The Outrun by Amy Liptrot

In October I not only decided to read Waterstones recommeded fiction read, but also the non-fiction book of the month.

The Outrun by Amy Liptrot

Amy Liptrot’s book is a brutally honest tale of her fight against addiction and how she ends up back home in Orkney, having left to seek a future in London away from the claustrophobic limits of island living. In it she gives us an insight into the crippling effect alcholism had on her life and her battle to win back control, whil…e delighting us with descriptions of the stunning wildlife and traditions of life on Orkney.

This is a book that will stay with me for a long time, not just because of the frankness with which she writes about her battle against alcholism, but also the sheer beauty of her writing; which is alternately both delightful, when she describes the natural worlld around her on Orkney and the surrounding islands and candid when writing about her daily struggle against her personal demons. Unlike many memoirs, which to me this is, it is never at any moment self indulgent, a trap so many memoirs of modern ‘celebrities’ fall into.

I found myself eager to know more about the journey she was on to sobriety and her descriptions about life on Orkney made me want to spend time of this and the other islands she visited.

I would recommend this book, which I admit initially attracted my attention because of the beauty of the cover, because Liptrot has so much to teach us. Not just about the natural world around us, but the struggle she and so many others face against addictions. Lives are so often destroyed and yet she not only has survived, she was brave enough to open her journey up to us as readers.

If you read just one non fiction book this year, this touching book should be up there for your consideration.

I read this as a kindle ebook and it is currently priced at £5.22. It is also availble from Waterstones as a paperback for £6.99 and hardback priced at £12.99.