The Last of the Free

By James Hunter
Reviewed by Sharma Krauskopf

Once and awhile a book comes along which delivers an impact that will not be soon forgotten.  The Last of the Free is such a book.  The author, James Hunter, is the current chairman of the Highlands and Islands Enterprises as well as a known Scottish historian and broadcaster.  Some of his more recent books were Scottish Highlanders:  A People and Their Place; A Dance Called America, The Scottish Highlands, the United States and Canada; The Other Side of Sorrow:  Nature and People in the Scottish Highlands; and Glencoe and the Indians.

The Last of the Free is a millennial history of the highlands and islands of Scotland.  It has all of the facts but what makes it such an impressive book is the moving narrative style in which the story is told.  This book reads like a novel and incidents in Scottish history such as the time of the Vikings, the Clearances, and Culloden are presented in an interesting manner.  I found it difficult to put down the 416 page hardback book.

In the closing chapters Mr. Hunter presents an unusual hypothesis of how the highlands and islands of Scotland could increase their economic base and stop the reduction of population that has plagued so much of the area.  Based on a successful model that enriched the Shetland Islands in both ways before the oil industry arrived.  That model was then applied to the revenues from the oil industry and has brought a remarkable change to life on Shetland.  Since I live in Shetland on a part time I see the benefits of those decisions every time I am there.

If we had a rating above four thistles I would have definitely given this book at least six but since our top is four that is what I gave it.

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