The House with the Green Shutters - Softcover

Brown, Gordon Douglas; Douglas Brown, George

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1904598587 ISBN 13: 9781904598589

Publisher: Birlinn, 2005

Synopsis

The brutish John Gourlay is a merchant in the village of Barbie, envied and resented by the villagers because of his success, which is symbolised in his prestigious house with green shutters. He dominates and bullies his family, in particular his gifted, sensitive but weak son. 

Ultimately, his refusal to acknowledge the arrival of the railway and to adapt to the increasing industrialisation of Ayrshire precipitates murder, suicide and his family's tragic downfall.

About this title

About the Author

George Douglas Brown Was Born Illegitimate In Ochiltree, Ayrshire (The Model For The Barbie Of The House With The Green Shutters), In 1869 And Educated At The Universities Of Glasgow And Oxford. After His Mother's Death He Moved To London And Embarked On A Journalistic Career, Publishing His First Novel, Love And A Sword, Under The Name Of Kennedy King, In 1899. The House With The Green Shutters Came Out A Year Later To Great Acclaim, Receiving Comparisons With R.l. Stevenson And John Galt. He Died In 1902, Leaving The Idea For A Subsequent Novel, The Incompatibles, Unrealised.



George Douglas Brown was born in 1869 in Ayrshire. The illegitimate son of a local farmer, he was raised by his mother. He gained a bursary to the University of Glasgow and later a scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford. After his mother's death, Brown moved to London and began a career in journalism. He contributed to a variety of journals and, in the autumn of 1900, began writing The House With the Green Shutters, which was favourably recieved and compared to Balzac and Stevenson. Aged only 33, he died of pneaumonia in 1902.

Edition details

• Publisher: Birlinn
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1904598587
• ISBN 13: 9781904598589
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 316
• Editor: Porter Dorothy, McMillan Dorothy