Samuel Johnson, an English writer, travelled to Scotland in an effort to learn more about Scottish culture with his friend and travel companion James Boswell. Together on their journey Johnson wrote and produced A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland. His journey takes him through a Scotland after the last Jacobite rebellion with a large emphasis on viewing the culture and people. Johnson takes a tour through a large part of Scotland, going through large cities such as Edinburgh before travelling to the more remote Highlands, taking in all of the natural beauty and appraising people and culture during this time. Then Johnson makes his way to the islands, which he remarks on as being of significance and importance to him. 

This book is a remarkable firsthand personal account of his journeys. Johnson is very opinionated, often making unvarnished remarks which show his view that Scottish people are less educated and sophisticated than the English at the time. Johnson is often critical at times; however, he is often impressed with the hospitality he receives, ironically underscoring his prejudices—as he seems to believe that the people he visits could never be sophisticated or polite. This travelogue tells us much of about the mores and attitudes of educated English travellers at the time and is a valuable with great historical importance that shows the changes Scotland was going through towards the end of the eighteenth century.

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