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Tales of the West
Annals of the Parish
Contains an entire chapter on a bookshop which is set up in the weaving village of Cayenneville in the year 1790. With a number of tipped in color plates. xii , 283, 3 pages. cloth.. 8vo..
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1821
About the author
John Galt
510 books17 followersJohn Galt was a Scottish novelist, entrepreneur, and political and social commentator. He was the first novelist to deal with issues of the Industrial Revolution and he has been called the first political novelist in the English language.
In 1820 Galt began to write for Blackwoods Magazine which published Annals of the Parish and The Ayrshire Legatees in 1821, The Provost and Sir Andrew Wylie in 1822, and The Entail in 1823. His novel Ringan Gilhaize (1823) offers a very different perspective on Scotland's Covenanting period to Walter Scott's The Tale of Old Mortality (1816).
Galt was instrumental in establishing the Canada Company, which was granted a charter in 1826 and bought almost 2.5 million acres of land from the British Government with a view to selling it on in individual plots to settlers. He founded the cities of Guelph and Goderich in Ontario. His novels Lawrie Tod (1830) and Bogle Corbet (1831) are concerned with the settlement of North America.
In 1820 Galt began to write for Blackwoods Magazine which published Annals of the Parish and The Ayrshire Legatees in 1821, The Provost and Sir Andrew Wylie in 1822, and The Entail in 1823. His novel Ringan Gilhaize (1823) offers a very different perspective on Scotland's Covenanting period to Walter Scott's The Tale of Old Mortality (1816).
Galt was instrumental in establishing the Canada Company, which was granted a charter in 1826 and bought almost 2.5 million acres of land from the British Government with a view to selling it on in individual plots to settlers. He founded the cities of Guelph and Goderich in Ontario. His novels Lawrie Tod (1830) and Bogle Corbet (1831) are concerned with the settlement of North America.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
September 6, 2021
As a graduate of Scottish history, I find works like this absolutely fascinating. This book - one of the first novels to portray a society, and one of the last of the Scottish Enlightenment - deserves its place as a classic. It almost lost a star for defining the book's sole black character, Sambo (ugh), as an 'it' rather than a 'he' (ugh), but I need to remember that it was written over 200 years ago, and was far more forward-thinking than most of its contemporaries. So, five stars it is.
September 2, 2017
BABThttp://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01gyks3
Description: John Galt's masterpiece of small-town Scottish life, written in 1821. Reverend Micah Balwhidder settles in his study to pen an account of his fifty year ministry in the parish of Dalmailing.
1/5: Balwhidder's appointment in 1760 tears the community apart as the young minister is placed in his post by an absentee landowner - inciting the rage of the parishioners. 2/5: Settled in his study at the end of his career, Balwhidder remembers how news of trouble in the Americas trickled through to the sleepy town of Dalmailing in 1769.3/5: It's 1776 and change is in the air as the outside world intrudes upon rural Dalmailing. 4/5: Incomers from America bring changes to the sleepy parish of Dalmailing, and the second Mrs Balwhidder's extreme thriftiness causes a rift with the session.5/5: Settled in his study at the end of his career, Balwhidder remembers the loss of a dear friend and the shocking events at the cotton mill which changed Dalmailing for ever.
Irvine, Ayrshire: 'The rustic, pre-industrial West Coast town was on its way out when Galt sat down to write.
October 25, 2015
An utterly enjoyable and insightful book! The voice of Rev. Balwhidder is so life-like and consistently in character, the depiction of life in the second half of the 18th century so convincing that at times I found myself wondering if maybe I'd misunderstood that this was a novel, because it seemed a lot more like an actual memoir of the times - maybe in reality Galt had just found and edited it? - which just shows how brilliant it is. Set in a small parish in the west of Scotland in the years 1760 to 1810, the transition from rural hamlet with hardly any connections to the wider world to a village affected by all sorts of world-wide conflicts, the Industrial Revolution and the spread of innovations in communication and traffic is a marvel to read - the books turns the reader into a first hand witness of that (for a student of 18th century history) most amazing development in European early modern history.
