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Another epic story from Cary‘s Davies in under 200 pages. I had never heard of the clearances of Scotland. The removal of people from land that they lived on for generations. This was an intimate story of a sole inhabitant of an island and a Reverend who was sent to take him off the island. #Scotland

What a stunningly beautiful novel that is far bigger than it looks.

On a remote Scottish island (population 1) during th Highland Clearances
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@Cupcake12
#bookswithmaps 🧡
Book 30/155
#24countriesin2025

Beautiful. Stark yet bursting with imagery.
A rare treat, a brand new book. I e been lusting after either of her previous novels and then this sat on a shelf in a little indie bookshop and I picked it. And read, devoured, it.
Adored it. I keep mulling over the story and the island.

In 1843 John Ferguson travels to a remote island N of Shetland to evict Ivar, the only inhabitant for the last 20 yrs, so that the island can be turned over to sheep. The 2 men have no language in common and John's notes & docs in Norn are destroyed in an accident soon after his arrival.

Fascinating exploration of how the relationship develops through illness and language learning. The ending was unexpected and I want to know what happened next.

Stunning! This is a little book but it had a big impact on me. So atmospheric, I wish I could spend time reading on this island.
Aghh Mary, you are definitely a keeper! The ending was perfect. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I‘m so glad this was my first read for 2025.
Thanks for the gift @LeeRHarry 🤍🩵💙🩶
#LitsyAtoZ @Texreader Letter C

@ShyBookOwl
#FirstLineFridays

#12Booksof2024 JULY A beautiful rugged book, set on an Island off of Scotland. I loved everything about this book.

My June #12Booksof2024 pick was our first book for #CampLitsy24 & a clear (pun intended) favorite. Very atmospheric & absorbing.

Honorable Mentions include: Run Towards the Danger, Doppelgänger & A Scatter of Light.

My choice for June is Clear. Beautiful writing, in depth characterization, imaginative, at its root a historical fact. 💛#12booksof2024

My favourite read of June. This one is quite an odd book, that appears to be centred around the Highland clearances of the 18th/19th century, but also looks at relationships and loneliness. It packs a lot in to a short novel.

#12Booksof2024
@Andrew65

#12BooksOf2024 June

This wasn‘t my favourite at the time, but looking back it was certainly the most memorable. Beautiful writing and so atmospheric!

#12Booksof2024 @Andrew65

I really appreciate Cary‘s Davies‘ writing. This novel set at the end of the Scottish Clearances on a remote and forbidding island is a marvel of history, language, and love. Full review at http://booknaround.blogspot.com/2024/07/review-clear-by-carys-davies.html

Clear. By Carys Davies. Set in 1843, Minister John Ferguson travels from Scotland towards Norway to a tiny island, where one man lives alone. A beautiful wild setting , a story about loneliness and human connection. I loved it.

😳Sorry, another unpopular opinion. Beautiful written but there is something missing for me in the story and in the ending🤷🏽‍♀️I wanted to love it after all those extraordinary reviews/ratings in GR and Litsy. Maybe I could give it another try in the future. 3⭐️

June 2024 Book #14

#ReadAway2024 @DieAReader @Andrew65 @Ghabi4Roses
#BookSpinBingo (#21 free space @TheAromaOfBooks

It‘s the 1840s and Scotland is going through huge changes. For landowners it‘s more economic to have sheep on their land that tenants. The priest John Ferguson takes the job to travel to an island with only one inhabitant to tell him that he need to relocate. A book about these two men who don‘t speak each other‘s language and how John is learning Ivar‘s language so they can start communicating. There‘s something tender about this short novel

Under 200 short pages, the story of a poor minister who is hired to relocate a man living alone on a Scottish island, grabs you and doesn‘t let go. It‘s the mid 1800s and the landowner only wants sheep on this island, not people. And these two men have to somehow connect while speaking different languages. Definitely a book worth reading.

Wow, this packs SO much in its 185 pages. Clear was practically a one-sitting read for me, only taking a break for lunch. Davies' writing just throws you into this stark landscape and you feel like you are right there, rooting for these two odd characters.

