I hid a smile at the mention of wool waulking. Alone among the Highland farms, I was sure, the women of Lailybroch waulked their wool not only to the old traditional chants but also to the rhythms of Moliére and Piron.

“This boy Victor’s going to show us where.” “Well lessgo, lessgo!”

I’m just saying that usually when you have a friend who’s a girl, it’s not just that she’s your friend. Either you’ve known her a long time, or she’s a friend with benefits.

Good-hearted fellows in their way, true to each other, and invariably gentle and courteous to women, is the much-maligned and misunderstood digger.