The only thing that might be said to subtract a bit from the reading pleasure (although it probably adds to credibility of the narrator) is the fact that a good deal of it is written in Scottish. The Oxford dictionary attached to my Kindle was some help, it knew about a third or quarter of the words (a lot more than I expected, to be honest), but an edition with a thorough glossary would be welcome here.
The only thing that might be said to subtract a bit from the reading pleasure (although it probably adds to credibility of the narrator) is the fact that a good deal of it is written in Scottish. The Oxford dictionary attached to my Kindle was some help, it knew about a third or quarter of the words (a lot more than I expected, to be honest), but an edition with a thorough glossary would be welcome here.
March 6, 2014
BABT - strange choice, no!?
bbc blurb - John Galt's masterpiece of small-town Scottish life, written in 1821. Reverend Micah Balwhidder settles in his study to pen an account of his fifty year ministry in the parish of Dalmailing.
Balwhidder's appointment in 1760 tears the community apart as the young minister is placed in his post by an absentee landowner - inciting the rage of the parishioners.
Abridged by Rosemary Goring and read by Paul Young. Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.
Oh this is priceless - haven't laughed outloud so much since - erm, well since the last time
- the debauchery
- the bastard bairns
- the tea
- the big nut carried in a cloth tied to a stick (coconut)
bbc blurb - John Galt's masterpiece of small-town Scottish life, written in 1821. Reverend Micah Balwhidder settles in his study to pen an account of his fifty year ministry in the parish of Dalmailing.
Balwhidder's appointment in 1760 tears the community apart as the young minister is placed in his post by an absentee landowner - inciting the rage of the parishioners.
Abridged by Rosemary Goring and read by Paul Young. Producer: Eilidh McCreadie.
Oh this is priceless - haven't laughed outloud so much since - erm, well since the last time
- the debauchery
- the bastard bairns
- the tea
- the big nut carried in a cloth tied to a stick (coconut)
September 2, 2014
I selected this one because it was on the list of 100 Greatest Scottish books (I'm doing a yearlong Scottish reading program). I started to read it because... well... it was short. I liked it because it was interesting... the 50 year (1760 to 1810) memoir of the Rev. Micah Balwhidder of the Dalmailing parish. I really liked it (4.5 stars) when I learned, just a few pages from the end, that it was not actually a memoir at all, but a novel! I have read a number of historical memoirs in my time and they all pretty much have a style that is recognizable (a bit rambling, a bit chatty, a focus on stuff that doesn't seem the most important, a glimmer of recognition for the truly important, the imparting of secrets, storytelling, etc.) and this one had it too, but it wasn't written over the course of 50 years by a real Reverend and I was pretty well convinced that it had been. Well, done author John Galt (no, not the stupid character form the dreadful Ayn Rand novel... the real John Galt [1779 - 1839])! Great writing plus you founded not one, but two cities in Canada (Guelph and Goderich).
PS - The Scottish Reading Program continues to deliver winners! Now... what to read next?
PS - The Scottish Reading Program continues to deliver winners! Now... what to read next?
February 20, 2022
This is quite far out of my 'normal' style/genre of reads, and I struggled through it. It's deemed a classic about Scottish life: I can see why it would be an important read, but it was a slow one.
The book describes life in a rural Scottish parish from the point of view of a reverend there over the period of 50 years. It explores the tragedies, joys and changing life in this small Scottish village.
There's really not too much that I can say about this book. It read like the diary of a man recording the most important parts of the life of the two over 50-odd years as he reflected over it at the end of his life. It was a very slow book that felt repetitive and used a lot of Scottish dialect. Again though, I can see why it's an important book.
The book describes life in a rural Scottish parish from the point of view of a reverend there over the period of 50 years. It explores the tragedies, joys and changing life in this small Scottish village.
There's really not too much that I can say about this book. It read like the diary of a man recording the most important parts of the life of the two over 50-odd years as he reflected over it at the end of his life. It was a very slow book that felt repetitive and used a lot of Scottish dialect. Again though, I can see why it's an important book.
