Why a Booktrail?
2000s: A man shoots his wife, daughter and son. Only the son survives.
2000s: A man shoots his wife, daughter and son. Only the son survives.
When Tom was eight years old, his father took a shotgun and shot his family: his wife, his son and baby daughter, before turning the gun on himself. Only Tom survived.
He left his tiny, shocked community on the island of Litta and the strained silence of his Uncle Malcolm’s house while still a young boy. For twenty years he’s tried to escape his past. Until now.
Without knowing how to ask, he needs answers – from his uncle, who should have known. From his neighbours, who think his father a decent man who ‘just snapped’. From the memories that haunt the wild landscape of the Hebrides.
And from the silent ones who know more about what happened – and why – than they have ever dared admit.
Litta
The island is based on and inspired by the very real island of Colonsay. It’s small and you can imagine the very type of homecoming someone would have here after living elsewhere. It’s remote and isolated and feels claustrophobic
The island of Litta is a small, contained community where everyone knows everything..but at the same time everyone keeps themselves to themselves.
Tom returns to Litta after 20 years, turning up unexpectedly. This is the place where his father killed his entire family. Memories float in the rough sea. How on earth do you return to a place like this?
Raw, remote and tragic.
Destination/location: Hebrides Author/guide: Rebecca Wait Departure Time: 2000s
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