44 Scotland Street: A 44 Scotland Street Novel (1)Bestselling author Alexander McCall Smith brings all the warmth of his extraordinary No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency books and the Sunday Philosophy Club series to this witty novel chronicling the lives of the residents of 44 Scotland Street in Edinburgh. Originally serialized in The Scotsman, 44 Scotland Street is an international sensation. When twenty-year-old Pat rents a room from handsome and cocky Bruce, she inherits some delightfully colourful neighbours: Domenica, an insightful and eccentric widow; Bertie, a five-year-old who’s mastered both saxophone and Italian; and Irene, his overbearing mother. Pat’s new job at a gallery seems easy enough. Her boss spends most of his time drinking coffee in a local café and discussing matters great and small, and Pat’s duties are light. That is until she realizes that one of their paintings may be an undiscovered work of a renowned Scottish artist and she discovers that one of their customers may be in on the secret. Add to this a fancy ball, love triangles and an encounter with a famous crime writer, and you have Alexander McCall Smith’s entertaining and humorous portrait of Edinburgh society. |
Contents
Preface | |
2 A Room with a Smell | |
3 We See a Bit More of Bruce | |
4 Fathers and Sons | |
5 Attributions and Provenances | |
6 Bruce Takes a Look at a Place | |
7 A Full Survey | |
8 Hypocrisy Lies Golf Clubs | |
57 The Duke of PlazaToro | |
58 Catch 22 | |
59 The Dashing White Sergeant | |
60 The Tombola | |
61 Bertie Begins Therapy | |
62 The Rucksack of Guilt | |
63 Irene Converses with Dr Hugo Fairbairn | |
64 Postanalysis Analysis | |
9 SP | |
10 The Road from Arbroath | |
11 The Origins of Love and Hate | |
12 Chanterelles Trouvées | |
13 You Must Remember This A Kiss Is Just a Kiss | |
14 The Smell of Cloves | |
15 560 SEC | |
16 Irrational Beliefs and the Mind of the Child | |
17 An Educational Exchange | |
18 The Works of Melanie Klein | |
19 A Modest Gift | |
20 The Boys Discuss Art | |
21 A Daughters Dance Card | |
22 Bruce Comes Under Consideration | |
23 Goingson in London | |
24 Unwelcome Thoughts | |
25 Dinner with Domenica | |
26 A Room a Photograph Love and Memory | |
27 The Electricity Factory | |
28 Thomas Is Electrocuted | |
29 Friendship | |
30 Things Happen at the Gallery | |
31 The Lothian and Borders Police Art Squad | |
The Essential Problem | |
33 Peploe? | |
34 On the Way to the Floatarium | |
35 Latte Interrupta | |
36 Bertie in Disgrace | |
37 At the Floatarium | |
38 MotherDaughter Issues | |
39 The Facts of Life | |
40 In Nets of Golden Wires | |
41 Your Cupboard or Mine? | |
42 Gallery Matters | |
43 The Sort of People You See in Edinburgh Wine Bars | |
44 Tales of Tulliallan | |
45 More Tulliallan Tales | |
46 Humiliation and Embarrassment | |
A Breakfast Conversazione | |
48 Plans for the Conservative Ball | |
49 Tombola Gifts | |
50 Bruce Prepares for the Ball | |
51 Velvety Shoes | |
52 Silk Organza | |
53 Bruce Fantasises | |
54 Supporting Walls | |
55 Discovered | |
56 At the Braid Hills Hotel | |
65 A Meeting in Valvona and Crolla | |
66 Mr Dalyells Question | |
67 Playing with Electricity | |
68 Boucle dOr | |
69 The Turning to Dust of Human Beauty | |
70 An Evening with Bruce | |
71 At the Scottish National Portrait Gallery | |
72 Angus Lordies Difficult Task | |
73 A Dissident Free Presbyterian Fatwa | |
74 A Mans Dressinggown | |
75 News of a Loss | |
76 Remembrance of Things Past | |
77 Into Deep Morningside | |
78 Steps with Soul | |
79 A Meeting on the Stair | |
80 Male Uncertainty Existential Doubts New Men etc | |
81 Morningside Ladies | |
82 On the Way to Mr Rankins | |
83 But of Course | |
84 An Invitation | |
85 In the Cumberland Bar | |
86 On the Subject of Dogs | |
87 The Onion Memory | |
88 Big Lou Receives a Phone Call | |
89 Big Lou Goes to Dinner | |
90 Poetry of the Tang Dynasty | |
91 God Looks Down on Belgium | |
92 In Scotland Street Tunnel | |
93 A Further Tunnel and a Brief Conversation About Aesthetics | |
94 An Interesting Discovery | |
95 Mr Guy Peploe Makes an Appearance | |
96 Mr Peploe Sees Something Interesting | |
97 More about Bertie | |
98 Irene and Dr Fairbairn Converse | |
99 Bruce Takes a Bath and Thinks | |
100 Bruce Expounds | |
An Exchange | |
102 Paternal Diagnosis | |
103 And Then | |
104 The Place We Are Going To | |
105 Berties Friend | |
106 Lunch at the Café St Honoré | |
107 Confidences | |
108 Action Is Taken | |
109 A Most Remarkable and Important Discovery | |
110 Gain Loss Friendship Love | |
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Common terms and phrases
44 Scotland Street Alexander McCall Smith Angus Lordie asked ball Bertie Bertie’s Big Lou Braid Hills Bruce Chardonnay Chris Christabel Macfadzean coffee course Cumberland Bar cupboard Cyril Dalyell desk Domenica door Dr Fairbairn Edinburgh eyes father feel felt flat Floatarium gallery gaze girl glanced glass Guy Peploe hair hand happened He’s Ian Rankin imagine interesting Irene Irene’s Jock knew laughed Lizzie looked Lou’s Malcolm Rifkind Matthew Melanie Klein morning mother moved never nice nodded noticed one’s painting Pat’s paused Peploe perhaps Pete play Ramsey Dunbarton realised remember Robin Harper Ronnie rugby Sasha saxophone Scotland Street Scottish seemed shoes sitting smell smiled sorry sort stared stood Stuart sure talk Tam Dalyell tell there’s things thought Todd tunnel turned Vettriano walked watch What’s who’s window wine woman wondered You’re young