A Far Cry

Set in postwar Scotland, A Far Cry is a quietly powerful novel about childhood displacement, memory, and endurance.

The story follows seven-year-old Andy – renamed “Meikle” upon arrival – after he is sent away to a remote boarding school governed by rigid routines, unspoken hierarchies, and sudden acts of discipline. Far from home, he must learn how to survive a world that feels both bewildering and absolute, where fear and tenderness exist side by side.

Told in an intimate voice that moves fluidly between immediacy and reflection, the novel captures the emotional logic of childhood: the ache of separation, the solace of small friendships, and the imagination’s ability to offer refuge when escape is impossible.

Based on the author's own life story, A Far Cry is a meditation on how early experiences shape us – and how their echoes carry far into adulthood.