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[Anna NicLeòid] Anna, an toiseach, nuair a bha thu ag èirigh suas anns an Eilean Sgitheanach, dè cho cudromach ’s a bha leughadh dhut?

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Ò,nuair a bha mi beag bìodach cha robh mòran leabhraichean anns an taigh. Leis an fhìrinn chan eil fhios a’m an robh an t-airgead ann airson sin a chosg air leabhraichean. Ach dh’fhosgail saoghal ùr dhomh nuair a thòisich an leabharlann a’ dol timcheall, mobile leabharlann a’ dol timcheall an Eilein Sgitheanaich, agus bha mo mhàthair gu math dèidheil air a bhith a’ leughadh agus cuideachd a chionn ’s gur e mise isean deireadh linn bha an fheadhainn eile a’ leughadh uaireannan dhomh anns an leabaidh nuair a bha mi beag.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus a thaobh nan rudan eile a bh’ agad ri dhèanamh, dè na cur-seachadan eile, dè na cothroman eile a bh’ agad?

[Anna Mhàrtainn] ’S e tomboy uabhasach a bh’ annam. Bha mi a’ ruith timcheall fad an t-siubhail a-muigh air a’ chroit.

[Anna NicLeòid] ’S mar sin dheth bha thu a-muigh agus bha thu a’ leughadh.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Bha, an dà chuid còmhla.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus cuiridh mi geall gun robh thu a’ seinn.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Bha. Bha tòrr seinn a’ dol anns an taigh agus anns a’ choimhearsnachd.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus tha thusa air beòshlaint a dhèanamh gu ìre bho a bhith a’ seinn.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Tha, beagan dhen bheòshlaint agus tha mi air cothroman, fìor chothroman, fhaighinn a bhith a’ siubhail le a bhith a’ seinn.

[Anna NicLeòid] ’S càite an deach thu?

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Tha mi air a bhith ann an Ameireaga ’s Canada, timcheall na Roinn Eòrpa agus Astràilia cuideachd.

[Anna NicLeòid] Nise, chaidh thu air chuairt mhòr a dh’Astràilia, nach deach?

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Chaidh gu dearbh agus fhuair mi an cuireadh a dhol gu fèis thall ann an Astràilia agus bha sinn a’ bruidhinn mar teaghlach air a bhith a’ dol ann co-dhiù a chionn ’s gu bheil caraidean againn ann agus leis an sin chaidh sinn ann airson còig mìosan ’s thog sinn a’ chlann bhon sgoil agus dh’fhalbh sinn an toiseach gu India agus trì mìosan ann an Astràilia.

[Anna NicLeòid] Abair deagh chothrom dhan chloinn.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Deagh chothrom agus chanainn-s’ gur e sin an rud as fheàrr a rinn sinn a-riamh mar theaghlach, a bhith a’ siubhail còmhla ri chèile.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus tha ceangal aig a’ chiad leabhar a tha thu air taghadh dhuinn a-nochd ri Astràilia.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Tha gu dearbh.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus ceangal Breatannach ri Astràilia. Dè dìreach a th’ ann? Dè an leabhar a th’ ann? Innis dhuinn.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] An leabhar a thagh mi ’s e seo. Seo an leabhar – The Secret River. Agus sgrìobh an tè a tha seo an leabhar ’s dòcha dà bhliadhna mus deach mi, mus deach sinn a-nallagus fhuair mi an cothrom a leughadh nuair a bha mi ann, nuair a bha mi ann am Melbourne. Agus ’s e fìor epic, chanainn-s’, a th’ anns an leabhar seo a chionn ’s tha trì pàirtean san sgeul. Tha e a’ tòiseachadh ann an Lunnainn agus mar a bha tòrr de na daoine ann an Lunnainn nan robh iad a’ dèanamh rudeigin dona cha robh iad a’ dol dhan phrìosan ann an seo ach bha aca ri dhol thall thairis.

[Anna NicLeòid] Bha iad air an cur a-mach às an dùthaich a-null a dh’Astràilia, agus ’s e nobhail eachdraidheil a th’ ann.

[Anna Mhàrtainn] ’S e, sin, ’s e. ’S e nobhail a th’ ann agus tha i a’ toirt tòrr dhen sgeul a-mach às a’ bheatha aig an teaghlach aice fhèin so tha tòrr fìrinn anns an sgeul a tha seo. Ach ’s e sin an rud inntinneach mu dheidhinn a chionn ’s nuair a sgrìobh i an leabhar tha tòrr rudan dona a’ tighinn às mu dheidhinn nan daoine à Breatainn.

