Famous Author on East Coast Trains

What an interesting idea! East Coast trains (now owned by the public since GNER was forced out of its franchise by National Express, who then defaulted on their payments) run from Scotland to London down the eastern side of England. GNER used to publish a bi-monthly on-train magazine with tourist options and descriptions of their local food providers along the way. Now however, East Coast have produced a volume of short stories commissioned from Alexander McCall Smith, the celebrated Scots physician who now writes very interesting and entertaining novels in retirement.

We have revelled in his series about the "No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency", set in Botswana with Mma Ramotswe as laid-back lady detective; the BBC TV series starring Jill Scott was a great rendition, too, now available through HBO online. But these are not his only achievements: he writes several series on "von Igelfeld" and on "Isabel Dalhousie, on "44 Scotland Street" and on "Corduroy Mansions". Prolific!

The train magazine entitled "East Coast Stories", published by The Scotsman, was written specifically for train clientele, McCall Smith says, as they "sit back and...feel the rocking of the train...hear the sound of its wheels on the rails...And sometimes there are conversations to be had." The five short stories – five contributions to a conversation between five strangers on their way from Edinburgh to London – are entitled:
Brief Encounter
Classical Landscape, With Train
The Way the World Used to Be
Train-Spotting
The Flying Scotsman

All very enjoyable indeed. Since this is a limited edition magazine of a famous author's stories, with restricted distribution, I'm keeping my copy just in case it becomes a collectors' item!