Un-Discovered Islands: An Archipelago of Myths and Mysteries, Phantoms and Fakes

Description

Journey through the imagined islands of history. Gathered in this book are over twenty islands that have decidedly human origins, whether they are the products of imagination, deception or simply human error. They are phantoms, fakes and legends: an archipelago of ex-isles and forgotten lands. From the well-known story of Atlantis to more obscure tales from around the globe, from the islands of pure fiction to others whose existence are still in question, Malachy has created an atlas of fairytale and wonder. Beautifully illustrated throughout with original full-colour maps.

Malachy Tallack has written for the New Statesman, the Guardian, Caught by the River and many other publications, online and in print. He won a New Writers' Award from Scottish Book Trust in 2014, and the Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship in 2015, and is the author of the critically acclaimed 60 Degrees North. He was born in Shetland and now lives in Glasgow.

'Tallack's handsome book examines twenty-four deflated legends ... Readers of Tallack's acclaimed travelogue Sixty Degrees North will know of his gift for introspective exploration. He puts this to good use here, deriving a satisfying emotional argument from [the un-discovered islands'] clash of sentiment and fact' * TLS * 'intrepid intellectual fun' * Sunday Herald * 'It's a joy to island-hop through the book. After wowing the world with Sixty Degrees North last year, Tallack's second book is shaped by the same, clear, sharp prose and keen curiosity. Packed full of intelligent musings on everything from religion to astronomy, alchemy to the occult' * National Geographic Traveller * 'This has been a vintage year for books about cartography: Malachy Tallack gave us The Un-Discovered Islands - a swashbuckling romp through 20 islands of the imagination, some of which featured on sea charts for centuries before being proven not to exist' * Scotland on Sunday * 'Malachy Tallack is an engaging and fluent writer of essential kindliness' -- John MacLeod * The Scottish Review of Books * 'Tallack teases all this out with great wit and subtlety' * The Scotsman * 'This is a splendid and wistful book' -- Stuart Kelly * The Spectator * 'One of the best new travel books' * The Guardian * 'This is a book to cherish and to dip in and out of when time allows' * Lovereading *