Friends, Lovers, Chocolate
Encyclopedia
Friends, Lovers, Chocolate is the second of the Sunday Philosophy Club
series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith
, set in Edinburgh
, Scotland
, and featuring the protagonist Isabel Dalhousie. It was first published in 2005, and is the sequel to The Sunday Philosophy Club
.
. Her closest friends are her niece Cat, a young woman who runs a delicatessen
; her housekeeper
Grace, who is outspoken and interested in spiritualism
; Cat’s ex-boyfriend Jamie, a bassoon
ist to whom Isabel has been secretly attracted ever since they met; and Brother Fox, an urban fox
who lives in Isabel’s garden.
When visiting Cat’s delicatessen one lunchtime, Isabel meets Ian, who has recently had a heart transplant, and seems to have gained the memories of the heart’s former owner
, particularly the memory of a sinister-looking man with hooded eyes and a scar on his forehead. Ian is worried that this man may have killed the original owner of the heart, and Isabel decides that they have a moral duty to try to find out more.
Later, Cat tells Isabel that she is about to receive a visit from Tomasso, an Italian whom Cat recently met at a friend's wedding. Cat suggests that he and Isabel, being of similar age, should go out to dinner. Isabel dismisses the idea, thinking of Jamie. Later that evening, she is shocked when Jamie tells her that he is having an affair with a married woman.
The next day, Isabel discovers that a young man, Rory Macloed, died in a hit-and-run accident on the day that Ian received his new heart. She visits Rory’s mother, Rose, and meets Rose’s partner Graeme, who perfectly fits Ian’s description of the possible killer. However, Rose insists that Rory was not an organ donor.
That evening, Jamie and his lover Louise visit Isabel, who is determined to be polite; but her jealousy gets the better of her and she is rude to Louise, who leaves with Jamie. When Isabel phones Jamie the next day to apologize, Jamie says that he and Louise have broken up – because Jamie is still in love with Cat. Hearing this, Isabel decides to go out to dinner with Tomasso, who is very attractive. He impulsively suggests to Isabel that they go on a tour of Scotland, and she considers the benefits of having an Italian lover.
A few days later, Isabel sees Graeme in a pub, and phones Ian, who comes to the pub and confirms that Graeme is the man in his memory. Isabel is certain that Rose Macloed has been lying about Rory’s not having been an organ donor, perhaps in order to protect Graeme. She asks her journalist friend Angus to speak to his contacts at the hospital, and he confirms that the young donor of Ian's heart was named Macloed.
Isabel meets Jamie for dinner, where he reveals that although the donor’s name was Macloed, it was not Rory: a second young man, Gavin Macloed, died on the same day. Then the conversation turns to relationships, and Isabel tells Jamie that Cat will never love him. Jamie angrily leaves the restaurant.
Isabel, in a last attempt to solve the mystery of the heart, goes to visit Gavin’s family in West Linton
, just outside Edinburgh. His mother, Jean, tells her that her son’s heart was donated, but that his father Euan, who is estranged from the family, does not know. Isabel sees a picture of Euan: he has hooded eyes and a scar on his forehead.
When she returns home, she finds a letter from Tomasso, telling her that he has been called back to Italy and will not be able to go traveling with her.
Isabel tells Ian about the second Macloed family, and they go together to tell Euan about his son’s heart. Afterwards, Ian informs Isabel that he visited West Linton shortly after his operation, and spoke to several people there. From this Isabel concludes that Ian must have seen Euan, heard about his son’s death, and subconscious
ly connected Euan’s face with his new heart.
Finally, Jamie apologizes for his behavior in the restaurant, and he and Isabel spend the evening in the usual way, playing music and drinking wine at her house.
The title refers to “three issues of great philosophical importance” that test our moral inclinations. The “philosophical resonance” of friendship and lovers are evident; as McCall Smith says, “Friendship
involves philosophical issues. Lovers
can certainly give rise to moral difficulties.” Chocolate
represents “temptation and our inability to resist temptation” and is included for personal reasons, because the temptation of chocolate affects “most of us ... me in particular.”
A key subplot is Jamie’s affair with Louise, which can be seen as demonstrating his willingness to enter into relationships with older women and foreshadowing the events of the next book in the series
.
. For example, Bookreporter.com says that, “Isabel Dalhousie is as wise, charmingly offbeat and original as Mma Ramotswe”, adding that the novel is “As Scottish as a single malt whiskey
" and that "McCall Smith's love of Scotland is as poignant as is his love of Botswana
in his African series”.
The Times
Online was more critical of the novel's perceived slower pace, calling it “sleuthing for softies” and commenting “[It was] entertaining, but I longed for more drama”.
