Alexander McCall Smith - Love over Scotland

Publisher: Anchor Books
Author: Alexander McCall Smith
Title: Love over Scotland

Alexander McCall Smith is among the top of my favorite writers. He is contemporary, successful and consistent. He is most famous for his series The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.  I was in love with his Isabel Dalhousie series and was feeling a bit bereft when it ended.

I read 44 Scotland Street, the first book in this series quite a while ago. The title is the address of an apartment block in what is known as Edinburgh's New Town. The first book was primarily about some tenants of the apartment block. Pat is an art student who works part time at Matthew's art gallery. Irene and Stuart are a young couple in the same apartment block. They have a gifted young son called Bertie. Another resident, Domenica, is a social scientist.

There are short chapters that carry the story forward slowly, focusing on one or two characters at a time. So far I have read only two books in the series and they seem to chart the happenings a year at a time.

On the surface, the book seems to be full of small incidents, not very remarkable at times.  I soon realized that our life is like that.  There are a series of small events, things we would not even bother to recount to our friends but collectively they make up our lives.  Just when we are getting used to the small incidents, something big happens. Angus' dog Cyril is stolen, Bertie gets left behind in Paris by his orchestra mates

I was reminded of Sketches by Boz and also Pickwick Papers the latter especially when things get very funny. There were many times that I found myself laughing out loud.  The characters have their quirks which are well exploited by the author.  I found the exchanges between Irene and her son, Bertie very funny. Irene is very determined about what her son should do and rides roughshod over his feelings.  Most times Bertie just wants to be left alone which is something Irene never listens to.

Matthew was my favorite character in the first book and I was happy to see him more successful in this book.  Angus Lordie, Big Lou, Domenica, Pat, Matthew, Bertie, Stuart, Irene are described with such warmth that we cannot help feeling attached to them. 

I am glad that there are 12 books in the series, I can have a whale of a time reading through them.

Alexander McCall Smith - Trains and Lovers

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday
Bought: Amazon.in, Kindle store

"This is the story of four people, all strangers to one another, who met on that train, and of how love touched their lives, in very different ways." 

David, Kay, Andrew, and Hugh happen to share a compartment on a London bound train from Edinburgh.

"It leaves Edinburgh behind it and begins its journey over the rich farmland of East Lothian.  Then there is a coast, that brings the sight of cliffs and sea-birds; and the North Sea which was still and smooth that day under the clear morning light."

All the four people have stories inside of them, and happen to relate them, or think about them during the journey.  Andrew worked as an intern in an art gallery and met Hermione at work.  He fell in love with her and his attempts to woo her makes one of the stories.

Hugh has a love story too.  He once got down at a wrong station and ran into a lovely young girl whom he befriended and later had an affair with. All was going well until he learned some intriguing details about her past. Can he trust her?

David has a secret love from his past.  He once fell in love with a boy who visited the little place his family went to for summer, in Maine. Bruce was also holidaying in that place, he lived in Princeton where his father taught. A friendship struck up between the two, but David felt an excitement that was more than friendship.  He knew he had to keep his feelings in check always. Although they do spend time together, and Bruce never even learned what he felt like, this secret love remained with David all his life. While Andrew is relating his love story, David thinks back upon his secret summer love.

Kay's father came from a poor family in Scotland.  He emigrated to Australia to make something of his life.  He eventually worked for a railroad in a little place near Adelaide and struck up a friendship with a young woman via letters.  Did this pen-friendship turn into something stronger or did it die away?

All the stories are connected to railways in some manner.  The stories are related during a train journey as well.  Alexander McCall Smith manages to weave in references to Art and Philosophy in this book as well.  Andrew works in an art gallery, as his story is the longest of the lot, we get to hear quite a bit about paintings. My beloved series by the same author, the Sunday Philosophy Club series also referenced Art and Philosophy, as the main character in them, Isabel Dalhousie, is a philosopher who also collects Art..

The novel manages to be a light read, with great insights into the minds of its characters and life in general.  The prose is beautiful, as you can see from the two examples I have quoted  I am tempted to quote one more passage, here goes.

