of imagination. They feature in many songs and stories, especially in the Gaelic language, but also beyond that tongue. A number of tales and musical pieces are referred to within the book, including songs by Runrig, Capercaillie, Julie Fowlis, Christine Primrose and many others.
Explains Donald: “However, the book has a wider and deeper sweep than this. It begins with stories from the eighth century and, throughout its various chapters, swirls towards certain incidents that occurred in more recent decades.
“It encompasses historic battles, the Highland Clearances, the attempt by schools to eradicate the Gaelic language, the treatment of individual men and women, even COVID and plague. It draws upon much of the folklore and other conversations I overheard as a child, with an occasional story told either in the form of song or poetry.”
A recurring theme throughout its pages is the connections of the Hebrideans, often going unbroken for centuries. The tales in The Loch of the Bees are linked by the legacy of families with those living even in the 21st century, possessing strong connections with those who have gone before.
Says Donald: “In short, while ‘The Loch of the Bees’ might appear to be a short story collection at first glance, it also ties together to form a distinctive and unusual novel, one that reveals how passing generations are – in some ways – tied to each other.”
The book launch of the new novel is, in its own way, connected to a host of other interrelated events. Most notably, the latest ‘Metagama; An Atlantic Odyssey’ tour, which kicks off in Aberfeldy on Tuesday, March 17 and continues through until the final date in Stirling on Thursday, March 26.
The tour also includes the official book launch in Inverness on Tuesday, March 24.
The tour, inspired by Donald’s hit immigration novel The Salt and The Flame, will feature some wonderfully talented individuals. They include Juliette Lemoine, Charlie McKerron, Willie Campbell, John Aitken, Doug Robertson, John Joe Macneil, Liza Mulholland and Dolina Maclennan. The ensemble will also include visits to various schools and other destinations throughout the north of Scotland during the tour.
The Loch of the Bees by Donald S Murray is published by Saraband Books (ISBN 9781916812635), priced at £10.99. Buy the book.
See details of the Metagama tour and the Inverness book launch.
