Bertie Plays The Blues: A 44 Scotland Street Novel
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £0.65
Trade in Bertie Plays The Blues: 44 Scotland Street (44 Scotland Street 7) for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.65, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Plus, get an extra £5 when you trade in books worth £10 or more until June 30, 2012. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Find more products eligible for trade-in.
|
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
This seventh satirical instalment of their adventures is a delight --Scotland in Trust Magazine
Often much humour can t stand up to a second reading. McCall Smith s comedy is different. Because while it is written with abundant wit...there are equally large dollops of wisdom too --Scotsman
Often much humour can t stand up to a second reading. McCall Smith s comedy is different. Because while it is written with abundant wit...there are equally large dollops of wisdom too --Scotsman
Review
Praise for the 44 Scotland Street series: 'A joyous, charming portrait of city life and human foibles' Sunday Express
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
48 of 48 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
If you are already a fan of the 44 Scotland Street series then this latest instalment will not disappoint. I now have all of Alexander McCall Smith's books and devour them immediately! I often find myself laughing out loud, which can be somewhat of an embarrassment on the train! His stories are always gentle, full of charm, snippets of wisdom and all importantly a good dose of wit and humour. In this volume we pick up with the latest developments in the lives of Bertie & co. Antonia's life takes a new direction after her attack of Stendhal syndrome, Matthew and Elspeth get to grips with family life, Angus and Domenica grapple with their new dometic arrangements and Pat and Lou are both off in search of love! Finally Bertie seems to be making a break through in his long suffering trials with his awful domineering mother! Oh and a good bit of comeuppance for Bruce is thrown in too! The only problem I have with these books is that they make me greedy for more, so I must be patient and wait for the AMS next book to come out! I can't thank Alexander McCall Smith enough for writing such wonderful books, I may need a new book case shortly however...
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The Scotland Street stories are by far my favourite McCall Smith books. I must be Bertie's no 1 fan (or certainly in the top 10). My problem is that I really enjoy the audiobook versions, read by the fantastic David Rintoul. They are perfect for short shopping trips in the car, the stories being told in relatively short segments. Just be careful that you don't get stopped at traffic lights as you giggle helplessly! Being born and brought up in Edinburgh definitely helps but is NOT essential. I look forward hopefully to the next episode about Bertie, Big Lou, Angus and Domenica, Matthew and Elspeth, Pat and the awful Bruce ( and hope that Bertie's father gets rewarded for putting up with his dreadful wife!)
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Such is the level of civility in Edinburgh reminds Alexander McCall Smith in the latest hilarious episode of the 44 Scotland Street series. The usual wonderful characters are all here as a few months have progressed since the previous installment, "The Importance of Being Seven". Matthew and Elspeth are now the parents of triplets and quickly learning how the joy and wonderment of that parenthood is balanced out by the stress of the responsibility and the almost total lack of sleep, These are good people trying to keep up with a sharp turn in their lives, and help arrives in the form of Danish pastry.
Newly engaged boomers, Domenica and Angus, are struggling with the practical aspects of planning a merger of households; a discussion complicated by the arrival of an old first love. The Pollock family is also evolving in its own way with husband Stuart asserting more independence on his own behalf and that of his prodigy son, Bertie. Bertie, a paragon of brightness and common sense, continues to be baffled and frustrated by the main female in his life--mother Irene, but also by the clique of little girls at his school led by the ever-conniving and devious Olive. Irene Pollock, poster person for overbearing, yuppie maternity, gets a major wakeup call in ""Bertie Plays..." when her son takes a shocking step toward repudiation of her methodologies with the help of eBay.
Supporting characters Big Lou, Pat, Bruce and, above all the rest, Cyril the gold-toothed dog, all have important roles to play in this story, largely as participants in the conversations about the daily dilemmas of life that are the main point of the series and, the reader surmises, the author's larger purpose for writing. As in all of these books, there is a sweet satire that can be both gentle and provocative. McCall Smith is an author who openly admires sincerity and realness in people above all else. Conversely he doesn't have much time or toleration for phonies and posers. In "Bertie Plays.." that yin/yang outlook leads to serious partner-assessment and partner-switching that rivals what you would see at a Kansas hoedown. Most of this is to the good, as good people generally wind up with other good people.