"There were all these places where the houses were not made of neat white board and shingle; where there was colour and movement and danger.  There was no danger in that small town, where people's lives led neatly and correctly to the grave; where the water came dosed with chemicals and the food was cleanly wrapped. He wanted to go somewhere else."

Alexander McCall Smith - La's Orchestra Saves the World

La's Orchestra Saves the World by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I discovered Alexander McCall Smith via his Sunday Philosophy Club series, also known as Isabel Dalhousie series. He is better known as the author of the No. 1 Detective Agency series.

He seems to like writing series of novels on a set of characters and places. He also wrote (or is still writing) the 44 Scotland Street series.

I love his series. It is nice to settle into a familiar world of characters and curious stories that surround them. But I am afraid they are a strain on my pocket.

You see, Alexander McCall Smith is not found widely in the libraries that I visit. I fall so deeply in love with his stories, that I wind up buying the books, which puts a strain on my pocket.

I have just finished buying up the entire series of Isabel Dalhousie. Now it looks like I will have to start buying up the 44 Scotland Street series as well. They are so good, I just HAVE to read them.

In the meantime, I found La's Orchestra Saves the World in my Library.

La, short for Lavender, was brought up on the hills of Norfolk. After completing her school, she moved to London to study at Cambridge. This was in 1930. She wanted to do something with her life. But she found herself being courted assiduously by Richard Stone. She married him and found herself settling into a comfortable domesticity.

After a few years her husband leaves her. She is heartbroken and moves to Suffolk to start her life over. By now, the war is upon them and she finds she is better off in Suffolk. She tries to help with the war effort as she can. In the process she meets Feliks, a Polish Air Force personnel who has relocated to England.

She falls in love with Felix but her love is unrequited. Yet they enjoy a friendship with each other. A friend suggests that she start an orchestra as a lot of people are keen on it. The orchestra becomes a part of her way of coming to terms with a lonely life.

This is an unusual novel from Alexander McCall Smith, whose characters are usually laid back, artistic and easy going. This novel is very concerned with the times it is set in. The war is very real here. It depicts how people try to keep going on with their lives despite the huge upheavals that are taking place in their world.

La reminded me of Isabel Dalhousie in some ways. They were both well-to-do women, who don't have to depend on anyone financially. They both like speaking their mind and often find their foot where their mouth should be, even if their intentions were good. But Isabel is a very well sorted woman as far as her personal life is concerned, and poor La is very vulnerable.

Alexander McCall Smith is always very rewarding to read.

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Alexander McCall Smith - The Sunday Philosophy Club Series or Isabel Dalhousie Series

Isabel Dalhousie by Alexander McCall Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read the entire series of Isabel Dalhousie/Sunday Philosophy Club. I actually bought the entire series, which is something I have NEVER done. I had to buy the books because they were not available in the library.

The fact that I was willing to spend my money on so many of these books speaks of the love I have for the Isabel Dalhousie series.

These books are not flashy fiction. Readers of action thrillers will do well to keep far away from these books. Readers who love Jane Austen, Anne Tyler, Ruskin Bond and similar authors will love these series.

The books have a gentle laid back tone. Isabel Dalhousie is a rich woman. She edits a philosophy journal (Review of Applied Ethics) and had once founded Sunday Philosophy Club. The club closed down as the members did not have time for it.

Ruminating on philosophical aspects is what comes naturally to Isabel. She is a bit of an old fashioned girl. She likes following social niceties. She likes her old fashioned house that she inherited from her parents. She loves her unfashionable green Swedish car. She loves living her quiet, sedentary life in Edinburgh.

She brings to mind a leisurely era when people had time to lunch and dine gracefully, go to concerts, visit museums and art galleries, or merely walk about the town. Although she lives in our times, there are no mentions of mobile phones and dish TV. Emails and internet are referred to, but clearly, Isabel is a woman who prefers her letters handwritten or, at the very least, printed.

