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Eric Linklater

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Eric Robert Russell Linklater (8 March 1899 – 7 November 1974) was a Welsh-born Scottish poet and novelist.

Eric Linklater

Eric Linklater. Courtesy Listal.

Life[]

Overview[]

Linklater is known for authoring more than 20 novels. He also wrote short stories, books on travel and military history, and autobiographies.

Youth and education[]

Linklater was born in Penarth, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. His father had been born in the Orkney Islands. His mother was the daughter of a Swedish-born sea captain[1] who had become a naturalized British citizen and married an Englishwoman. He thus had Scandinavian origins through both parents (the name Linklater is a local Orkney name derived from the Old Norse), and throughout life he maintained a sympathetic interest in Scandinavia.

He was educated in Aberdeen Grammar School and Aberdeen University, where he was President of the Aberdeen University Debater.

Career[]

Merkister Hotel - geograph.org.uk - 491947

Merkister Hotel, Mirbister, Orkney Islands, where Eric Linklater lived. Photo by Colin Smith. Licensed under Creative Commons, courtesy Geograph.org.

Linklater was initially a medical student and then went into journalism, becoming a full time writer in the 1930s.

He stood, unsuccessfully, in the East Fife by-election of 1933 as the National Party of Scotland candidate.

He spent many years in Orkney, and identified strongly with the islands

Linklater had 4 children. His elder son, Magnus Linklater (born 1942), is a journalist and former editor of The Scotsman. His younger son, Andro Linklater, is also a writer and journalist. His elder daughter, Alison (born 1934), is an artist. His younger daughter, Kristin Linklater, is an actor, voice teacher and author of Freeing the Natural Voice, and his grandson by Kristin, Hamish Linklater, is also an actor.

Recognition[]

For The Wind on the Moon, a children's fantasy novel, Linklater won the 1944 Carnegie Medal from the Library Association for the year's best children's book by a British subject.[2]

Publications[]

Poetry[]

  • A Dragon Laughed, and other poems. London: Macmillan, 1930.

Plays[]

  • The Devil's in the News: Comedy to be played with occasional music. London: Cape, 1934.
  • Love in Albania: A comedy in three acts. London: English Theatre Guild, 1950.
  • Two Comedies: Love in Albania, and To meet the MacGregors. London: Macmillan, 1950.
  • The Mortimer Touch: A farcical comedy. London: Samuel French, 1952.

Novels[]

  • White Man's Saga. London: Cape, 1929.
  • Poet's Pub. London: Cape, 1929; London & New York: Penguin, 2012.
  • Juan in America: A novel. London: Cape / New York: Cape & Smith, 1931.
  • The Men of Ness: The saga of Thorlief Coalbiter's sons. London: Cape, 1932.
  • The Crusader's Key. London: White Owl Press, 1933; New York: Knopf, 1933.
  • Magnus Merriman. London & Toronto: Cape, 1934; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1934.
  • Ripeness is All: A novel. London: Cape, 1935; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1935.
  • Juan in China. London: Cape, 1937; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1937.
  • The Sailor's Holiday. London: Cape, 1937; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1938.
  • The Impregnable Women. London: Cape, 1938; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1938.
  • Judas: A novel. London: Cape, 1939; New York: Farrar & Rinehart, 1939.
  • The Cornerstones: A conversation in Elysium. London: Macmillan, 1941.
  • Crisis in Heaven: An Elysian comedy. London: Macmillan, 1944.
  • Private Angelo. London & Toronto: Cape, 1946.
  • A Spell for Old Bones. London: Cape, 1949.
  • Mr Byculla (novella). London: R. Hart-Davis, 1950; New York: Harcourt, 1950.
  • Laxdale Hall: A novel. London: Cape, 1951; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1952.
  • The House of Gair: A novel. London: Cape, 1953.
  • The Faithful Ally. London: Cape, 1954.
    • published in U.S. as The Sultan and the Lady. New York: Harcourt Brace, 1954.
  • The Dark of Summer. London: Cape, 1956; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1956.
  • Position at Noon: A novel. London: Cape, 1958.
  • Karina with Love. London: Macmillan, 1958.
  • Husband of Delilah: A novel. London: Macmillan, 1962; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1962.
  • A Man Over Forty: A novel. London: Macmillan / New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1963.
  • A Terrible Freedom. London, Melbourne, & Toronto: Macmillan, 1966.

