Rachel MacCrimmon is a young woman who lives on Hirta, the only inhabited island in the Hebridean archipelago of Saint Kilda, in the 19th century.
Although hardly anyone realises this, and Rachel would never believe it herself, she is extraordinarily talented. By a strange turn of events, she is given the opportunity to write her memoir - something no other Hirtan would be capable of - and does so in English, a language she would not understand if she heard it spoken.
She tells of her early life on Saint Kilda, which is harsh and dangerous, and made even more difficult by the terrifying Minister, but is also full of love and mutual respect.
She then breaks off to tell the fantastical story of a former Saint Kildan who briefly returns to the island after a series of adventures which include mining for gold in Australia and fighting in the American Civil War.
After he leaves, Rachel's life becomes a tragedy, yet she is somehow able to find comfort even in her darkest hours.