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Borrowed Land
A Highland Story
Brief Description
Magisterial and unforgettable - an intimate story of a Scottish Highland glen, from the prizewinning author of Border. This is the intimate story of a Scottish glen and its inhabitants, of whom I am one. From the powerful rivers that bring life and prosperity; to the...
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Borrowed Land
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Description
Magisterial and unforgettable - an intimate story of a Scottish Highland glen, from the prizewinning author of Border.
This is the intimate story of a Scottish glen and its inhabitants, of whom I am one.
From the powerful rivers that bring life and prosperity; to the Pictish cairns, undisturbed for centuries; to the meadows of bluebells, where deer emerge, God-like, in a flash, Kapka Kassabova reveals a world that has been abused, but remains achingly beautiful and alive.
In the Highlands, centuries-old connections between the land, nature and people have been, and continue to be, shaken by the forces of colonialism, industry, depopulation, and private property speculation. Borrowed Land tells the stories of those who are working against this disconnect- the last true Highlanders fighting to preserve their home.
An extraordinary portrait of the Scottish Highlands, this is an epic and urgent story of destruction and renewal, told through encounters with some of the last true Highlanders.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781787335349
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 09 April 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Jonathan Cape
Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 40.0mm
Width: 156.0mm
Height: 240.0mm
Weight: 750g
Pages: 352
About the Author
Kapka Kassabova is a prizewinning writer of narrative non-fiction. Her recent Balkan quartet includes Anima (2024), Elixir (2023), To the Lake (2020) and Border (2017). Her awards include a British Academy prize, Scottish Book of the Year, Stanford-Dolman Travel Book of the Year, the Highland Book Prize, Prix Nicolas-Bouvier, Prix du Meilleur Livre tranger, and Premio Mazzotti. Kassabova grew up in Sofia, Bulgaria, and migrated to New Zealand before settling in Scotland twenty years ago. She lives by a Highland river.
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Anima
Anima, by the award-winning writer Kapka Kassabova, is a spellbinding journey into the heart of Europe's last moving pastoralists. Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Pirin Mountains, this poignant narrative explores the lives of shepherds who still follow the ancient rhythms of transhumance—moving with their grazing animals in search of seasonal pastures. For thousands of years, humans and grazing...Hardback$5000Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips tomorrow -
Anima
The spellbinding new book by the prizewinning writer Kapka Kassabova tells the story of her time with the last moving pastoralists in Europe—a gripping portrayal of human-animal interdependence, and a plea for a different way of living. "A book that mesmerises with its sense of adventure and epic sweep, this is creative non-fiction at its best" – GUARDIAN Over the...Paperback$3000Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
To the Lake
A BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa. Two vast lakes joined by underground rivers. Two lakes that have played a central role in Kapka Kassabova's maternal family. As she journeys to her grandmother's place of origin, Kassabova encounters a civilizational crossroads. The Lakes are set within the mountainous borderlands of North Macedonia, Albania and...Paperback$2300Elsewhere:$2499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Elixir
Set in the valley of the Mesta, one of the oldest inhabited river valleys in Europe and a nexus for wild plant gatherers, Elixir is an unforgettable exploration of the deep connections between people, plants, and place. 'Uplifting and beautifully written' - SPECTATOR 'Dark and mysterious and beautiful' - FINANCIAL TIMES 'Exceptional' - BBC WILDLIFE Over several seasons, Kassabova spends...Paperback$3000Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Geography for the Lost
Kapka Kassabova is a young Bulgarian émigré poet who writes in English but with a European imagination. Her well-travelled poems speak from different parts of the world and different moments of history, yet they always explore the many ways to be lost and disoriented: in a place, in the past, in fear, in love, in the very quickness of life....Paperback$3499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Border
When Kapka Kassabova was a child, the border zone between Bulgaria, Turkey and Greece was rumoured to be an easier crossing point into the West than the Berlin Wall, so it swarmed with soldiers, spies and fugitives. On holidays close to the border on the Black Sea coast, she remembers playing on the beach, only miles from where an electrified...PaperbackSold Out
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