In 2016 Robbie Lawrence made his first visit to Linn Gardens at the edge of Cove Bay on the western side of the Rosneath Peninsula. The botanical gardens had been run for fifty years by Jim Taggart, a passionate botanist and gardener. The man discovered that, given the subtropical climate of the region, he had the possibility to grow plants and flowers from all over the world. His efforts led the estate to be covered by an intricate network of ferns, bamboo, magnolias and rhododendrons.
As he grew older, Jim was forced to hand over the baton to his son Jamie, whose duties included travel abroad to research and collect new plant species. During one of these trips, however, in the northern mountainous region of Vietnam, Jamie died. His body was found precipitated in one of the highest passes of the mountain.
“A Voice Above the Linn” is the documentation of this botanical garden and of the person who took care of it most than any other: Jim Taggart, who, when his son died, decided to continue to take care of it, in memory of the deceased boy.
To accompany this intimate work, we also find four poems by the poet John Burnside, marking the rhythm of the book.