However, Lovereading.com calls the book “utterly charming”.
W. H. Auden
Isabel mentions being a fan of Auden, and insists that she sees links between Auden’s poetry and that of Robert Burns
, particularly Burns’ poem ‘A Red, Red Rose
’. Late in the novel, when considering Gavin’s death, Isabel also quotes several lines from Auden’s ‘Bucolics’ (1955).
Robert Burns
Burns was a Scottish poet who is mentioned several times in the novel. In particular, the opening chapter quotes from Burns’ inscription on the grave of another Scottish poet, Robert Fergusson
, who is buried in the Kirk of the Canongate
in Edinburgh:
Sigmund Freud
Freud was a German psychoanalyst
whose theories include that of the id, ego, and super-ego
, which Isabel calls “scientifically shaky”. She sums up this particular theory as “arguments over space, food and sex.”
Robert Garioch
Lines from the Scottish Garioch’s poem ‘At Robert Fergusson’s Grave’ are quoted along with Burns’ inscription (see above) in the opening chapter.
Joseph Haydn
Haydn and his oratorio
‘The Creation’ (1798) are mentioned by a theatre-goer early in the novel.
D. H. Lawrence
Isabel quotes from Lawrence’s 1923 poem ‘Snake’, and classes Lawrence (along with Hemingway
) as a poet who would ‘throw rocks at snakes’. (Auden is classed as a poet who wouldn’t.)
Oliver Sacks
Sacks is a neurologist
whose 1985 book The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
is mentioned by Isabel as the precursor to a number of works with similar titles.
.
The US version is unabridged and is read by Davina Porter.
The Sunday Philosophy Club Series
The Sunday Philosophy Club is a series of novels by the author Alexander McCall Smith. It is also the name of the first novel in the series, and an informal talking group founded by the main character Isabel Dalhousie...
series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith
Alexander McCall Smith
Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith, CBE, FRSE, is a Rhodesian-born Scottish writer and Emeritus Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. In the late 20th century, McCall Smith became a respected expert on medical law and bioethics and served on British and international committees...
, set in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and featuring the protagonist Isabel Dalhousie. It was first published in 2005, and is the sequel to The Sunday Philosophy Club
The Sunday Philosophy Club
The Sunday Philosophy Club is the first of the Sunday Philosophy Club series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Edinburgh, Scotland, and featuring the protagonist Isabel Dalhousie. It was first published in 2004.-Plot synopsis:...
.
Plot synopsis
Isabel Dalhousie is in her early forties and lives alone in Edinburgh. Due to an inheritance from her late mother, she can work for a nominal fee as the editor of the Review of Applied EthicsApplied ethics
Applied ethics is, in the words of Brenda Almond, co-founder of the Society for Applied Philosophy, "the philosophical examination, from a moral standpoint, of particular issues in private and public life that are matters of moral judgment"...
. Her closest friends are her niece Cat, a young woman who runs a delicatessen
Delicatessen
Delicatessen is a term meaning "delicacies" or "fine foods". The word entered English via German,with the old German spelling , plural of Delikatesse "delicacy", ultimately from Latin delicatus....
; her housekeeper
Housekeeper (servant)
A housekeeper is an individual responsible for the cleaning and maintenance of the interior of a residence, including direction of subordinate maids...
Grace, who is outspoken and interested in spiritualism
Spiritualism
Spiritualism is a belief system or religion, postulating the belief that spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the ability and the inclination to communicate with the living...
; Cat’s ex-boyfriend Jamie, a bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
ist to whom Isabel has been secretly attracted ever since they met; and Brother Fox, an urban fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
who lives in Isabel’s garden.
When visiting Cat’s delicatessen one lunchtime, Isabel meets Ian, who has recently had a heart transplant, and seems to have gained the memories of the heart’s former owner
Cellular memory
Cellular memory can refer to:*A variation of body memory, the pseudoscientific hypothesis that memories can be stored in individual cells*A memory card used in cellphones...
, particularly the memory of a sinister-looking man with hooded eyes and a scar on his forehead. Ian is worried that this man may have killed the original owner of the heart, and Isabel decides that they have a moral duty to try to find out more.
Later, Cat tells Isabel that she is about to receive a visit from Tomasso, an Italian whom Cat recently met at a friend's wedding. Cat suggests that he and Isabel, being of similar age, should go out to dinner. Isabel dismisses the idea, thinking of Jamie. Later that evening, she is shocked when Jamie tells her that he is having an affair with a married woman.
