A Rum Affair
A Rum Affair by Karl Sabbagh, published by Penguin in 2000, presents a detailed account of professor Heslop-Harrison, a prominent academic at Newcastle University. Over several years, he bolstered his theory regarding ice-age plant survival by introducing flora to locations where they had not previously been documented. The narrative unfolds around a pivotal incident in 1948 on the isle of Rum, where John Raven, a passionate young classics scholar, accused Heslop-Harrison of scientific misconduct, leading to a significant controversy within the botanical community.
Readers will find a blend of biography and science as the book explores the dynamics between these two scholars and the implications of their conflict. The story delves into themes related to environmentalism, botany, and the philosophical aspects of scientific inquiry. This edition spans 223 pages and is presented in English, offering insights into the complexities of academic rivalry and the challenges faced in the pursuit of knowledge.
Official synopsis Publisher
The story of professor Heslop-Harrison, a distinguished academic at Newcastle University, who, over a period of years, strengthened the evidence for his theory of ice-age plant survival by planting flora in places where it had never been found before, and then discovering it. His nemesis came in the form of John Raven, a young classics don with a fierce passion for botany, who believed that he had caught the eminent professor red-handed on the isle of Rum in the summer of 1948. The scientific community closed ranks on the affair, Raven’s evidence was never published, and Heslop-Harrison’s continued to to dominate British botany for the next decade. This book tells the tragi-comic story.
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