 Cover of first edition | |
| Author | Gavin Maxwell |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Peter Scott |
Publication date | 1960 |
| ISBN | 0-14-003923-6 |
Ring of Bright Water is a book by Gavin Maxwell about his life in a remote house in coastal Scotland where he kept several wild otters as pets. [1] [2] First published in 1960, it became a best seller and is considered a literary masterpiece, [3] eventually selling over two million copies. [4] A fictionalised film of the same name was made from it [4] and released in 1969. [3]
The book describes how Maxwell brought to England a smooth-coated otter, from the Marshes of Iraq (before Saddam Hussein drained them)
Maxwell named the otter Mijbil. He raised Mijbil at Camusfeàrna (the name Maxwell gave his house at Sandaig near Glenelg), on the west coast of Scotland. Maxwell took Mijbil to the London Zoological Society where it was determined that Mijbil belonged to a previously unknown subspecies, subsequently named after Maxwell: Lutrogale perspicillata maxwelli (or colloquially, "Maxwell's otter"). [5]
'"Into this bright, watery landscape Mij moved and took possession with a delight that communicated itself as clearly as any articulate speech could have done," he wrote. "The waterfall, the burn, the white beaches and the islands; his form became the familiar foreground to them all."' [6]
The book's title was taken from a poem by Kathleen Raine, [4] who claimed in her autobiography that Maxwell had been the love of her life. Her relationship with Maxwell deteriorated after 1956 when she indirectly caused the death of Mijbil. [7]
A reviewer in the Sunday Herald described the book as having "inspired a generation of naturalists" and referred to it as a "classic account of man and wildlife". The review calls Ring of Bright Water "one of the most popular wildlife books ever written", as over two million copies had been sold worldwide by 1999. [8]
Two sequels were published: The Rocks Remain (1963) and Raven Seek Thy Brother (1968), which were less idyllic than the first, chronicling accidents and misfortunes involving both the otters and Maxwell's life. [9] All three books were republished as Ring of Bright Water: A Trilogy in 2011 by Nonpareil Books. [10] The trilogy does not include the full text of the latter two volumes, but removes the tangential travel sections which take place outside Scotland. [9]
Wigtown is a town and former royal burgh in Wigtownshire, of which it is the county town, within the Dumfries and Galloway region in Scotland. It lies east of Stranraer and south of Newton Stewart. It is known as "Scotland's National Book Town" with a high concentration of second-hand book shops and an annual book festival.
Gavin MaxwellFRSL FZS FRGS was a British naturalist and author, best known for his non-fiction writing and his work with otters. He wrote the book Ring of Bright Water (1960) about how he brought an otter back from Iraq and raised it in Scotland. The otter was of a previously unknown sub-species which was subsequently named after Maxwell. Ring of Bright Water sold more than a million copies and was made into a film starring Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna in 1969.
Kathleen Jessie Raine was a British poet, critic and scholar, writing in particular on William Blake, W. B. Yeats and Thomas Taylor. Known for her interest in various forms of spirituality, most prominently Platonism and Neoplatonism, she was a founding member of the Temenos Academy.
Terence Paul Nutkins was an English naturalist. He appeared in the UK children's programmes Animal Magic, The Really Wild Show, Brilliant Creatures and Growing Up Wild.
Glenelg is a scattered community area and civil parish in the Lochalsh area of Highland in western Scotland. Despite the local government reorganisation the area is considered by many still to be in Inverness-shire, the boundary with Ross-shire being at the top of Mam Ratagan the single-track road entry into Glenelg.
Dame Virginia Anne McKenna is a British stage and screen actress, author, animal rights activist, and wildlife campaigner. She is best known for the films A Town Like Alice (1956), Carve Her Name with Pride (1958), Born Free (1966), and Ring of Bright Water (1969), as well as her work with the Born Free Foundation.
Simon Mario Reuel Tolkien is a British novelist and former barrister. He is the grandson of J. R. R. Tolkien, and the eldest child of Christopher Tolkien.
Ring of Bright Water is a 1969 British comedy-drama film starring Bill Travers and Virginia McKenna. It is a story about a Londoner and his pet otter living on the Scottish coast. The story is fictional, but is adapted from the 1960 autobiographical book of the same name by Gavin Maxwell. It featured the stars of Born Free, another film about a close relationship between humans and a wild animal.
Eilean Bàn is a six-acre (2.4 ha) island between Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye, in the historic county of Ross and Cromarty in the Highland local government area. The Skye Bridge uses the island as a stepping-stone as it crosses the mouth of Loch Alsh from the mainland to Skye.
Kathleen Jamie FRSL is a Scottish poet and essayist. In 2021 she became Scotland's fourth Makar.
Sir Herbert Eustace Maxwell, 7th Baronet, was a Scottish novelist, essayist, artist, antiquarian, horticulturalist, prominent salmon angler and author of books on angling and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1906.
Arnisdale is a hamlet in the historic county of Inverness-shire in the local authority area of Highlands of Scotland. It lies on the north shore of Loch Hourn, around 10 miles down a single-track road from Glenelg. It has a permanent population of around 30 and several holiday cottages. At the end of the community is a large white-painted hunting lodge called Arnisdale House, built by architects Robert John Macbeth & Alexander Ross in 1898–1916. The house was built for Valentine Fleming of the banking family, who was killed in action in World War I, a year after the house was completed.
Glasserton is a civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. It is on the Machars peninsula, in the traditional county of Wigtownshire. The parish is about 8 miles (13 km) in length, varying in breadth from 1 to 3 miles, and contains 13,477 acres (54.54 km2).
Jameson Clark was a Scottish character actor who appeared in 22 films and made many appearances on television.
Laurence Broderick, MRBS FRSA, is a British sculptor. His best known work is 'The Bull', a public sculpture erected in 2003 at the Bull Ring, Birmingham. The Bull is about 4.5 meters long, about 220 cm high and weighs about 6.5 tons. It is one of the largest bronze animal sculptures in the country. His work consists largely of figurative carvings in stone and editions in bronze.
Dutton Animal Book Award was an American literary award established in 1963 by publisher E. P. Dutton to recognize a previously unpublished work of fiction or non-fiction relating to animals. The reward for the winner was a $7,500 to $15,000 advanced against royalties after publication of the book by Dutton. The award was inspired by the success of Gavin Maxwell's Ring of Bright Water (1960), the story of two otters. The award was presented between 1963 and 1969; there was a 6-year hiatus with one more award presented in 1975.
Mairi Hedderwick is a Scottish illustrator and author, known for the Katie Morag series of children's picture books set on the Isle of Struay, a fictional counterpart of the inner Hebridean island of Coll where Hedderwick has lived at various times for much of her life.
Monreith House is a category A listed Georgian mansion located 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) east of the village of Port William in Mochrum parish in the historical county of Wigtownshire in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The classical-style house was designed by Alexander Stevens in 1791, for Sir William Maxwell, 4th Baronet. The new house replaced the now-ruined Myrton Castle on the estate which was partially dismantled to provide stone for the house. The grounds of the house are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland, the national listing of significant gardens, and are classed as "outstanding" in five out of six categories.
Monreith is a small seaside village in the Machars, in the historical county of Wigtownshire, Scotland.
Cal Flyn is a Scottish author and journalist.
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