So, he thought, I am like a puffin.
Like a puffin I wasn‘t frightened of him. Like a puffin I have spent my days swimming beside him.
Like a puffin I have walked about, close to the snare.

(I‘ve never seen a puffin, but has always loved them, mostly for their colorful beak)

^^ 167, the word for the moment before

61 “Well, for a start, being a great reader, he would probably have complained about the fashion beloved by the worst kind of contemporary novelists for inflicting catastrophic and prolonged memory loss on their characters—very likely he would have called it a cheap plot device to complicate an already complicated series of events.” 😂

Language, culture clash, colonization. Companionship. 1840s Scotland. Minister reluctantly takes on evicting the last inhabitant of a Shetland Island. Taut, haunting, quiet. Rushed but satisfying end. 2024

42 “Into her mind a picture came of this vast emptying-out—a long, gray, and never-ending procession of tiny figures snaking their way like a river through the country.”

181 “How was it, she thought, we never see the big things coming?”

19-20 Jul 24
Such a wonderful story of language, dying worlds, loneliness and love. The setting of the Orkney Islands seems so desolate and Ivar‘s way of life is so grim and bare and yet I can also see the beauty. The way Davies shows the desperation of each of John and Mary is so evocative and for me the ending was perfect.
I loved this and do hope it makes the Booker longlist.

Thank you so much, @Texreader I really appreciate your generosity ❤️

Author investigates themes of love, loss, and survival with sensitivity and attentiveness. Each story reads like a bespoke little cosmos consisting in characters confronting life‘s ambiguities and catching brief moments of clarity amidst clutter....
Full Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6615861556

The writing here is astounding, deceptively simple language that conveys the depth of feeling among the thee main characters so well. Davies‘ style reminded me of Margaret Atwood‘s writing - ordinary language (as opposed to the lyrical stylings of many recent novels, full of déliquescence and meanderings and cacophonies) that is so straightforward and clear that the story takes center stage, as, imo, it should.
Fabulous book.Fabulous teapot. ?

I‘m perpetually late to the party, but I was happy this was a quick read for #CampLitsy24. I agree with so many comments here that I don‘t feel I can add anything unique. I enjoyed it quite a lot, but didn‘t find it “amazing”.

I‘m giving away this brand new book! I listened to the library audiobook instead of cracking open the book. I was not a fan of this book and happy to give it to someone who loved it. Let me know by end of today (Sunday June 30) if you want to put your name in the hat. US only as I intend to send by book mail.

#ReadAway2024

Catching up on my June reviews, I finished a couple of weeks ago for #CampLitsy24 & really enjoyed it. It wasn‘t on my radar or a book I‘d have picked up on my own so I‘m glad it was a camp pick. Story, setting & the lovely writing & language came together in not that many pages. A quiet little book about love & relationships & it just kind of seeped its way into my soul. An enthusiastic pick for me & big thanks to our camp hosts.

@DebinHawaii #5JoysFriday
1. Reading Clear, it was so gloomy and cozy 📖
2. Arizona skies 💜
3. Watching Ponyo for the first time 🐠
4. My dog Clove following me out of the house to take a ride in the truck while we go grab dessert. 🐶
5. We went on a mini vacation for my husband's job.🌴
I tag @BooksNBowls 💛
(There's always a positive that can come from a negative if you look hard enough)

3.5 ⭐️

This was a perfect pick to bring on vacation. So far I am loving how cozy the descriptions are and how slow paced life is for Ivar. 🐄🐎🐑

I loved this. I wasn‘t sure that audio was the right format at first but after a while I really got immersed in it & found myself slowing down while listening on my walks to match the tone of the book 😆 it evokes a strong sense of place and is atmospheric which I love. Another review describes it well by noting it has a ‘quiet intensity‘ 🖤 #camplitsy

Going on vacation today! Bringing the tagged book since I'm behind for #camplitsy

I read this a few weeks ago as part of #camplitsy24 but then was unable to take part in the discussion. I found this book very thoughtful and a beautiful exploration on the themes of loneliness and connection, love and understanding. I‘ve seen a lot of people compare it to The Colony because the similar settings but feel that the two books are actually quite different. I really enjoyed this and will be purchasing a hard copy.

