Immerse yourself in a painstakingly recreated depiction of Scottish rural life at the turn of the twentieth century. Regarded as a groundbreaking literary work upon its publication, The House With the Green Shutters takes an unflinching look at the growing conflict between socioeconomic classes during the period, rather than idealizing rustic living, as many writers of the era chose to do.

Reproduction of the original: The House With the Green Shutters by George Douglas

Young Elizabeth Shand, newly married to the unstable but handsome Hector, finds herself in the social, intellectual and spiritual strait-jacket of small-town life early in the 20th century.

The SCOTNOTES booklets are a series of study guides to major Scottish writers and texts frequently used within literature courses, aimed at senior secondary school pupils and students in further education. This title covers the novel The House With the Green Shutters, by George Douglas Brown.

The brutish John Gourlay is a merchant in the village of Barbie, envied and resented by the villagers because of his success, which is symbolised in his prestigious house with green shutters. He dominates and bullies his family, in particular his gifted, sensitive but weak son. Ultimately, his refusal to acknowledge the arrival of the railway and to adapt to the increasing industrialisation of Ayrshire precipitates murder, suicide and his family's tragic downfall.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A modern classic of true crime, set in a most beguiling Southern city—now in a 30th anniversary edition with a new afterword by the author “Elegant and wicked . . . might be the first true-crime book that makes the reader want to book a bed and breakfast for an extended weekend at the scene of the crime.”—The New York Times Book Review Shots rang out in Savannah’s grandest mansion in the misty, early morning hours of May 2, 1981. Was it murder or self-defense? For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares. In this sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative, John Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case. It is a spellbinding story peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters: the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman’s Card Club; the turbulent young gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the “soul of pampered self-absorption”; the uproariously funny drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young people dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight. These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else. Brilliantly conceived and masterfully written, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a sublime and seductive reading experience.