A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland

In 1773, 63-year-old literary giant Samuel Johnson joined James Boswell, a 32-year-old Scottish lawyer, on an historic horseback expedition across the Scottish Highlands to the Western Islands. The unlikely duo's travelogue records their fascinating conversations and encounters with great wit and incredible detail. Johnson, one of the 18th century's most celebrated writers, provided an elegant and stately account of everything from Loch Ness's medicinal waters to Scotland's puzzling lack of trees. The younger Boswell focused instead on his famed companion, offering a perceptive, highly entertaining, deeply intimate glimpse into Johnson's personality. Taken together, Johnson and Boswell's very different styles perfectly complement each other, resulting in a deeply satisfying, truly original narrative.