It’s amazing what you see when you’re walking to the supermarket, if you happen to be in the Stockbridge area of Edinburgh (again). I was admiring the gardens, there were quite a few viburnums blossoming, when I noticed that one of the terraced houses had a sign above the fanlight. Thomas Carlyle lived here – or words to that effect. It’s a very nice terrace but being Edinburgh the houses will cost an arm and a leg, even without a famous author as a past inhabitant. I love the fanlights above the doors, there are so many different designs. I just wish the present inhabitants would cut their climbing rose back a wee bit.
It’s great that the window shutters are still in working order too, most of the houses seem to have internal shutters. It must make it nice and cosy, especially when there’s a howling gale. They would also be handy for keeping the early sunlight out in the summer, it’s no fun trying to get to sleep when there’s bright daylight outside at about 3 or 4 in the morning.
The house next door to Carlyle’s has quite an unusual fanlight (the window above the door). It would make a good pattern for a patchwork quilt, if you’re of that band of crafters.
Carlyle lived in Kirkcaldy for a couple of years when he was teaching here but the powers that be pulled the place down years ago. You can see the street that it was in in a previous post here.
So what were we doing in Stockbridge? It wasn’t my fault (it wisnae me). Jack wanted to go to buy a book he had seen there a few weeks ago and hadn’t bought because he thought he already had it, he was wrong, luckily it was still there. He bought Space Chantey by R.A. Lafferty and The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke.
I ended up buying Mary Stewart’s The Ivy Tree and a 1934 copy of Priorsford by O. Douglas. Neither of them had been there a couple of weeks ago. That particular shop must have some turnover of books because they all seemed to be different this time.
Why was I at Waitrose? Buying more scone ingredients of course. Fingers crossed and ever hopeful that I can produce something good enough to photograph next time!
I just got a copy of Priorsford too! It is a small book and very old but can’t find a date anywhere. Just publishers Thomas Nelson & Sons, LTD in the front and at the end of the story it says ‘printed in Great Britain at the press of the publishers’ Happy reading!
The fanlights are very attractive.
Peggy,
I have a copy of Ann and her Mother which was published by Nelson. I haven’t read it yet. These wee books seem to have been printed in the early 1930s, at just 1/6 they were 6 shillings cheaper than the normal sized books. Nelson was a Scottish company but they were bought by Harper Collins just last year apparently. The red and black bindings look very art deco-ish I think.
Ah! Priorsford again! I must get reading those books by O.Douglas, It’s inexcusable that I haven’t read them as I live in “Priorsford”!
Beautiful houses in Stockbridge. I love those two. RLS lived in one like it near the Botanic Gardens in Inverleith Row. It was there as a wee boy he watched Leerie, the lamplighter, on his rounds lighting the gas street lamps each evening!
Evee,
O. Douglas books are very Scottish and a bit Presbyterian I suppose but quite twee comfort reading, certainly not racy! Not everyone’s cup of tea but I’ve enjoyed the couple I’ve read.
I didn’t realise RLS lived at Inverleith Row, there is a blue plaque on the nearest house to the Playhouse theatre, the house garden backs on to Calton Hill. That house is mentioned by RLS I believe but he probably moved from there as a child I think it was his grandfather’s house but lots of the Lighthouse Stephensons had lived there at some point. Last time I walked past it the windows were all boarded up. Shame, it should be a museum to them all.
Hi Katrina
Have you read ‘The Ladies of Grace Adieu’? I really enjoyed it, she writes in a strangely convincing way, you could almost believe these wonderful ‘fairy stories’. I was a huge fan of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, it was totally different and again weirdly convincing.
Every time I go into a charity shop I have a quick look for a Mary Stewart book, read one years ago – nice relaxing read, but have not found one yet!
Michelle,
I haven’t read that one yet but I see it’s in a library near me so I might try to borrow it, I read quite a lot of short stories.
Mary Stewart books will probably start turning up soon as some have been reprinted. I find it’s often quite difficult to get older books in charity shops, unless it’s a specialist Oxfam or Shelter bookshop. My favourite Mary Stewart books are her Arthurian books, if you’re into Arthur I’m sure you could stick in a request for them at your local library.
I hope your jewellery making and other art projects are doing well!
Edited to add. Ooops. I just realised that that was the book that Jack bought so there’s a copy even closer than I thought. So many books – and we keep ours seperate from each others usually as he reads mainly SF, he writes it too.