Independent | Eco-friendly | Up to 75% off

Boatlines

Scottish Craft of Sea, Coast and Canal

Ian Stephen
From Oban skiffs with their rounded sterns, through the deep sea trawlers of Aberdeen to the Fair Isle yole with its squaresail, Ian Stephen describes a diverse selection of vessels as he travels the Scottish coast. In addition to outlining how purpose and geography shaped their design, he also presents illustrations, anecdotes and lore that altogether build ‘some sense of their soul’.
Postscript description
Read full publisher description

RRP £16.99

£6.99

Free UK delivery on orders over £25

Product information:
  • Publisher: Birlinn
  • Year: 2023
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 320pp
  • Illustrated: Yes
  • Dimensions: 222x140mm
  • ISBN: 9781780277905
  • Condition: New
  • Weight: 0.5kg
Product code:
545553
Product information
Full publisher description
People are drawn to the harbours and boats of Scotland whether they have a seafaring background or not. Why do boats take on different shapes as you follow the complex shorelines of islands and mainland? And why do the sails they carry appear to be so many shapes and sizes? Then there are rowing craft or power-driven vessels which can also be considered 'classics', whether they were built for work or leisure.



As he traces the iconic forms of a selection of the boats of Scotland, Ian Stephen outlines the purposes of craft, past and present, to help gain a true understanding of this vital part of our culture. Sea conditions likely to be met and coastal geography are other factors behind the designs of a wide variety of craft.



Stories go with boats. The vessels are not seen as bare artefacts without their own soul but more like living things.



'A writer uniquely attuned to the water, and to the relationships each boat shares with the places it shaped, his stories restore past sea roads and river routes to life' - David Gange, author of The Frayed Atlantic Edge
Read full publisher description
Reasons to shop at Postscript

Independent bookseller
Established in 1987, we’ve been sharing reading recommendations for decades.

Books you won’t find elsewhere
Discover new authors among our frequently changing bookshelves, along with almost-forgotten gems and a wealth of unusual titles you won’t find elsewhere.

Eco-friendly packaging
Orders are carefully packed in recyclable cardboard boxes, eco-friendly bubble wrap and solvent-free labels, paper and tape.

Condition and price
All our books are new, unused and unread, and they’re all up to 75% off RRP.

FREE monthly catalogue
Featuring over 400 handpicked titles, our unique catalogue is carefully curated and includes new and unusual titles, special features and exclusive collections.

Email newsletters
Our tailored newsletters are written by our booksellers, and we always highlight the books that we have talked about most in the Postscript office.

Footnotes blog
Some books spark ideas and conversations that our catalogue can’t contain – our Footnotes blog offers a deeper dive into a wealth of topics to inspire further reading.

Aftercare
We are all serious book people and we understand the value of reading. This is why we package our books so carefully and employ a helpful in-house customer services team to promptly resolve any queries you may have.

Delivery information - FREE UK delivery on orders over £25

UK

Free UK standard delivery on all online orders over £25

Flat rate for all standard delivery orders: ‬£3.00 (3-5 working days)

Flat rate for Next Day orders (orders must be placed before 1pm, Monday–Friday): ‬£4.50

Flat rate for all Royal Mail Tracked48 orders: ‬£5.50 (2-4 working days)

Standard delivery‭: ‬3-5‭ ‬working days‭ (‬Highlands and Islands 5-7‭ ‬working days‭)‬

Next day delivery‭: ‬Available all UK excluding Highlands and Islands

Collect your order from a local shop – prices and delivery times as above

Overseas

All orders‭: ‬delivery costs for orders outside the UK are based on country of destination and product weight.

You can view your overseas delivery cost using the Summary section within the Basket‭.‬

For more information on delivery/overseas orders please refer to our Delivery Information.