Three years ago - according to my blog here - I have re-read Diana Gabaldon's "Outlander" and kind of apologetically explained myself why decision to revisit something so obviously entertaining with all those big, serious, life-affirming and world-changing books around. Well, dear reader, as soon as I found myself comfortable and curled in frost covered countryside (finally free from any work obligations) guess what I took lovingly again - yes, "Outlander" again and this time I am not even apologising, it became dear & trusted friend, perhaps little forgotten as I actually didn't really remember all the details but I knew it is a perfect escapism and even with tons of other books I could have selected, none 100% guarantees the pleasure of being completely far away and lost in the book as this one.
One of the reasons why I took to "Outlander" again is that I was entertaining the idea to continue with sequels but to my biggest embarrassment I couldn't really remember where exactly the story ended and what exactly was happening - after few years the only things I remember were vaguely rough locations and skeleton of the story - after all, we usually remember only impressions, so without any remorse I made myself comfortable next to open fire, with glass of wine for support and before you know it, I read it with greatest pleasure like its first and not third time I am reading this. Looking back, perhaps its no wonder that this kind of historical fiction appeals so much to me because in a way it is a spiritually connected to some things I loved & enjoyed during my formative years (it has echoes of "Grička vještica", Angelique" and every possible damsel in distress adventure novels you can imagine) so even though I am obviously middle-aged now, some things still thrill me with the same power. I do discipline myself into occasionally reading classics but never ever read them so breathlessly and completely absorbed as now Diana Gabaldon. The fact that 20 million readers loved and bought the novel does not exactly prove that this is something in the same league with Tolstoy, but nevertheless it shows that impressively large number of readers shared my enthusiasm. Its definitely worth mentioning that Gabaldon has wonderfully entertaining writing style and often I giggled with unabashed joy, thinking "this is exactly how I would write" - it made me feel almost childishly familiar with author and as she is already a good friend, after all this is third time that I am reading the same novel.
Roughly described, "Outlander" is historical, time-travel fiction with the main heroine being British Army nurse Claire Randall who in 1946 visits Scotland with her husband, a history professor (kind of like second honeymoon, as they were separated in war) and during curious walk around local, ancient standing stones Craigh na Dun (in countryside place called Inverness which I actually visited) she gets transported in the same spot but 200 years earlier. In almost cinematic scene, she is now surrounding with barbaric looking clansmen who are puzzled with her clothes and identity but quickly let her take care of wounded warrior, since she obviously knows about healing and from here she slowly asserts her authority as 20th century, modern woman in 18th century world where life is often brutal and very primitive. In clever gender reversal Gabaldon makes young warrior faint - in typical historical romances it would have been heroine who faints - and as Claire comes to accept life in Castle Leoch, she somehow gets closer to young James Fraser while at the same time she gets accepted as a healer, although nobody is really sure in her identity and people suspect she might be spy. During the entertainment in the castle, with old ballads being played after dinner, she notes the pattern that the transported women are so often gone for about 200 years—but do sometimes return home so her intention is to somehow return to standing stones and escape back to her time. There is also a local woman Geillis Duncan who is also knowledgeable about herbs and medicine, so two become friendly with tragic results as local village people eventually turn against them. Subsequently Claire is brought to British army officer Jonathan Randall (sadistic and brutal ancestor of her present life husband) who interrogates her as a spy, just to have young Fraser saving her life ... and it just gets better and better from here.
and here are some photos I took during my visit to Orkney Islands, Scotland where I saw standing stones
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