Corduroy Mansions

by Alexander McCall Smith

Book Overview

CORDUROY MANSIONS - Book 1 In the Corduroy Mansions series of novels, set in London's hip Pimlico neighborhood, we meet a cast of charming eccentrics, including perhaps the world's most clever terrier, who make their home in a handsome, though slightly dilapidated, apartment block. Corduroy Mansions is the affectionate nickname given to a genteel, crumbling mansion block in London's vibrant Pimlico neighborhood and the home turf of a captivating collection...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307476502
• ISBN13: 9780307476500
• Release Date: May 2011
• Publisher: Knopf Publishing Group
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.69 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Extremely entertaining

I have really enjoyed the Scotland Street series from Smith and wondered if he could keep the momentum going with this serialized novel that takes place in London. And amazingly enough he pulls yet another rabbit out of his hat with this charming and entertaining book. Like the Scotland Street series this book revolves around a specific location, this time a complex of London flats called Corduroy Mansions. There is a nice mix of characters with a variety of dilemmas so few people will get bored with the plot (or should I say plots). If there is any difference in entertainment value it might be that there emerged no one quite like Bertie (in the Scotland series). In my mind he evolved to be the main character and took over the series (with very positive and humorous results). If you enjoy Alexander McCall Smith's writing be sure to check out the Scotland series as well. 44 Scotland Street: A 44 Scotland Street Novel (1) to The World According to Bertie: A 44 Scotland Street Novel (4).

Alexander McCall Smith has done it again!

I really enjoyed this book! It has the same style that makes his books so enjoyable. I really like the 44 Scotland Street Series, which this book is similar but based in London. I love how McCall Smith can paint pictures of peoples souls with his words and show human weakness and triumph in such a way that you feel good after reading his books.

Addictive read!

This is the first book that I have read by Alexander McCall Smith. I realize that I have been missing a lot! This novel is set in a London residential section and a building complex called Corduroy Mansions. What makes this such a great read is that the characters are all a little crazy, even down to the vegatarian dog. The dog enters the scene when William, the wine merchant, wants to get his adult (do-nothing) son out of his appartment at the Mansions. His son does not seem to take any hints about leaving, those obtuse or in-your-face. The idea is that since the son has a dog phobia, getting the dog will make his son leave the apartment - but that plan backfires and he moves on to other plans (which also do not work out quite as he expects). Thus the joy in reading the book. Looking into the lives of these eccentric people. I love the part where one of the characters has a "near death" experience by charging his car's battery with bare wires and does not realize he needs a battery charger for the task. It is just one crazy event after another, told in that charming rather droll way that some Europeans have. I can't wait for the next installment of this series and I will certainly be hunting for the other series of books from this author.

this is a fun look at the foibles of human interactions.

In London, several eccentric people reside at Corduroy Mansions. Wine merchant and connoisseur William wants his twentyish year old son Eddie to move out, but a nuclear bomb is not going to budge his offspring. He gets Freddie the vegan canine whose prime mission is to propel Eddie to move in with people his age. Restaurateur Marcia wants Eddie out of the house also so then she can make a move on empty nester William. Another occupant Dee works at a vitamin store where she tries to help a peer who she feels needs to cleans his system of excess salt. Her flat-mate Jenny earns a difficult living working for detestable MP Oedipus Snark, who treats his employee like a low form of dog excrement. Snark's mom Berthea is writing the definitive biography of her son while her agent Barbara wants to become Mrs. MP. As the walls crumble around the quirky residents, their squabbles make for an enjoyable slice of London life. Low keyed and not for everyone, fans of the author will enjoy the jocularity of everyday people interrelating in a dysfunctional manner as Corduroy Mansions is sort of like an aging supercollider with the people living there as the subatomic particles being sliced and diced. More like Alexander McCall Smith's 44 Scotland Street books, than his No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, this is a fun look at the foibles of human interactions. Harriet Klausner

McCall Smith: the Dickens of the 21st Century

Whenever I tried on Wikipedia to say that Alexander McCall Smith was the Dickens of the 21st century, some officious editor would complain and say that McCall Smith is no Dickens. Well, in a way that is true: CORDUROY MANSIONS is far more fun to read and not even remotely depressing, which Dickens can often be. And even the most fastidious Wiki editor had to admit that McCall Smith has revived the serial novel, the form that Dickens made so famous in the 19th century. First we had the magnificent series set in Edinburgh (44 Scotland Street) and now we have the equally wonderful and totally enjoyable CORDUROY MANSIONS. The characters are as brilliantly drawn as always and are just as funny, poignant, thoughtful and superbly observed as ever. We have got to know a lot of wonderful new people through the serialization in the Daily Telegraph and now we have it in permanent book form. (And some of the characters are real people, as at least one chapter shows....) One final thing: ALL McCall Smith's novels are as good as each other: this really ought to have the same sales as the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series, as it is every bit as enjoyable and fun to read. I will be buying several copies of this and giving them to friends - why not do the same? Summer is coming, and this is the ideal summer present to have as holiday reading. Christopher Catherwood (author of WINSTON CHURCHILL: THE FLAWED GENIUS OF WORLD WAR II)