This is the 15th book in the "44 Scotland Street" series. It can be read as a standalone, but familiarity with the series is a plus.
In these affable, humorous books Alexander McCall Smith follows the lives of a group of people who reside in Edinburgh's "New Town" neighborhood. Many of the characters live in apartments at 44 Scotland Street - and others are their neighbors, friends and acquaintances.
*****
Angus Lordie is a traditional portrait artist with an animus against The Turner Prize, which awards conceptual art - such as a video of a chair seen from different angles - rather than art objects. In fact Angus has taught his dog Cyril to lift his leg whenever he hears the words Turner Prize.
Thus a lecture entitled 'New Directions in Scottish Conceptual Art,' where the speaker states 'we don't need paintings, we need experiences,' leaves Angus worried about the future of Scottish painting.
Example of Conceptual Art
On the bright side, Sister Maria-Flore dei Fiori de Montagna - the aphorism spouting, social climbing nun - has been appointed to the panel of judges of the Turner Prize. Sister Maria-Fiore, who's a conventional thinker, will never give the prize to an outré modern artist.
Meanwhile, Angus's wife Domenica, an independent anthropologist, is planning to stealthily replace her husband's two antiquated dress jackets.....and the entire rest of his wardrobe.
*****
Seven-year-old Bertie Pollock.....
.....has been vexed by his classmate Olive for years.
Olive insists Bertie agreed to marry her when they're twenty (he didn't), and Olive now claims to be looking at venues, searching for a band, tasting wedding cakes, etc., much to Bertie's horror.
On the upside, Bertie has been happily free from psychoanalysis, saxophone lessons, yoga classes, Italian lessons, etc. since his mother Irene moved to Aberdeen to get a Ph.D.
Now Irene insists her son must visit her for three months, to the dismay of Bertie, his father Stuart and his grandmother Nicola.
Bertie arrives at Irene's Aberdeen apartment, where his room is tiny, dark and cold. Bertie is also enrolled in an Aberdeen school, where he can't understand the Scots language used by his classmates. To top it off, Bertie is once again scheduled for psychoanalysis. Bertie confides his unhappy situation to his best friend in Edinburgh, Ranald Braveheart Macpherson, and the rest is (hilarious) history.
*****
Bruce, a strikingly handsome surveyor, is a narcissist who thinks all women should want to date him.
In an attempt to revive the male camaraderie of his youth, Bruce gets involved with an old friend's shady real estate venture, which is aimed at bilking a buyer out of tens of thousands of pounds. Bruce seems unconcerned about the immorality of the scheme until an electrifying experience changes his outlook on life.
*****
Affable Big Lou has taken a shine to a strongman called Fat Bob, who stopped into Big Lou's Coffee Shop one morning. When Fat Bob includes Big Lou's adopted son Finlay in a dinner date, it clinches the attraction.
Afterwards, art gallery owner Matthew, Stuart Pollock, and Fat Bob bond over morning coffee at Big Lou's Coffee Shop, and plan a 'Scottish Games' for the neighborhood. The games will include a tug of war; caber toss; sack race; and more.
Caber Toss
*****
The story ends with the annual neighborhood party thrown by Angus and Domenica, where Angus reads his original poem about love.
I always enjoy these stories, which are fun and good for a few chuckles.
Rating: 3.5 stars
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