August 31, 2018
Actually just really boring. A couple of nice anecdotes which saved it from 1 star.
August 16, 2017
The Annals of the Parish chronicles the observations of village life by Micah Balwhidder, minister of Dalmailing. Galt’s eye for detail hold the reader’s interest the inclusion of international and national events and their impact on village life are also captured
The novel covers the period 1760 to 1810, which is significant from international and national perspectives. Internationally, the narrative spans the American Revolution, the second British Empire in India, the French revolution, the rise of Napoleon and the French threat to invade Britain. Nationally we see the progress from an agricultural age to an era of commerce and industry with the invention of the spinning jenny and the consequent rise of the cotton industry.
Galt’s choice of minister for Balwhidder’s profession permits insight of the moral, spiritual and ethical developments of the era - from a time when drinking tea was considered sinful to the acceptance of two public houses in the village.
Of course, Balwhidder himself is shaped by events however he views this as divine intervention rather than, as Galt’s contemporary Adam Smith called it, the invisible hand of progress.
I have two reservations about the book. The first lies with the publisher since Galt’s style of writing is lowland Scots, a glossary of terms would have been useful. The second lies with the author, who as the novel progresses, uses more and more contrived names for his characters. So we have a fiery, short-tempered American called Mr. Cayenne; the local stonemason is Mr. Trowel; the publican is Mr. Toddy. If this was an attempt at humour then it was misplaced. I found it patronising.
John Galt’s “The Annals of the Parish” was published in 1821, two years before “Ringan Gilhaize” and it has to be said that much of the early success of both novels was the Scottish theme, which was in great demand by the reading public following Walter Scott’s Waverley novels.
The novel covers the period 1760 to 1810, which is significant from international and national perspectives. Internationally, the narrative spans the American Revolution, the second British Empire in India, the French revolution, the rise of Napoleon and the French threat to invade Britain. Nationally we see the progress from an agricultural age to an era of commerce and industry with the invention of the spinning jenny and the consequent rise of the cotton industry.
Galt’s choice of minister for Balwhidder’s profession permits insight of the moral, spiritual and ethical developments of the era - from a time when drinking tea was considered sinful to the acceptance of two public houses in the village.
Of course, Balwhidder himself is shaped by events however he views this as divine intervention rather than, as Galt’s contemporary Adam Smith called it, the invisible hand of progress.
I have two reservations about the book. The first lies with the publisher since Galt’s style of writing is lowland Scots, a glossary of terms would have been useful. The second lies with the author, who as the novel progresses, uses more and more contrived names for his characters. So we have a fiery, short-tempered American called Mr. Cayenne; the local stonemason is Mr. Trowel; the publican is Mr. Toddy. If this was an attempt at humour then it was misplaced. I found it patronising.
John Galt’s “The Annals of the Parish” was published in 1821, two years before “Ringan Gilhaize” and it has to be said that much of the early success of both novels was the Scottish theme, which was in great demand by the reading public following Walter Scott’s Waverley novels.
February 20, 2013
Written in the 1st Person by John Galt (d 1839), the narrator is the Reverend Micah Balwhidder, a Presbyterian minister in the Ayrshire town of Dalmailing. Rev Balwhidder describes life in his Parish year by year from 1760 to 1810.
Here's what Andrew O'Hagen says about the content:
"In many ways, it is the miniature masterpiece of small-town Scottish life, a portrait of human character and social change more particular and more beautifully coloured than anything by Walter Scott. Reading it, you begin to imagine that Flemish painting found its Scottish counterpart in a writer of fiction. The book is full of human things and natural oddities, while the humour is very gentle and the language exact."
and about the period covered by the annals. He tells us it is:
"the period of Robert Burns and the Industrial Revolution, when the economic and moral shape of Scottish life was changing in ways both explicit and invisible. The novel charts all this: the work of smugglers at Troon, new births in the parish, old deaths, the efforts of the press-gangs, the rise of the local economy, the business of ‘cadgers by day and excisemen by night’, the opening of a new dance school at Irville, ‘run by Mr Macskipnish’, visits to Glasgow and Edinburgh, the day of the country fair, described with a rare vernacular beauty. It’s a precursor to Dickens in terms of detail and to Flaubert in terms of style".