Short fiction[]

  • The Revolution. London: White Owl Press, 1934.
  • The Raft, and Socrates Asks Why: Two conversations. London: Macmillan, 1942.
  • The Great Ship, and Rabelais Replies: Two conversations. London: Macmillan, 1944.
  • Sealskin Trousers, and other stories. London: R. Hart-Davis, 1947.
  • A Sociable Plover and other Stories and Conceits - (1957) stories
  • The Goose Girl, and other stories (illustrated by Andro Linklater). Edinburgh: Canongate, 1991.
  • The Stories of Eric Linklater. London, Melbourne, & Toronto: Macmillan, 1968; New York: New Horizon, 1969.

Non-fiction[]

  • Ben Jonson and King James: Biography and portrait. London: Cape, 1931.
  • Mary, Queen of Scots. London: Peter Davies, 1933; New York: D. Appleton-Century, 1933.
  • Robert the Bruce. London: Peter Davies, 1934; New York: D. Appleton-Century, 1934.
  • Ripeness is All (1935)
  • The Lion and the Unicorn; or, What England has meant to Scotland. London: Routledge, 1935.
  • The Defence of Calais. London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1941.
  • The Man on My Back: An autobiography. London: Macmillan, 1941.
  • The Northern Garrisons. London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1941
    • published in U.S. as The Northern Garrisons: The defense of Iceland and the Faeroe, Orkney and Shetland Islands. Garden City, NY: Garden City Publishing, 1941.
  • The Highland Division. London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1942.
  • The Art of Adventure. London: Macmillan, 1944.
  • The Campaign in Italy. London: H.M. Stationery Office, 1951.
  • Figures in a Landscape (1952)
  • A Year of Space: A chapter in autobiography. London: Macmillan, 1953.
  • The Ultimate Viking. London: Macmillan, 1955; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1956.
  • The Merry Muse. London: Cape, 1959; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1959.
  • Edinburgh. London: Newnes, 1960; New York: Macmillan, 1961.
  • Orkney and Shetland: An historical, geographical, social and scenic survey. London: R. Hale, 1965.
  • The Prince in the Heather. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1965; New York: Harcourt Brace, 1966.
  • The Conquest of England. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1966; Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1966.
  • Introduction to Scotland (photos by Edwin Smith). London: Thames & Hudson, 1968; New York: Viking, 1968.
  • The Survival of Scotland: A review of Scottish history from Roman times to the present day. London: Heinemann, 1968; Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968.
  • The Royal House. London: Macmillan, 1970; Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1970
    • also published as The Royal House of Scotland. London: Sphere, 1972.
  • Fanfare for a Tin Hat: A third essay in autobiography. London: Macmillan, 1970.
  • The Voyage of the Challenger. London: John Murray, 1972; Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1972.
  • The Black Watch: The history of the Royal Highland Regiment. London: Barrie & Jenkins, 1977.

Juvenile[]

  • The Wind on the Moon: A story for children (illustrated by Nicholas Bentley). London: Macmillan, 1944).
  • The Pirates in the Deep Green Sea: A story for children (illustrate by William Reeves). London: Macmillan, 1949.

Edited[]

  • The Thistle and the Pen: An anthology of modern Scottish writers. London & New York: Nelson, 1950.


Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.[3]

See also[]

References[]

  • Parnell, Michael (1984) Eric Linklater: a critical biography. London: John Murray ISBN 0-7195-4109-3
  • Massie, Allan (1999) Eric Linklater: a critical biography. Edinburgh: Canongate ISBN 0-86241-886-0

Notes[]

  1. ↑ Keay, J. & Keay, J. (1994) Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland. London. HarperCollins.
  2. ↑ (Carnegie Winner 1944). Living Archive: Celebrating the Carnegie and Greenaway Winners. CILIP. Web, 15 August 2012.
  3. ↑ Search results = au:Eric Linklater, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, Nov. 15, 2014.

External links[]

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