The Key of the Chest

This is a good story set on the West Highland coast. Gunn's knowledge of crofting, fishing and coastal life combine with his social commentary to create an engaging book. One word of caution for fans of Hemingway-style economy of word: the plot moves along, but is frequently peppered with long explanations of ordinary things.The Key of the Book is Gunn's commentary on intellectualism. Community insiders, the local folk, seem to have a sixth sense about them. They are very comfortable with circumstances, even in the face of significant disruption in the community. The intellectuals among them -- mostly outsiders -- are constantly trying to think things through since they lack this local intuition. Two outsiders in particular blather on incessantly about the details of everything. Not surprising for a Highland writer, these two outsiders are English.