Lewis writer on a tour of North America

The first of these is at Toronto International Festival of Authors on October 2nd where he will be appearing alongside the prominent Canadian crime writer Maureen Jennings.

On 8th October, Donald will be appearing alongside Inverness folksinger Liza Mulholland at Kilgour Scottish Centre in Detroit and followed by another event in Admiral on the Lake in Chicago on 17th October.

Both Donald and Liza have connections with Toronto, Detroit and Chicago, where they are visiting.

In Liza’s case, these are particularly close. Many close relatives live in or near the first two cities, having left the district of Lochs in the twenties and before. Her father, mother and nephew also spent time there. She has also done a great deal of research into this topic, particularly into the records of the Hebridean Society of Detroit which did so much to help exiled islanders.

In Donald’s case, there are also connections with various parts of Canada and the US, with relatives as far apart as Winnipeg, Vermont and California. He is also conscious that many who lived near his family croft in Ness also settled in Toronto, Detroit and Chicago.

Donald’s new novel – provisionally titled ‘The Salt and the Flame’ - will involve all these cities, focussing on such developments as the car industry in Detroit in which many Scots were involved and other features of these cities. This is the third part of a trilogy that intends to chronicle the stories of boats that are connected to the history of the Western Isles.