Rob Roy

Rating:
Summary: This book is an excellent weekend project.
Review: "Rob Roy" has one of the best descriptions of Scotland's geography that I have ever read. I enjoyed the rich dialogue and the insight into such a tumultous period of Scottish history.

I would strongly reccommend this book to anyone interested in Scottish history. This version of MacGregor's life is historically accurate and should sate anyone's lust for a dose of history.

Rating:
Summary: Very entertaining if read in it's proper context
Review: Although the book is slow going at first, it is rewarding if you keep mind the time and place in which the story unfolds. Surprisingly, while Rob Roy is a major character, the book is mostly about Francis Osbaldistone, and the situation that he finds himself in. He is forced to act more responsibly, and in the process becomes a much stronger person. The plot twists of the book are one of it's best traits and keep things fresh. However, those expecting an action-packed adventure might be disappointed. Although the book does have some action, it focuses on the psychological more than it does the physical. The book proves that one doesn't have to have a larger than life persona, like Rob Roy's, to be a hero.

Rating:
Summary: Definitely not Scott's best!
Review: For those seeking the famous tale on which the recent film wasbased, this will sorely disappoint. This is Scott's tale of a youngEnglishman, son of a prosperous middle class businessman, who is sent to live w/distant cousins in the north of England (just below the Scottish border) because of his failure to live up to his father's mercantile expectations of him. Here he becomes involved with all manner of intrigue and gets pulled into a vortex of events involving rebellion against the English crown, a scheming cousin, a beautiful girl and that famous Scottish outlaw and freedom fighter, Rob Roy. But the outlaw, certainly the most interesting character in the tale, is only a side player, so to speak, and makes a number of appearances, often in disguises ( a favorite Scott motif), only to guide and/or rescue our blundering hero. This is most definitely not a tale of high adventure and derring do, and the complex and twisted intrigues of the plot do not sustain the book adequately. For those who like period pieces or the works of the masters (and Scott was certainly one), this book might be okay. But this is one of those rare instances where the movie, based apparently on Scott's preface to his book (in which he sketches out the life and times of the historical Rob Roy), is better. And frankly the movie wasn't half bad; far superior, in fact, to that other film of historical Scotland of the same vintage with Mel Gibson. Oddly enough, the Rob Roy film did worse @ the box office. Who can account for some people's taste? -- Stuart W. Mirsky <[e-mail]>

Rating:
Summary: Quaint Story of a Bohemian and his Guardian Angel
Review: Francis Osbaldistone forgoes a position in his father's firm to pursue an existence closer to his own ideals, travel and adventure. In order to even maintain a sufficent income from his father, however, he is sent on an errand to visit relatives in Northern England, and there to locate a replacement for himself in his father's firm from amongst his cousins. Due to a mishap on the road there, however, Francis is cast into a difficult legal situation and quickly learns that there are political and passionate motives behind his being unjustly accused.

This book really reads almost as if it it two different novels. The first half of the book concerns the time that Francis spends at Osbaldistone hall, where he learns that there are undisclosed secrets, some of which implicate him without his knowledge. It is also here that he falls head over heels in love with an unattainable woman. The tension that these scenes create is palpable and enjoyable. Scott is wonderful with English dialogue and his description of the English countryside, its inhabitants, and the activities that consume their day to day existence.

Somewhere along the way, however, the book shifts gears rather dramatically, merely echoing its previous sentimentality and thought. The book becomes more active and more of a travel narrative in Scotland, where a good deal of lawlessness occurs in the hills. Here you'll find the title elusive title character embroiled in his own local political intrigues while also endeavoring to support Francis in his own quest.

Scottish dialect, while faithfully recorded, makes the reading difficult, and at some times arduous. I did find, though, that if you read these phonetically, that you quickly attain the language necessary to follow along. Take the time up front to figure out the Scottish translations and you'll be better suited when it becomes a large part of the latter half of the book.

All in all, I found this to be quite an enjoyable read, although not on the same level as "Ivanhoe," which I think is superior in just about every way. If you've already read "Ivanhoe," and enjoyed it, you will probably like this book as well. I could have potentially given this book 5 stars if I felt that if the protagonist did not have to shift gears so suddenly.