Some readers may experience some hackle rising as the author comes out rather nakedly in this book as unreservedly preferring dogs to cats. ("Dogs are absolutely sincere--never hiding their true feelings. Cats are dreadfully insincere. Psychopaths--everyone of them".) Even this is said with good humor and honors the intrepid Cyril, companion to Angus Lordie. Cyril is once again given some of the best monologues in the book. It's funny and original.
I will admit that I am woefully hooked on this series and rarely find a single word to complain about as the episodes are published. But this particular book is really a wonderful read full of humor, wisdom and great conversations about things that we all care about everyday of our lives. Highly recommended (obviously).
Newly engaged boomers, Domenica and Angus, are struggling with the practical aspects of planning a merger of households; a discussion complicated by the arrival of an old first love. The Pollock family is also evolving in its own way with husband Stuart asserting more independence on his own behalf and that of his prodigy son, Bertie. Bertie, a paragon of brightness and common sense, continues to be baffled and frustrated by the main female in his life--mother Irene, but also by the clique of little girls at his school led by the ever-conniving and devious Olive. Irene Pollock, poster person for overbearing, yuppie maternity, gets a major wakeup call in ""Bertie Plays..." when her son takes a shocking step toward repudiation of her methodologies with the help of eBay.
Supporting characters Big Lou, Pat, Bruce and, above all the rest, Cyril the gold-toothed dog, all have important roles to play in this story, largely as participants in the conversations about the daily dilemmas of life that are the main point of the series and, the reader surmises, the author's larger purpose for writing. As in all of these books, there is a sweet satire that can be both gentle and provocative. McCall Smith is an author who openly admires sincerity and realness in people above all else. Conversely he doesn't have much time or toleration for phonies and posers. In "Bertie Plays.." that yin/yang outlook leads to serious partner-assessment and partner-switching that rivals what you would see at a Kansas hoedown. Most of this is to the good, as good people generally wind up with other good people.
Some readers may experience some hackle rising as the author comes out rather nakedly in this book as unreservedly preferring dogs to cats. ("Dogs are absolutely sincere--never hiding their true feelings. Cats are dreadfully insincere. Psychopaths--everyone of them".) Even this is said with good humor and honors the intrepid Cyril, companion to Angus Lordie. Cyril is once again given some of the best monologues in the book. It's funny and original.
I will admit that I am woefully hooked on this series and rarely find a single word to complain about as the episodes are published. But this particular book is really a wonderful read full of humor, wisdom and great conversations about things that we all care about everyday of our lives. Highly recommended (obviously).
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
The 44 Scotland Street novels
These novels set in the New Town area of Edinburgh constitute an engaging
series of episodes about a dozen or so charming (and one or two not so charming) adults, both young... Read more
series of episodes about a dozen or so charming (and one or two not so charming) adults, both young... Read more
Published 22 hours ago by talmine
yet another success
When Bertie became 7, I feared he would grow up so was delighted to read he had reverted to being 6 years old. Read more
Published 8 days ago by Yvonne Moore
A wonderfully entertaining read
This is another instalment of beautiful writing to add to Alexander McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street series. Read more
Published 2 months ago by T Moschard
Kind of worth the time.
OK, so seven books later here we are.
In terms of the book it was an ending to a very good series. Read more
In terms of the book it was an ending to a very good series. Read more
Published 3 months ago by D Lewzey
Could this be the end?
Another wonderful insight into the lives of all our dear 'friends' in and around Scotland Street.
However, my chin was almost hitting the floor by the time I got to the... Read more
However, my chin was almost hitting the floor by the time I got to the... Read more
Published 3 months ago by E Harris
Bertie just gets better
Scotland Street is my favourite Alexander McCall Smith series, and this new book did not disappoint. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Rosemary Kaye
Guilty Pleasure
Quick, fun, and charming book to indulge in. Bertie is my favorite character and I really wish his mom would leave him alone.
Published 6 months ago by Shirley McGurr
Bertie grows up - a little
The characters in this gentle series are as intriguing as ever and life in Scotland Street moves on to new themes and events which seem to mirror our own lives,to some extent. Read more
Published 6 months ago by memeryman
Excellent Reading Matter
Have not yet read the book, but am sure that it will be up to Alexander McCall Smith's usual excellent standard of reading.
Published 6 months ago by E OF SURREY
An enjoyable re-union with Edinburgh eccentrics
I've read all the Scotland Street books and was delighted to receive this pre-ordered next installment. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Bluebell
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
