My Heart's in the Lowlands: Ten Days in Bonny Scotland

My Heart’s in the Lowlands by Liz Curtis Higgs is a virtual tour of some of the most beautiful and beloved places in southwest Scotland.Liz Curtis Higgs is well-known for her historical christian fiction books set in Scotland (i.e. The Lowlands of Scotland series). In this non-fiction book Liz takes us on a 10-day journey with her around the countryside of Galloway visiting idyllic country villages, remote castles and churches, and even some of the places she used as settings in her fictional series. Liz is so enamored with the Scottish countryside that one can’t help but catch a bit of her excitement as you travel the pages of her book.The tour begins in Glasgow as Liz collects a rental car and heads south past Sanquar to the tiny hamlet of Durisdeer. The sightseeing starts at the Durisdeer parish church and continues through the afternoon as Liz’s car winds through tiny villages and lands in the vicinity of Dumfries. We tag along as Liz gives us glimpses into each of the places she stops for a meal, throwing in Scottish vocabulary here and there to help foreigners get a feel for the words used in everyday life in the region of Galloway.Each day is planned with historic sites, a museum or used bookstore, a handful of villages to delight any tourist, new foods to discover, and descriptions of the lush, magical countryside that enchants its visitors. Liz drives us to places like the Abbey Cottage Tearoom, the Shambellie House Museum of Costume, Drumcoltran Tower, the town of Castle Douglas, and Threave Gardens. Places full of history and overflowing with beauty appear on page after page. And Liz makes sure to tell the names of the roads she’s taking and other helpful travel info so people can find these places on their own!Liz intersperses her touring with bits and pieces of history about the places she stops. She also includes quotes here and there from her novels so those familiar with her books can picture the places she was painting into her works of fiction. Notes are included in the back of the book so you can see what resources Liz used for her own travels (she returns to Scotland yearly) as well as for this book. She also mentions Scotland’s Gardens which is a charity listing all the private gardens open each year for a small entrance fee. It is worth checking their website for gardens in the area you may be traveling to.Travel Notes: this would be a very helpful resource for planning a trip to the area of Galloway and Dumfries or for armchair travel in general.

I was disappointed to find that this is a travel journal instead of a novel. I am enjoying this though, The descriptions in the book of lower Scotland are very vivid and make the reader feel like you are there.

This books is a breezy kind of travel guide, specific to SW Scotland. I myself traveled much of this area a few months ago. This is not an in-depth guide on what to see and where to stay, but more a compilation of experiences that the author had over a number of years.If you are tired of reading typical "bullet-point" travel books, then I would read this one. Honestly, I wish I would have had this book prior to my trip - there are a few places that I wished I had better information on...Enjoy....

I am planning my first trip to Scotland and Liz Curtis Higgs theauthor of "My Heart's In The Lowlands" made it all come alivefor me from the plane trip there to every road, loch, famouspoints of interest, food and more. After reading this book, Ifeel when I arrive in Scotland I will not be a stranger. Hopeyou take the journey with her and then see beautiful Scotlandin person.

Having seen Liz in person at women's conferences and reading many of her spiritual books, expected to enjoy this book and was really drawn in by her description of travelling in Scotland. Kind of like a best girlfriend telling you all about this fabulous trip! Really enjoyed reading of her adventures!

Love Liz Curtis Higgs! Humor in all aspects of life. Enjoyed this travelogue-style telling of her trip to Scotland---the places she stayed, visited, people she met, and sometimes the food she ate. Felt like I was on a trip to Scotland with her, which is what her writing style intended.

I loved touring Scotland with Liz Higgs through this book. My husband and I have been in Scotland twice and could not see enough of it. This was a wonderful way to travel until hopefully we can go back. Scotland does capture your heart. I recommend this book to anyone who would like to go there or would like to go back and see more of the country.

I loved everything about this book. It made me feel like I was right there in the Lowlands with Liz. This was a very detailed colorful book.

Written by Canadian Authoress Liz Curtis Higgs, this book, subtitled Ten Days in Bonny Scotland follows Liz's visit to the Dumfries & Galloway region as part of her research for the historical Scottish novels she writes. It is a very readable and enjoyable account of the places she visited and the people she met during her stay in Dumfries and Galloway, and although originally published in 2007, it is still a very good means of exploring the region from the comfort of your armchair even today!

Just telling about the area, not really a story, it was alright but only just alright, sorry I just read half of it and skimmed the rest

So well written that I want to follow the route described myself and am looking forward to the journey one day

As an ex-local I loved this book.

Excellent