If you want to visit the Scots language of the early 19th Century, I can recommend this book. However, if you are not interested in reading about a very narrow band of Scottish society, find another book. Very little up to 1789 about the growing industrial proletariat or unemployment among agriculture labourers. I will plough on until 1810 just because the language is so interesting.
Here's what Andrew O'Hagen says about the content:
"In many ways, it is the miniature masterpiece of small-town Scottish life, a portrait of human character and social change more particular and more beautifully coloured than anything by Walter Scott. Reading it, you begin to imagine that Flemish painting found its Scottish counterpart in a writer of fiction. The book is full of human things and natural oddities, while the humour is very gentle and the language exact."
and about the period covered by the annals. He tells us it is:
"the period of Robert Burns and the Industrial Revolution, when the economic and moral shape of Scottish life was changing in ways both explicit and invisible. The novel charts all this: the work of smugglers at Troon, new births in the parish, old deaths, the efforts of the press-gangs, the rise of the local economy, the business of ‘cadgers by day and excisemen by night’, the opening of a new dance school at Irville, ‘run by Mr Macskipnish’, visits to Glasgow and Edinburgh, the day of the country fair, described with a rare vernacular beauty. It’s a precursor to Dickens in terms of detail and to Flaubert in terms of style".
If you want to visit the Scots language of the early 19th Century, I can recommend this book. However, if you are not interested in reading about a very narrow band of Scottish society, find another book. Very little up to 1789 about the growing industrial proletariat or unemployment among agriculture labourers. I will plough on until 1810 just because the language is so interesting.
February 2, 2017
This another book I was really not expecting to enjoy, but I absolutely loved, and I would recommend anyone interested in 18/19th century history to read it. It maps all the changing historical events, the birth of industry, political changes, the French Revolution, American wars, as well as doctrinal changes and reform for those interested in 18/19th century religion, and religious changes. In short, this is a book entirely about change and reform, and consequentially provides a fascinating snapshot of Parish life in Scotland during this period. At times, there seemed to be a lot of rather dramatic deaths! But nevertheless, it was a really fascinating and enjoyable book, and one I am really glad to have read. Furthermore, there were some truly wonderful moments of pure, slapstick comedy, the laird falling into the rubbish pile being a noticeable example, and the ease with which the narrator moved from one wife, to the next was darkly comic, at least to me!
April 13, 2020
I don’t remember why this appeared on my reading list, but I found it dull. It gives a nice overview of one (fictional) corner of Scotland as it underwent the industrial revolution, and the small hypocrisies and minor self-delusions of the narrator are moderately amusing at times, but there’s not really a story as such, and you don’t really get a good feeling for most of the characters. Plus, it’s written in Scots, which is not quite the same language as English, and though context clues can get you part of the way, sometimes they’re not enough. All in all, of only minor interest.
April 11, 2019
Probably not for most people, since it was written in 1861 and uses quite a few Scottish words. People familiar with Victorian writers might appreciate the gentle humor of the rather hapless alleged writer of these memoirs, but you do need to concentrate. I missed not having the instant lookup features of the Kindle version (not sure if there is one).
May 5, 2012
From BBC radio 4:
Reverend Micah Balwhidder settles in his study to pen an account of his fifty year ministry in the parish of Dalmailing.
Reverend Micah Balwhidder settles in his study to pen an account of his fifty year ministry in the parish of Dalmailing.
September 4, 2012
Read for college Scotland into the Modern World literature class (taken while in Scotland).
December 27, 2019
This is definitely not a terribly exciting book. But it was interesting as a sort of commentary historical change and the effects it has on a small community.
May 23, 2019
Scottish rural life of the early 19th century, written in 1821.Lots of period detail about rural parish life.
Charming and deserves to be more well known.
Charming and deserves to be more well known.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews