A north-east man’s remarkable Arctic adventure has been chronicled in a new book to be released by Scottish charity the Saltire Society this week.
James Duthie’s 3,000 mile journey from his home village of Cairnbulg near Fraserburgh to the far north of Scandinavia has been charted in a limited-edition run of ‘I Cycled Into The Arctic Circle’.
The book is based on an original text written by deaf man Mr Duthie – known locally as Dummy Jim – with reflections from filmmaker Matt Hulse who brought the journey to the big screen in 2013.
The film, Dummy Jim, was released in 2013 and was nominated for the Edinburgh International Film Festival’s Michael Powell Award that year.
Published in conjunction with the London-based Swedish publishing house Swedenborg Society, the new book is fully illustrated and richly annotated for collectors.
It contains extracts from the screenplay, location photography stills and a specially commissioned poem from Aberdeenshire poet John Mackie.
On the launch of the new book, Saltire Society director Jim Tough said: “This is a terrific collaboration honouring a heart-warming and inspirational story. The book itself is a beautiful object and we’re very excited about its release.”
Only 500 copies of ‘I Cycled Into The Arctic Circle’ have been printed.
The Saltire Society is a charity working to preserve Scottish traditions and encourage projects which enrich Scottish culture.