“Who goes to Scotland for two weeks with a stranger they met over the internet?”At forty-three, Ninya was depressed, out of shape, and filled with crippling anxiety after addiction, cancer, and divorce had destroyed nearly everything. One day, she received a message from a stranger. This woman offered to lead her on a self-healing trip hiking through the Scottish highlands.It seemed like a sign—a … highlands.
It seemed like a sign—a big sister sent when she needed one most.
In this sometimes hilarious, sometimes terrifying, but always inspiring memoir, an introverted pollyanna is paired up with her polar opposite—a steamrolling, abrasive female with completely unorthodox healing methods. As they barrel through the winding one lane roads in a tiny rental car stopping to hike at breathtaking mountains and glens, an outrageous series of events forces Ninya to reclaim her power and find the strength to heal herself in one of the most beautiful places on earth.
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Great read…didn’t want to put it down! Well written and speaks to most of us who are still trying to find ourselves and learning to love what we find!
A perfectly crafted memoir that doesn’t sugar coat the bad or ignore the good when traveling to a foreign country with a total stranger who happens to be your complete opposite. A raw look at the author’s backstory makes you root for her and want her to have the perfect trip, but the reality of the situation shows that a trip doesn’t have to be perfect to be great. In fact, it’s the imperfect moments that help her to learn to stand up for herself and get what she wants from it as well as grow as a person. You can read my full review here: https://laurasbooksandblogs.com/scotland-with-a-stranger-book-review/
Just finished ‘Scotland With a Stranger’. Oh, my, goodness! This was brilliantly written and I couldn’t put it down! It made me laugh, tear up, cheer you on and at times question your sanity! I LOVED it!
This book is written for every flailing mom, disappointed ex-wife, struggling sister, regretful daughter and self-doubting female. A true story about how to find yourself, and be who you really are meant to be, maybe even learn to love yourself a little bit, when your world as you know it is falling apart. You will relate to Ninya’s story and appreciate her wonderful ability to tell such a painful tale with wit, grace and by creating a clear vision in your mind’s eye with her beautiful writing. And you will learn that, like Ninya, you don’t have to be the glue holding together everyone else’s dysfunctionality.
Middle-aged single mom Ninya is looking for something to turn her life around, so when an internet acquaintance offers to take her on a spiritual tour of Scotland, Ninya jumps at the opportunity. Against the breathtaking backdrop of Scotland’s natural beauty, Ninya realizes that she doesn’t need a “life coach,” that it is up to her to make the most of every opportunity and challenge. At times funny, a little scary, but most of all inspirational, this book is a reminder that it’s up to each of us to craft a life we love.
After a long day I thought an excellent reward would be to sit down with a glass of wine and read a chapter or two of Scotland With A Stranger. Holy crap! I flipped a page and found myself on chapter 19! I had to force myself to put it down because of an early drive the next morning. I was a bit smarter the second evening and had two glasses of wine ready when I sat down to read. I had to find out what happened by the end of this journey. Spoiler alert – I knew she survived because she shared her incredible story. Ninya made me laugh, made me cry, made me want to punch a couple of guys, (one really, really HARD!) and made me want to give her a big hug. This book is AMAZING! Ninya has a gift for writing and I’m so happy that she shared her emotional journey in Scotland With A Stranger.
There are things in life that speak to the deepest parts of our hearts; our triumphs, our failures, our hopes, our fears, our dreams, our pain.
For some it is art, for others, it is music.
For some, it will be this book.
Ninya shares, in an authentic and uncomplicated way, that she is living a life so many of us live.
The names are changed, the rooms are different colors, the smells vary in their complexity.
You will cheer her as she makes discoveries about life and self you yourself have made.
You will find hope in the lessons she has absorbed; lessons we all know intellectually, but may still be struggling to fully bring into ourselves.
You will want to hug away her pain, so much like your own.
You will want to assure her she is on a good path, she is worthy, she is strength.
She is another version of you, on paper for all to see.
She will remind you that your journey is YOUR journey, and yet is the journey of us all.
And wherever that journey takes us, we are on a good path, we are worthy, we are strength.