[Anna NicLeòid] An toir thu beachd dhuinn dìreach air cò ris a tha an sgeulachd coltach? Tha thu air pìos …

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Uill am fear a tha seo, chaidh e thall agus rud a tha inntinneach mu dheidhinn ’s e, ann an dòigh, ’s e seòrsa leabhair gaoil a th’ ann cuideachd, sgeul gaoil, oir tha gaol mòr, mòr eadar e fhèin ’s a bhean. Agus ’s i as coireach gun d’ fhuair e a-mach leis … bha iad an toiseach a’ bruidhinn mu dheidhinn esan a’ dol dhan phrìosan ann an Lunnainn.

[Anna NicLeòid] Agus a chrochadh, nach robh?

[Anna Mhàrtainn] Agus a chrochadh. Agus a chrochadh. Agus ’s i a thuirt “bu chòir dhut falbh agus litrichean fhaighinn mar references” agus fhuair i sin agus fhuair ise sin dhan duine aice agus nuair a chaidh i a dh’Astràilia, mar a bha a h-uile duine thall ann an sin, bha iad a’ coimhead air an t-saoghal ’s bha iad a’ coimhead air an talamh agus bha esan ag iarraidh gum biodh pìos den talamh sin aigesan.

Chaidh am prògram seo, Leugh Mi, a chraoladh an toiseach ann an 2015.

[Anna MacLeod] Anne, firstly, when you were growing up in the Isle of Skye, how important was reading to you?

[Anne Martin] When I was tiny there were not many books in the house. To be honest I don’t know if there was the money to spend on books. But a new world opened for me when the library started going round, a mobile library going round the Isle of Skye, and my mother was very keen on reading and also because I was the youngest in the family the others would sometimes read to me in bed when I was little.

[Anna MacLeod] And with regards the other things that you had to do, what other hobbies, what other opportunities did you have?

[Anne Martin] I was a terrible tomboy. I ran around outside on the croft all the time.

[Ann MacLeod] And so you were outside and you read.

[Anne Martin] Yes, both things together.

[Ann MacLeod] And I’ll bet that you sang.

[Anne Martin] Yes. There was lots of singing at home and in the community.

[Ann MacLeod] And to a degree you have made a living from singing.

[Anne Martin] Yes, a small part of my living and I have had opportunities, amazing opportunities, to travel because of singing.

[Ann MacLeod] And where did you go?

[Anne Martin] I have been in America and Canada, around Europe and Australia too.

[Ann MacLeod] Now, you went on a great trip to Australia, didn’t you?

[Anne Martin] Yes indeed and I got the opportunity to go to a festival over in Australia and we were discussing as a family going anyway because we have friends there and so we went for five months and we took the children out of school and we initially went to India and three months in Australia.

[Ann MacLeod] What a good opportunity for the children.

[Anne Martin] A good opportunity and I’d say that that is the best thing we ever did as a family, travelling together.

[Ann MacLeod] And the first book that you have chosen for us tonight has a link with Australia.

[Anne Martin] Yes indeed.

[Ann MacLeod] And a British link to Australia. What exactly is it? What book is it? Tell us.

[Anne Martin] The book that I chose is this. Here is the book – The Secret River. And this woman wrote the book perhaps two years before I went, before we went over and I got the opportunity to read it when I was there, when I was in Melbourne. And, I’d say, this book is a true epic because there are three parts to the story. It begins in London and as many of the people in London if they did anything bad they didn’t go to prison here but they had to go abroad.

[Ann MacLeod] They were evicted from the country over to Australia, and it is a historical novel.

[Anne Martin] Yes, that, yes, yes. It is a novel and she takes lots of the story from her own family’s life so there is lots of truth in this story. But that is the most interesting thing about it because when she wrote the book lots of negativity came out about the British people.

[Ann MacLeod] Can you give us an idea of just what the story is like? You have a piece …

[Anne Martin] Well this man, he went over and the thing that is interesting about it is, in a way, it is a sort of book about love too, a love story, because there is lots of love between himself and his wife. And she is the reason that he got out with … they initially discussed about him going to prison in London.

[Ann MacLeod] And being hanged, wasn’t it?

[Anne Martin] And being hanged. And being hanged. And it is her that said “you ought to go and get letters as references” and she got that and she got that for her husband and when she went to Australia, like everyone that was over there, they saw the world and they saw the land and he wanted a piece of that land for himself.

This programme, Leugh Mi, was first broadcast in 2015.