Rating:
Summary: Uggh...
Review: I bought this book earlier from a bookstore. I'm glad I did because returning it was very easy.... I have read more interesting grafitti in bathroom stalls.

Rating:
Summary: Boring and confusing
Review: I have derived many hours of pleasure from this author. My favorite is Ivanhoe. I wouldn't recommend this one, though. It is boring and confusing.

Rating:
Summary: A Classic Tale of High Adventure!!!!
Review: I read this book when I was living in Glasgow, and the descriptions of the city's early days were amazing. This is a great Scottish novel, with all of the lovely scenery and steadfast heroes desired in this type of book. Even a bit of the Gaelic! I was riveted by this book and I highly recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Good story, but...
Review: In the picaresque "Rob Roy," Sir Walter Scott uses the legend of Rob Roy Campbell MacGregor, a Scottish Robin Hood-like character, as a backdrop on which to superimpose his own story of a young Englishman named Francis (Frank) Osbaldistone.

Frank is uninterested in going into his father's merchant business and travels north to live with his uncle and his six cousins at their country estate. He learns that his sinister cousin Rashleigh, who apprentices himself to Frank's father, has plans to embezzle money from the business to finance the Scottish Jacobite rebellion of 1715, in which Rob Roy is a major player. Rob Roy and Frank befriend each other during a series of adventures in which Frank attempts to extricate his father's business from Rashleigh's treachery. Scott writes Rashleigh as the broadest kind of villain, ensuring that he has not a single sympathetic quality. The final confrontation between Frank and Rashleigh in the last chapter is particularly corny and the outcome predictable.

I found the two major heroines of the novel to be interesting. Diana ("Die") Vernon, who lives at Frank's uncle's estate, is betrothed to one of Frank's cousins but enamors Frank. She and Rob Roy's wife, Helen, are portrayed as strong in spirit, honorable to their causes, and capable of taking care of themselves.

My problem with the book is that Scott's prose, despite some wonderful descriptions of Scotland's scenery, is so padded and overwrought that it bogs down the narration and obscures the finer points of the plot. He has trouble maintaining suspense and providing surprises in a story that is basically about crime and intrigue. Moments of tension are dulled by inessential, superfluous dialogue, and not enough dialogue is supplied where it would be most useful in developing the characters or situations. For example, when Frank meets a traveler named Morris who is secretive about the contents of his traveling chest, Scott describes Morris's trepidation with narration instead of using dialogue between Frank and Morris which would more effectively and subtly establish Morris's character and the reason for his apprehension.

In short, "Rob Roy" is a good story but is not great storytelling.

Rating:
Summary: Quite enjoyable, but the Scotch dialects are hard to follow
Review: My first comment is that if you haven't read any Sir Walter Scott, then I would recommend Ivanhoe as your first try. Rob Roy is also very good as described in several of the other customer reviews. But, as my second comment, I would caution readers that a substantial portion of the dialogue is in scottish dialect, and I find it difficult to read it and be sure I understood the nuances of what was said. Scott does provide a glossary, so with a little patience the dialogue can usually be deciphered, although, maddeningly, there are Scottish terms that appear in the text which Scott apparently forgot to include in the glossary. Here is a sample quotation of my own concoction (I don't have the book in front of me.) :

"I trow the gudeman kens I will blow out his harns."

Translation (Guess first!):

"I trust the husband knows I will blow his brains out."

Rating:
Summary: Short and Sweet
Review: Of the four Sir Walter Scott books I own (Ivanhoe, Waverley, Heart of Midlothian, Rob Roy) this one is his worst. So why did I still give it four stars? Because even though it is his worst, it is still a really good book. To start with the bad: it confused me more than his other books I have. Also the plot feels contrived at times and it is stereotypical in the ending. But, it is stereotypical because Sir Walter Scott pretty much invented that kind of ending and so many authors since have ripped it off. The novel achieves the purpose of making the historical feel alive. If you just suspend your disbelief and focus more on the characters and the feel of the age (zeitgeist) that Scott has invented in this book it is a good read.