The Faded Map

Dive into Northern Britain's Dark Ages in "a book which gives a satisfying and convincing account of this little-known part of Scotland's history" (Undiscovered Scotland). Modern communications have driven motorways and pylons through the countryside, dwarfed us with TV and telephone masts, and drastically altered the way in which we move around, see, and understand Scotland. Recent politics and logistics have established borders and jurisdictions which now seem permanent and impervious. The Faded Map looks beyond these to remember a land that was once quiet and green. Alistair Moffat's "tireless research . . . and commanding knowledge" bring to vivid life the half-forgotten kings and kingdoms of two thousand years ago, from the time of the Romans into the early medieval period (Scottish Field). In this "fascinating" account, Moffat describes the landscape these men and women moved through and writes of a Celtic society which spoke to itself in Old Welsh, where the Sons of Prophesy ruled, and the time when the English kings of Bernicia held sway over vast swathes of what is now Scotland (Alexander McCall Smith, author of Dream Angus). Heroes rode out of the mists to challenge them and then join with them, and the faint echo of the din of ancient battles can be heard as he takes the listener on a journey around a lost Scotland.