The next day, Isabel discovers that a young man, Rory Macloed, died in a hit-and-run accident on the day that Ian received his new heart. She visits Rory’s mother, Rose, and meets Rose’s partner Graeme, who perfectly fits Ian’s description of the possible killer. However, Rose insists that Rory was not an organ donor.
That evening, Jamie and his lover Louise visit Isabel, who is determined to be polite; but her jealousy gets the better of her and she is rude to Louise, who leaves with Jamie. When Isabel phones Jamie the next day to apologize, Jamie says that he and Louise have broken up – because Jamie is still in love with Cat. Hearing this, Isabel decides to go out to dinner with Tomasso, who is very attractive. He impulsively suggests to Isabel that they go on a tour of Scotland, and she considers the benefits of having an Italian lover.
A few days later, Isabel sees Graeme in a pub, and phones Ian, who comes to the pub and confirms that Graeme is the man in his memory. Isabel is certain that Rose Macloed has been lying about Rory’s not having been an organ donor, perhaps in order to protect Graeme. She asks her journalist friend Angus to speak to his contacts at the hospital, and he confirms that the young donor of Ian's heart was named Macloed.
Isabel meets Jamie for dinner, where he reveals that although the donor’s name was Macloed, it was not Rory: a second young man, Gavin Macloed, died on the same day. Then the conversation turns to relationships, and Isabel tells Jamie that Cat will never love him. Jamie angrily leaves the restaurant.
Isabel, in a last attempt to solve the mystery of the heart, goes to visit Gavin’s family in West Linton
West Linton
West Linton is a village and civil parish in southern Scotland, on the A702. It was formerly in the county of Peeblesshire, but since local government re-organisation in the mid-1990s it is now part of the Tweeddale committee area of the Scottish Borders. Many residents are commuters due to the...
, just outside Edinburgh. His mother, Jean, tells her that her son’s heart was donated, but that his father Euan, who is estranged from the family, does not know. Isabel sees a picture of Euan: he has hooded eyes and a scar on his forehead.
When she returns home, she finds a letter from Tomasso, telling her that he has been called back to Italy and will not be able to go traveling with her.
Isabel tells Ian about the second Macloed family, and they go together to tell Euan about his son’s heart. Afterwards, Ian informs Isabel that he visited West Linton shortly after his operation, and spoke to several people there. From this Isabel concludes that Ian must have seen Euan, heard about his son’s death, and subconscious
Subconscious
The term subconscious is used in many different contexts and has no single or precise definition. This greatly limits its significance as a definition-bearing concept, and in consequence the word tends to be avoided in academic and scientific settings....
ly connected Euan’s face with his new heart.
Finally, Jamie apologizes for his behavior in the restaurant, and he and Isabel spend the evening in the usual way, playing music and drinking wine at her house.
Development
After criticism for the first novel in the series asserted that Isabel was difficult to empathise with, McCall Smith aimed in this novel to show “more of the human side of her”.The title refers to “three issues of great philosophical importance” that test our moral inclinations. The “philosophical resonance” of friendship and lovers are evident; as McCall Smith says, “Friendship
Friendship
Friendship is a form of interpersonal relationship generally considered to be closer than association, although there is a range of degrees of intimacy in both friendships and associations. Friendship and association are often thought of as spanning across the same continuum...
involves philosophical issues. Lovers
Sexual partner
Sexual partners are people who engage in sexual activity together. The sexual partners can be of any gender or sexual orientation. The sexual partners may be in a committed relationship, either on an exclusive basis or not, or engage in the sexual activity on a casual basis...
can certainly give rise to moral difficulties.” Chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
represents “temptation and our inability to resist temptation” and is included for personal reasons, because the temptation of chocolate affects “most of us ... me in particular.”
A key subplot is Jamie’s affair with Louise, which can be seen as demonstrating his willingness to enter into relationships with older women and foreshadowing the events of the next book in the series
The Right Attitude to Rain
The Right Attitude to Rain is the third of the Sunday Philosophy Club series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Edinburgh, Scotland, and featuring the protagonist Isabel Dalhousie...
.
Reception
Despite Friends, Lovers, Chocolate being the second book in the Sunday Philosophy Club series, there are still comparisons to McCall Smith’s previous series The No. 1 Ladies' Detective AgencyThe No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is a series of twelve novels by Scottish author Alexander McCall Smith. The agency is located in Gaborone, capital of Botswana. Its founder is a Motswana woman, Mma Precious Ramotswe, who features as the stories' protagonist and main detective...
. For example, Bookreporter.com says that, “Isabel Dalhousie is as wise, charmingly offbeat and original as Mma Ramotswe”, adding that the novel is “As Scottish as a single malt whiskey
Single malt whisky
Single malt whisky is a whisky made at one particular distillery from a mash that uses one particular malted grain, which is ordinarily barley.Single malts are typically associated with Scotland, though they are also produced in various other countries...
