I chanced upon this book at my local library. It is a beautiful thing! It’s beautifully bound, and beautifully illustrated with the author’s own prints and it’s beautifully written.

We learn about the lives of those who lived on Hirta, the largest island of St. Kilda, past the Western Islands of Scotland, surrounded by ’the stormy Atlantic Ocean’. Waters’ gorgeous prints eloquently illustrate the people, birds and animals that made this far-flung island their home.

Norman John Gillies was born in 1925 on Hirta. The book shows us his life growing up on the island, as the population grows smaller and smaller, until 1930 when the last 36 people left on the island agreed it was time to leave and move to the British mainland.

This book evokes the sadness and loss of those who moved away from the only life they knew to start again.

The publisher recommends this book for ages 5 - 9, but I think it’s more appropriate for older children, from about 8 years and onwards. The publisher has some fabulous resources, which include a soundscape to play in the background while reading the book.
https://www.childs-play.com/pages/child-of-st-kilda-activities

Highly recommended.