★★★★★

I'm not sure if I should be writing a review of this book, as I am the author. But I did buy it through the usual sales channel, because I hadn't seen a hard copy yet! I do love how my book looks, and I think it will be of interest to a lot of people on most continents who have Scottish roots. One small detail about the book binding: my copy fell apart at the first opening. Three pages are still loose. The second copy (I'd bought it for my husband), was just fine.

★★★★★

In collating, editing and annotating her mother’s diaries, Evy has given us an insight into Scottish life as it was for many women, their husbands and their children in the 1940s and 1950s. The hardships that accompanied modest wages for the working man and the challenges that faced the wife as homemaker and mother to a large family were real and virtually impossible to change. With good-natured humour and unadorned detail, Gladys’ diaries tell how she coped with a constantly growing family and a hard-working husband. She gives straightforward and penetrative insights into how she managed to love, warm, clothe, and feed her family under permanently difficult circumstances. To put it simply: “It’s how people managed” in those days without complaint or self-pity. Indeed, the pride of succeeding comes through powerfully in her regular diary entries. How did she manage to write so many letters to so many newspapers and to keep an informative journal? Because, instead of making the common excuse: I don’t have time, she set priorities and accomplished them. Molasses and Midges offers us a nostalgic journey back to challenging times in Scotland.

★★★★★

This book gives a very interesting peek into life back in the 50's era Scotland. The book is written in diary style by a mom of 10 children, which seems like such a completely different world compared to today. One of her daughters made the diary's into a close up feeling on how things were back then. Very interesting and worth while to read!

★★★★★

I like the book, it’s like she was talking to me.

★★★★★

I’m reading pages from your book before sleeping, dreaming about Lochs and weird Syrups combined with feathers from pillow fights!

★★★★★

Het boek “Molasses and Midges” geeft een prachtige inkijk op het leven in Schotland. Als je het leven van toen bekijkt en vergelijkt met nu, dan is het onbegrijpelijk dat iemand met zo’n groot gezin nog in staat is om een dagboek bij te houden. De schrijfster legt duidelijk de nadruk op de dagboekteksten en geeft alleen verklarende toelichtingen, waardoor het prettig lezen is en je moeite hebt om het boek weg te leggen.

★★★★★

The book "Molasses and Midges" offers a wonderful glimpse into life in Scotland. When you look at life back then and compare it to today, it's incomprehensible that someone with such a large family could still keep a diary. The author clearly emphasizes the diary entries and provides only explanatory notes, making it a pleasure to read and one that you'll find hard to put down. Highly recommended.

★★★★★

This book felt like a calm moment of reflection for me. Granny Irving’s stories are simple, honest, and sometimes touching. The small details and memories are what make it so enjoyable to read. It’s not a fast-paced book, but one to take your time with and truly appreciate. A good choice for readers who enjoy warm, human stories with a nostalgic tone.

★★★★★

In collating, editing and annotating her mother’s diaries, Evy has given us an insight into Scottish life as it was for many women, their husbands and their children in the 1940s and 1950s. The hardships that accompanied modest wages for the working man and the challenges that faced the wife as homemaker and mother to a large family were real and virtually impossible to change. With good-natured humour and unadorned detail, Gladys’ diaries tell how she coped with a constantly growing family and a hard-working husband. She gives straightforward and penetrative insights into how she managed to love, warm, clothe, and feed her family under permanently difficult circumstances. To put it simply: “It’s how people managed” in those days without complaint or self-pity. Indeed, the pride of succeeding comes through powerfully in her regular diary entries. How did she manage to write so many letters to so many newspapers and to keep an informative journal? Because, instead of making the common excuse: I don’t have time, she set priorities and accomplished them. Molasses and Midges offers us a nostalgic journey back to challenging times in Scotland.

★★★★★

I'm not sure if I should be writing a review of this book, as I am the author. But I did buy it through the usual sales channel, because I hadn't seen a hard copy yet! I do love how my book looks, and I think it will be of interest to a lot of people on most continents who have Scottish roots. One small detail about the book binding: my copy fell apart at the first opening. Three pages are still loose. The second copy (I'd bought it for my husband), was just fine.

★★★★★

This book is a nostalgic look at life in the Highlands of Scotland during the 1940s and 1950s for women and their children. Evy has gleaned these stories from her mother’s diaries of that time. It was a tough life for Gladys and her family. This narrative shows Granny Irving’s strength and spirit as she faces all the challenges of the times. Interesting and entertaining!

★★★★★

A most enjoyable read. Fun, laughter, tears and jolly hard work and all written about in a delightful manner. How wonderful that Evy’s Mum kept a diary. Looking forward to reading more about it all.

★★★★★

What a wonderful book about my family, life wasn’t always easy, but there were certainly lots of crazy adventures x Life in the Glen certainly sounded fun, looking forward to book 2 🥰☺️

★★★★★

It's nice to learn about the family. It's a very good read if anyone is interested. I enjoyed learning the history of
my grandparents and can't wait to read the next book.

★★★★★

I found this story entertaining because it captured the challenges of raising kids in Scotland amid life's many hurdles, where love always endured. The diary-style of writing made it a quick and engrossing read, where time seemed to disappear.