Currently reading while I get the gray out. 😄

I loved many things about this book: learning fascinating words from Ivar‘s language which helped me understand the island‘s landscape, following John Ferguson as he fell gently into Ivar‘s life, and cheering Mary on as she continuously surprised and delighted me.

Thanks to #CampLitsy24 for the great discussions, and to @BarbaraBB @Megabooks and @squirrelbrain for being awesome camp counselors!

In awe of this book, the author‘s spare & lyrical language that conveys bonds of many sorts: to land, to sea, to animals, to humans. A tribute to the human spirit, its ability to endure, adapt, renew, to hope.
I don‘t know what more I can add to the countless reviews by fellow Littens. Just a HUGE thank you to #camplitsy24 for introducing me to this book.

3✨I really enjoyed the peace I felt while reading this book. Ivar has been alone on a remote island for a long time, and John is a husband who is trying to provide for his bride. Loosely based on two historical events in Scotland that I wasn‘t aware happened, but now have a little background in. Read for #CampLitsy @squirrelbrain @BarbaraBB @Megabooks A little late, but glad I read it with everyone.

This is an extraordinarily atmospheric book. The writing was unobtrusive but incredibly effective -I felt the primness of the place and time, the harshness of the weather, the rugged emptiness of the landscape, the rough expanse of the sea and the claustrophobic interiors. The story was simple but engaging and offered plenty to think about. Thanks to the #CampLitsy24 hosts and participants for the discussions which added to my enjoyment.

This brief novel is a lovely story about the ways that people connect, discover, and communicate. It is 1840 and a minister is sent by a landowner to an island off Scotland to evict the last remaining resident. The minister and the islander meet in a surprising way and a unique bond is formed, despite language and cultural barriers.

I just loved this. Such a balm for the soul, and the ending was a nice surprise ♥️ #camplitsy24 @BarbaraBB @squirrelbrain @Megabooks

Pick, but I didn't love this as much as others seem to. 3.5⭐

I enjoyed the space writing, and the characters. I am really glad we did this for #CampListy24 the discussions (though I was late to them due to family obligations) were very well thought out and made me sit with the book more than I would have on my own. I loved that the island itself felt like a character, and Mary was my favorite. I liked how language - nonverbal and verbal 👇

Fellow Campers (#CampLitsy24):

Please imagine that I played this song for you, beautifully, on my acoustic guitar around the campfire while the stars twinkled above us. It‘s one of my favorite rainy day songs…and it fits the story perfectly!

https://open.spotify.com/track/2DGSdO00NzACW56iJ2FjNm?si=-K-E0RmKSB2u0IdunGt2IA

*This is an exercise in imagination due to our scattered geography AND my utter lack of musical talent. 😅

A short, queer, atmospheric novel set in 1843 during the Great Disruption in the Scottish Church & the Clearances, when rural inhabitants in the Highlands & Islands were forced by wealthy landlords to leave their homes.

The title is fitting; it‘s a quiet but powerful exploration of what is clearly important in life (& how that‘s conveyed) and what‘s a little more foggy & nuanced (eg. sexuality, morality, spirituality, multiple intelligences).👇🏻

What stunned me most about this book was Davies' writing. So much was said with so few words--which simulates what happened in this novel. Ivar, a man living in solitude for years on a remote Scottish island, meets John, the hired minister who's going to tell him he has to leave due to the Highland Clearances. Both learn to communicate in sparse language and discover companionship in one another. Davies' sparse prose captures ⬇️

Utterly lovely, quietly devastating. #ProcrastinatorsDoItBetter #CampLitsy

Question 3 of 3

With our third question we‘ve finished the Clear discussion. We hope you‘ll be back next week to discuss the first half of a completely different book: Butter.
Until then, enjoy the beach and the sun and your books and this lovely space to spend time together: #CampLitsy24

Question 2 of 3

We have another birthday to celebrate at Camp: @Rockpools is celebrating! So it‘ll be another busy and festive day at #CampLitsy24!