" and that "McCall Smith's love of Scotland is as poignant as is his love of Botswana
Botswana
Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...
in his African series”.
The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
Online was more critical of the novel's perceived slower pace, calling it “sleuthing for softies” and commenting “[It was] entertaining, but I longed for more drama”.
However, Lovereading.com calls the book “utterly charming”.
W. H. AudenW. H. AudenWystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
(1907-1973)
Isabel mentions being a fan of Auden, and insists that she sees links between Auden’s poetry and that of Robert BurnsRobert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
, particularly Burns’ poem ‘A Red, Red Rose
A Red, Red Rose
"My Love is Like a Red, Red Rose" is a 1794 song in Scots by Robert Burns based on traditional sources. The song is also referred to by the title My Love is Like A Red, Red Rose or Red, Red Rose and is often published as a poem.-The poem:...
’. Late in the novel, when considering Gavin’s death, Isabel also quotes several lines from Auden’s ‘Bucolics’ (1955).
Robert BurnsRobert BurnsRobert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
(1759–1796)
Burns was a Scottish poet who is mentioned several times in the novel. In particular, the opening chapter quotes from Burns’ inscription on the grave of another Scottish poet, Robert FergussonRobert Fergusson
Robert Fergusson was a Scottish poet. After formal education at the University of St Andrews, Fergusson followed an essentially bohemian life course in Edinburgh, the city of his birth, then at the height of intellectual and cultural ferment as part of the Scottish enlightenment...
, who is buried in the Kirk of the Canongate
Kirk of the Canongate
The Kirk of the Canongate, or Canongate Kirk, serves the Parish of Canongate in Edinburgh's Old Town, in Scotland. It is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. The parish includes the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It is also the parish church of Edinburgh Castle, even...
in Edinburgh:
- This simple Stone directs Pale Scotia's way
- To pour her sorrows o'er her Poet's Dust.
Sigmund FreudSigmund FreudSigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
(1856-1939)
Freud was a German psychoanalystPsychoanalysis
Psychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
whose theories include that of the id, ego, and super-ego
Id, ego, and super-ego
Id, ego and super-ego are the three parts of the psychic apparatus defined in Sigmund Freud's structural model of the psyche; they are the three theoretical constructs in terms of whose activity and interaction mental life is described...
, which Isabel calls “scientifically shaky”. She sums up this particular theory as “arguments over space, food and sex.”
Robert GariochRobert GariochRobert Garioch Sutherland, , was a Scottish poet and translator. His poetry was written almost exclusively in the Scots language, he was a key member in the literary revival of the language in the mid-20th century...
(1909-1981)
Lines from the Scottish Garioch’s poem ‘At Robert Fergusson’s Grave’ are quoted along with Burns’ inscription (see above) in the opening chapter.Joseph HaydnJoseph HaydnFranz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
(1732-1809)
Haydn and his oratorioOratorio
An oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
‘The Creation’ (1798) are mentioned by a theatre-goer early in the novel.
D. H. LawrenceD. H. LawrenceDavid Herbert Richards Lawrence was an English novelist, poet, playwright, essayist, literary critic and painter who published as D. H. Lawrence. His collected works represent an extended reflection upon the dehumanising effects of modernity and industrialisation...
(1885-1930)
Isabel quotes from Lawrence’s 1923 poem ‘Snake’, and classes Lawrence (along with HemingwayErnest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
) as a poet who would ‘throw rocks at snakes’. (Auden is classed as a poet who wouldn’t.)
Oliver SacksOliver SacksOliver Wolf Sacks, CBE , is a British neurologist and psychologist residing in New York City. He is a professor of neurology and psychiatry at Columbia University, where he also holds the position of Columbia Artist...
(1933-)
Sacks is a neurologistNeurology
Neurology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. Specifically, it deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of disease involving the central, peripheral, and autonomic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue,...
whose 1985 book The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat
The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Other Clinical Tales is a 1985 book by neurologist Oliver Sacks describing the case histories of some of his patients. The title of the book comes from the case study of a man with visual agnosia...
is mentioned by Isabel as the precursor to a number of works with similar titles.
Editions
The UK audio version of the book is abridged, and is read by Phyllis LoganPhyllis Logan
-Education:Logan was educated at Johnstone High School in Johnstone, Renfrewshire, Scotland. After school, she graduated from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama with the James Bridie Gold Medal in 1977.-Career:...
.
The US version is unabridged and is read by Davina Porter.