In her autobiographical Far from the Rowan Tree, Margaret Gillies Brown wrote about the Gillies family's migration to 1950s Canada. Its sequel Around the Rowan Tree established her further as a popular writer of wide appeal. Her strength is writing simply and movingly about the ebb and flow of ordinary lives.

In this new book, The Wind in Her Hands, she turns her attention to the life of her own mother whose extraordinary achievements stemmed from humble beginnings as the daughter of a North East farm. Defying conventions and the social expectations of a tight community, Jessie Isobel Jaffray has the strength of mind and spirit to go her own way in 1900s Scotland. An inspiration to modern women finding their own head in a contradictory modern world.

Reviews

"an intriguing picture of life early last century"
Caledonia Magazine

"it never flags - the story of a strong woman"
Moray Firth Radio

"inspirational"
Press and Journal

about Margaret Gillies Brown's other books...

"'brilliant insight"
The Big Issue

"you can't help but warm to this"
Farmers Weekly

"pioneers like these are the kind of Scots we should hear more about"
The Local News (Govanhill and Gorbals)

"an easily readable style, the book is an uplifting experience"
Fife & Kinross Extra

"I loved this book because of the atmosphere it creates"
Elizabeth Sutherland

"a heart-warming story"
The Leopard

"compellingly personal, (a) vivid portrait"
Scotland on Sunday