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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010108629 | PR6063.C326 F67 2005 | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
Searching... | 30000010108630 | PR6063.C326 F67 2005 | Open Access Book | Creative Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
The bestselling author of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency Series brings his trademark warmth and wisdom to his novel chronicling the lives of the residents of 44 Scotland Street that's 'as charming as the bohemian street in which it's set' ( Scottish Daily Record )
The story revolves around the comings and goings at No. 44 Scotland Street, a fictitious building in a real street in Edinburgh. Immediately recognisable are the Edinburgh chartered surveyor, stalwart of the Conservative Association, who dreams of membership of Scotland's most exclusive golf club. We have the pushy Stockbridge mother, and her prodigiously talented five-year-old son, who is making good progress with the saxophone and with his Italian. Then there is Domenica Macdonald who is that type of Edinburgh lady who sees herself as a citizen of a broader intellectual world.
In McCall Smith's hands such characters retain charm and novelty, simultaneously arousing both mirth and empathy. 44 Scotland Street is vintage McCall Smith, tackling issues of trust and honesty, snobbery and hypocrisy, love and loss, but all with great lightness of touch. Clever, elegant and funny, this is a novel that provides huge entertainment but which is underpinned by the moral dilemmas of everyday life and the characters' struggles to resolve them.
Author Notes
Alexander McCall Smith was born on August 24, 1948 in Zimbabwe. He was a professor of medical law at the University of Edinburgh, but he left in 2005 to focus on his writing. He has written over 60 books, including specialist academic titles including Forensic Aspects of Sleep and The Criminal Law of Botswana, short story collections including Portuguese Irregular Verbs, and children's books including The Perfect Hamburger. He is best known for the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. He also writes the Corduroy Mansions, Isabel Dalhousie and 44 Scotland Street series.
He has received numerous awards, including The Crime Writers' Association Dagger in the Library Award and the 2004 United Kingdom's Author of the Year Award. His book, The Full Cupboard of Life, received the Saga Award for Wit in the United Kingdom. In 2007, he received a CBE for his services in literature.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews 1
Library Journal Review
ea. vol: unabridged. Recorded Bks. 2005. f What one finds at 44 Scotland Street is a rooming house and a microcosm of Edinburgh society. Twenty-year-old Pat rents a room from handsome but vain Bruce for her second "gap" year. Precocious Bertie, pushed to excel by his overbearing mother, and crusty widow Domenica McDonald lease other spaces. There is also Matthew, the son of the owner of the art gallery where Pat finds employment as a receptionist. When a piece of art gets misappropriated, author Ian Rankin becomes involved in the sleuthing. This is Smith's best since the "No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" series, and librarians will want to be sure to start their collection with the first title. Performer Robert Ian Mackenzie aptly portrays these Scots. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
