| Love Over Scotland (44 Scotland Street) | 
 enlarge | Author: Alexander Mccall Smith
Publisher: Abacus
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 6410
Media: Paperback
Edition: New edition
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1
ISBN: 0349119716
EAN: 9780349119717
ASIN: 0349119716
Publication Date: May 3, 2007
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-9 of 9 | | « PREV | | |
 I loved this book !! May 11, 2007
26 out of 28 found this review helpful
If you are a regular Alexander McCall smith fan then suffice it to say that this latest offering is definitely up to scratch.Personally i think it is currently the best in the Scotland Street series of novels and he has certainly put more thought and plot development into this one.
For those of you not familiar with Mr McCall Smith's work then i will say that he is not to everyone's taste.He has a very sweet natured,kind hearted but also very laid back way of looking at life.His novels don't have plot developments at the turn of every page;he takes time to flesh out the characters and brings to the surface their little eccentricities which lets face it we all have and whilst doing so creates a rich tapestry of life which is often funny,amusing,sad and moving but always with that philosophical overview which makes the author who he is.
This book sees the same characters that we have got to know and like but he seems to have them all travelling away from Scotland street and getting ito some quite amusing capers (Bertie's adventures are a real gem !)which is a most wellcome treat.
All in all this is McCall Smith at his very best.This is definitely for his regular readers but those new to the Scotland Street series may like to check out the previous two books in the series before reading this one so that you have a better idea of what the characters are about.
A real laid back treat of a novel - ideal for lazy summer days !
 Lovely! October 24, 2006
12 out of 12 found this review helpful
I have read a handful of the author's books now, and I find that the more I read, the more I want to read. This is yet another cosy and interesting book by McCall Smith that is testimony to his acute power of observation and wonderful ability to tell a good story.
more Edinburgh delight September 1, 2006
31 out of 32 found this review helpful
Professor McCall Smith continues his 44 Scotland Street series with a new novel that finds his cast of quirky but endearing characters embarking on new directions in their lives. Matthew is coming to terms with his new found wealth and trying to find his own way in life - and love. Pat too is finding her way forward although her university course in art history, to say nothing of one of her fellow students, are strangely unsettling. Domenica is away from Scotland doing anthropological research among pirates in Malacca, her flat temporarily occupied by historical novelist Antonia whom artist Angus is trying to help (and impress). Pushy insufferable Irene finds she has bitten off just a little more than she can chew enrolling precocious Bertie into a Teenage Orchestra, while her mild and overawed husband Stuart finds a touch of steel to help out a troubled friend of the gang. And best character of all, gold-toothed, coffee and beer drinking canine Cyril is off on an adventure of his own, although not one he would choose...
As with the rest of McCall Smith,s prolific fictional output, this novel is pure pleasure. If some of the events or characters are a tad unrealistic at times or the novel comes within a hairsbreadth of becoming twee, it simply doesn,t matter. McCall Smith writes with verve, a light touch, and a delightful ironic humor while musing about some real and serious contemporary issues. This is an enjoyable and life-enhancing read. Now, where,s the next episode from Scotland Street...
Another brilliant book of Edinburgh character observations from McCall Smith August 24, 2006
32 out of 35 found this review helpful
Another brilliant book in the 44 Scotland Street Series.
Bertie's back with more ingenious ways to divest himself of his suffocating mother, Irene, and trying to avoid playing Captain Von Trapp in the "Sound of Music" (in lederhosen - Irene's design of course). Irene on the other hand is as neurotic and as committed to the "Bertie Plan" and to Dr Fairbairn's theories of pre-adolescent psychology as she has ever been. The good Doctor, on the hand, is still a bit guilty about his last encounter with Wee Fraser.
Pat once again falls in love with an unsuitable lupine character and Matthew invests in a hideous pair of crushed strawberry corduroy trousers (not crushed strawberry dungarees - that's more Bertie's (or rather, Irene's style)) and a "distressed oatmeal" jumper. Cyril's fondness for human ankles and the smell of sun-dried tomatoes continues along with Angus Lordie's devotion to him. Angus himself is missing Domenica who is pirate-hunting in the Antiopdes but has lent her flat to her friend, Antonia, a mid-6th century Scottish saint fancier and novelist. Big Lou and Lard O'Connor shake hands over a business deal and Stuart comes out of his shell a little bit (at least when Irene's not around). The only downside is that ever-preening Bruce is missing from the story.
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