The Marches

A Borderland Journey Between England and Scotland

By: Rory Stewart

Narrated by: Rory Stewart

Ten years after the walk across Central Asia and Afghanistan that he memorialized in his best-selling The Places in Between, Rory Stewart set out on a new journey, traversing a thousand miles between England and Scotland.

Stewart was raised along the border of the two countries, the frontier taking on poignant significance in his understanding of what it means to be both Scottish and English, of his relationship with his father, who's lived on this land his whole life, and of his ties to the rich history and culture of the region. Now representing this borderland as a Member of Parliament, Stewart's march begins as his father turns 90, Scotland is about to vote on independence, and Britain may disappear forever. At times alone and at times joined by his father, Stewart melds the story of his journey with an intimate portrait of the changing social and political landscape of the region.

Stewart has written for the New York Times Magazine, Granta, and the London Review of Books.

©2016 Rory Stewart (P)2016 Recorded Books

Excellent

l liked this book,very informative. So much history that I never knew. Great narration,I will listen again,andagin.

A treasured companion

Ultimately, every bit as good as the author's The Places In Between. This book can be your treasured companion for weeks. I literally didn't want it to end. The author-narrator sings and also performs a series of voices, languages, and accents. This book leaves you with a list for life.

Enjoyably different.

I enjoyed the meandering journey through this book. It deals well with local and national identity. As well as how we see ourselves.

Uneven and unexpected, still worth it.

You should read this book if you've read Stewart's previous books and enjoyed them, otherwise it's probably skippable. It's extraordinarily unexpected. It's almost like it was supposed to be one of those books that rising politicians always tend to write, where they encounter Real People from True Country, whose innate and good knowings trump the elitist swots from London (or Washington, or where have you) who think they know best. Fortunately, Stewart has way too much going on upstairs and has seen way too much in his life to write a book exactly like that (although the second part of three comes pretty close.)

As Stewart walks along Hadrian's Wall and from England to Scotland, he bring along the eye of a man who has both seen and experienced empire, and who has negotiated borders more stark than any in the British Isles. What he sees as a result is not what he expected or hoped to find, not in the landscape or the people. He's aided by the presence of his elderly father, a man who is the same time a lovable old eccentric and an old pillar of the British Empire, a man who in his 90s still speaks several dialects of Chinese, was once known as the "Butcher of Penang" (possibly a joke?), and served as the quartermaster of the intelligence services ("Q", in James Bond terms.) The two Stewarts, as warriors, spies and diplomats of real calibre, barely stand out as they negotiate a landscape apparently used to their type. Here there is a statue to the man who conquered India, here is a farmer whose ancestor once captured the king of Afghanistan, here is a man who sings songs in the language of a nation nobody now remembers...

What does it all mean, about Great Britain today? Stewart has no idea and frankly admits as much, several times despairing his father that he has no idea what kind of book he's going to write. This gives it all a frustrating, meandering nature. But it's stuck with me, in a vaguely unsettling way. The suggestion in the end is that where we are from is at the same time somewhere and nowhere, and that this is no new phenomenon of modernity. The stories we tell and the artifacts we venerate are made as much of projection as of actual history, and that our own lives await the same inevitable, inescapable interpretation, and not always before we ourselves are gone from the scene. So not a typical politician book.

Not what I expected

I thought it would be more of author's relationship with his father on a walk. It was more a history of the border, good but not what I bought the book for.

Not what I expected

Rather than a narration of a trip along Hadrian's Wall with his father, this book is more of an exploration of Scottish identity and Rory Stewart's relationship with his father. That said, it makes it an even more interesting book.

Rory's father is a very interesting person with a history in the military during the second world war, continuing on to colonial work and the less spoken of secret service. From a very different era, it is enjoyable to hear of his anecdotes, advice, and conversations with his son.

The walk involves a number of trips on the borderland between Scotland and England initially understanding the Roman occupation and building of the wall, and later talking to people living in the area and their views on life and identity. What comes across is a greater understanding of how the people on both sides of the border are more alike than different and less traditional than they consider. In fact the whole idea of what is traditional is brought into question.

Bearing in mind that this was written around the time of the independence vote, it could be biased in order to have some influence on the vote. However, it highlights a theme with Rory Stewart in that he takes time to research the people in depth in order to gain a better understanding of a situation, rather than saying what he thinks. In this respect, I believe the book represents the people of the border land between the two countries, and an important read for anyone interested in the whole Scottish independence discussion.

Absolute delight!

I can’t describe the experience of listening to this story, except to say I was completely taken in.

Audible should always encourage where possible the author reading their own books. It’s a tenfold better experience.

I know it was some time ago now, but condolences for the loss of your father, Rory.

Should've hired a professional!

I stuck with this one for about three hours, until I decided I could not listen to the author's voice for one more minute. So very upper class that it sounded like a bad parody - ugh! Material itself may have had some promise, though I wasn't interested in his, or his father's, philosophies on life. At Your Own Risk.