Costa Heritage
by A. B. Marwick

This book is in origin a family history. In the foreword the author makes it clear that it was written with his grandsons much in mind.

The greater part consists of chapters based on individual forebears, beginning with great-great-grandfather Andrew Baikie who, like so many Orcadians in the early 19th century, served with the Hudson's Bay Company in Canada. A record of this kind is something special for any family, and it will grow in value as the years pass.

But Costa Heritage will appeal to a wider readership than just the immediate family. It contains a wealth of stories, snippets of information and pointed comments about a host of folk. It will be compulsive reading for those who have connections with the Costa community.

The style is anecdotal - the stories are written just as they might have been told around the fireside in a pre-TV age, with one yarn jogging the memory and leading to the next. The book is essentially oral history, committed to paper in a way which successfully preserves the authentic style.

Thus we have a record of the incidents which, in the days before mass entertainment, people found amusing or memorable. The entertainment of the present day may be more sophisticated, but is unlikely to survive so long, or to be recalled with so much affection.

A book of this kind, however, is more than just a collection of good yarns. Fifty years ago rural districts were much more self-contained, and the idiosyncrasies of neighbours were of compelling interest. Individuals were long remembered for a chance remark, an apt turn of phrase or a single ridiculous incident which everyone could recount, and which was remembered when the rest of their life's work was largely forgotten. And in the same way as these stories defined the character of the individual, the sum total of the stories establishes the identity of the whole community. It adds up to a vivid picture of life in an Orkney parish a generation or two ago.

A valuable feature is a good collection of place-names and a map showing their location. The book is well illustrated by photographs and is enlivened by attractive drawings.

WPLT