The mysteries that Isabel solves, are almost the side plot in each book. At times, the mystery is not satisfactorily solved even. But she likes what she learns out of each encounter. She likes meeting new people and she likes being allowed to look into their world.

I have completed all the nine books in the series. And absolutely adored all of them.Alexander McCall Smith

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Alexander McCall Smith - The Sunday Philosophy Club

I had long wanted to read something by Alexander McCall Smith having had positive recommendations for the writer famous for his No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series.

Isabel, the protagonist of the series would probably note, isn't a recommendation positive to begin with? Isabel Dalhousie lives in Edinburgh, is in her early forties, is reasonably wealthy and edits The Review of Applied Ethics.  Edinburgh is a quaint town to the south-east of Scotland.  It is famous for its old buildings. Parts of it has been declared a World Heritage Site.  It has a temperate climate which makes it a very good place to live in.  McCall Smith's descriptions of the place are so affectionate and warm that it makes you wish you lived there.  Isabel's age is perfect too.  She is not a giddy youngster skidding through life, she is more settled and more apt to observe and mull upon what she sees.  She does this also because she is a philosopher. Her job brings her in contact with philosophical tracts that she has to edit for the journal - Review of Applied Ethics.  Her comfortable circumstances and single status also give her a freedom to follow her heart.

She is old enough to be an old fashioned girl.  She likes the telephone to be answered in a certain way, she adheres to certain routines and likes good manners in people.  She likes to be very moral and is constantly mulling over whether a certain act is morally right or not. She is also young enough to sometimes forget her own philosophy of life and be rash, outspoken and imprudent.  In fact she usually does something 'wrong' right after she has debated the issue in her mind, which makes it all the more funny. At one time, she does not shy away from following an unpleasent man who is dating her neice, just on a curious impulse.

And, oh, of course, each book solves a mystery.

I read Friends, Lovers and Chocolate first, which is second in the series.  I was a bit undecided about the book, but picked it up anyway.  This is the beauty of a borrowing books from a library.  If you don't like the book much or find it tedious, you can just return it half read. This makes you pick up a book more indiscriminately than you would if you were to buy it.  I read the book as fast as I could, it was that good. It also made me buy the first in the series - The Sunday Philosophy Club.

Isabel and a group of fellow philosophers used to run the Sunday Philosophy Club.  The name of this series is ironical, as the Sunday Philosophy Club is now defunct.  Isabel would like to revive it, relishing the idea of discussing philosophical issues with her friends, but as her two close associates - her neice Cat, and friend Jaime - note, Sunday is not an easy day on which to meet.

The story moves at a gentle pace and is full of delightful descriptions that is reminiscent of Jane Austen. A lady mystery solver is reminiscent of Agatha Christie.  Like Agatha Christie, the mystery is not always earth shaking.  The first novel deals with a possible murder, but the second one deals with visions that a person has. However, unlike Agatha Christie mystries, the mystery itself does not seem central to the plot, nor is Isabel always commissioned to solve the mystery. The mystery seems almost like a sideplot. It is Isabel's philosophical musings that take the centre stage.

It is the general drift of Isabel Dalhousie's life that is so charming.  Her laidback lifestyle, her appreciation of the arts, her tendency to philosophise over even mundane events, her sharp observations, her close friends, all these lay a grip on you and you want to read more and more about her. Isabel is close to her neice Cat, who runs a delicatessan.  Jaime is a musician and a close friend um, pretty pretty close.  Her housekeeper Grace is full of surprises and Isabel finds it edifying to consult her on several matters at hand.  Lovely Edinburgh is always in the background.  It is all these that make the series so captivating. I am listing the books in the series here to prevent you from hitting the wikipedia page, which is shamefully full of spoilers.

1.The Sunday Philosophy Club (2004)
2.Friends, Lovers, Chocolate (2005)
3.The Right Attitude to Rain (2006)
4.The Careful Use of Compliments (2007)
5.The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday (2008)
6.The Lost Art of Gratitude (2009)

The last book came out in 2009 as we can see.  I hope the author continues with the series which would surely delight me.