CHILD OF ST KILDA

St. Kilda is a remote archipelago about 100 miles off the west coast of Scotland.

This is the story of the last community to inhabit the island of Hirta, St. Kilda’s largest island. Through narrative and evocative monoprints in blues, greens, and russet, Waters tells the story of the island and its last human inhabitants. The narrative is interspersed with descriptions and sketches of the wildlife of St. Kilda and the activities of the population. In spite of its remoteness, humans have lived on St. Kilda since the Bronze Age. The titular child, Norman John Gillies, was born there in 1925. The close-knit community lived a subsistence lifestyle, raising sheep for tweed production and collecting wild birds from the cliffs for food. A one-room schoolhouse and the church provided educational guidance and spiritual discipline. Increasing communication with the mainland during the 20th century caused the population to dwindle, and eventually Norman and his family were forced to evacuate with the entire population in 1930 when the island was deemed uninhabitable. The village on Hirta was abandoned, and the St. Kildans were resettled on the British mainland. The islands of St. Kilda have become a World Heritage Site. The illustrations emphasize its wind-swept wildness, the few, white human inhabitants dressed in garb as humble as the cottages they live in.

A fascinating study of a unique community. (maps, author’s note. (Informational picture book. 8-14)