Chance Developments: Unexpected Love Stories - Hardcover

Alexander McCall Smith

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1846973295 ISBN 13: 9781846973291

Publisher: Polygon, 2015

Synopsis

It is said that a picture may be worth a thousand words but an old photograph can inspire many more. In this beguiling book, Alexander McCall Smith casts his eye over five chanced-upon photographs from the era of black-and-white photography and imagines the stories behind them. Who were those people, what were their stories, why are they smiling, what made them sad? What emerges are surprising and poignant tales of love and friendship in a variety of settings an estate in the Highlands of Scotland, a travelling circus in Canada, an Australian gold-mining town, a village in Ireland, and the Scottish capital, Edinburgh. Some will find joy and fulfilment others would prefer happier endings. Each of them, though, will find love, and that is ultimately what matters.

About this title

Review

'The photos are eloquent and moving, the stories delve deeply into possibilities, love and friendship, joy and melancholy... as I read, I found myself drawn back to the photo, to look again and ponder. Alexander McCall Smith has transformed five forgotten photos into a discovery of delight'

--Liz Robinson, Love Reading

'These stories are full of insight and empathy...the first two, "Sister Flora's First Day of Freedom" and "Angels in Italy" are works of depth and beauty that would not be shamed in the company of the world s great short stories'

--Kerryn Goldsworthy, Fairfax Papers

'The book is vintage McCall Smith and if anyone is looking for an early Christmas gift, they should look no further. A reader may wonder whether if there were no Alexander McCall Smith, he would have to be invented' Washington Times

'[This book gives] that feeling of pure unadulterated pleasure that a piece of my favourite chocolate gives me when it starts melting in my mouth'

--Breakaway Reviewers

About the Author

Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world's most prolific and most popular authors. For many years he was a professor of Medical Law, then, after the publication of his highly successful No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, which has sold over twenty-five million copies, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over forty-six languages and become bestsellers throughout the world. These include the 44 Scotland Street novels, first published as a serial novel in the Scotsman, the Isabel Dalhousie novels, the Von Igelfeld series and the Corduroy Mansions novels.

About this edition

• Publisher: Polygon
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1846973295
• ISBN 13: 9781846973291
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 280