La's Orchestra Saves The World - Alexander McCall Smith

As a huge Alexander McCall Smith fan it was really only a matter of time before I picked up his stand alone novel La's Orchestra Saves The World. It jumped out at me at a recent trip to my library and after reading the first few lines I was drawn in - as I find happens with most McCall Smith novels - he sets up a world and characters you want to learn more about.

The main character, La (unfortunately short for Lavender she explains during the book) is a woman in her late 20's who moves from London to the Suffolk countryside shortly before the start of World War 2 after her husband runs off to France with another woman. La is an intelligent, educated woman who has concerns about moving to a small village but after her husband leaves she feels she needs to move away from London for a time. As La is learning to fit into village life Hitler is gathering power in Germany and World War 2 begins and after a chance encounter with a fellow music lover the decision to start a small village orchestra to boost moral is made. This event does not come until quite late in the book and to be honest I had completely forgotten about the fact that it was coming up - even with the title of the book making it very clear! The creation of the orchestra seemed to come out of the blue - by that stage I was enjoying reading about La and her daily life - the challenges she was facing in becoming a "local" and dealing with the impact of the war and the personal relationships she was building - I didn't actually need the orchestra to focus the book in any way.

I found this book to be a very different reading experience to the other McCall Smith novels I have read - this book seemed a lot heavier and dealt with issues in a much more serious way than some of his other books I have read such as The Scotland Street series. Obviously the setting of the book in the midst of World War 2 has contributed to this tone.

Overall it was the character of La that made this book for me - I was so glad that McCall Smith carried on to let us see what had happened to her after the war had ended - it was just right.

Corduroy Mansions - Alexander McCall Smith

2009 has been a bit of an Alexander McCall Smith year for me - I discovered his Scotland Street series earlier in the year and devoured the books in that collection quite quickly. When I saw Corduroy Mansions had been published I was very excited - I could continue my obsession!

Corduroy Mansions is pretty much just an English version of the Scotland Street novels. A lot of the characters seem similar in stereotypes and ways - and yet they retain their own individual quirks and traits as well. I fluctuated when reading this novel between finding the sameness and similarities in character design annoying and boring and then finding it comforting and safe - which is sometimes just what I am looking for in my reading. I picked up the new Alexander McCall Smith novel because I knew what I would be getting - and he didn't disappoint me in this regard.

The Corduroy Mansions of the title is a block of flats in the London area of Pimlico and the chapters focus around the various residents of the building as we as their numerous acquaintances and relatives. Unlike the Scotland Street series there wasn't a character like young Bertie who really stood out for me as a favourite and it was probably this fact that was most disappointing about the novel for me - there was no one character that I genuinely cared about. Apart from this though there were a great selection of characters to follow - the style of McCall Smith's writing and the way he structures his chapters means that if you are bored with one particular story line another one comes along very quickly to entertain you.

The sequel to Corduroy Mansions, The Dog Who Came in From The Cold, is currently being published online and I have tried to give it a go - but unfortunately it just isn't holding the same appeal for me. Maybe I will need to wait until it is published in book form...

The Unbearable Lightness of Scones - Alexander McCall Smith

Isn't this one of the most fantastic titles for a book?? The Unbearable Lightness of Scones is the latest book in the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith. This is a series I became a little hooked on earlier in the year - I devoured the first few books and then found I was getting a little bored by the characters so I took a little break before reading this latest offering. I'm so glad I did because I was delighted by this book when I finally picked it up this week. I was enjoying reading about the little (and not so little) antics of the crowd in and around 44 Scotland Street again. I'm still feeling a little frustrated by Bertie and his suffocating, obnoxious mother Irene - if ever a character needed removal this woman is one! But overall I was once again loving McCall Smith's style of writing - so simplistic and yet so funny, clever and engaging at the same time.

I'm not sure if McCall Smith is going to be writing another book in this series - does anyone know?? I am thinking there are still a few unanswered questions that could be addressed in another book so I'm hoping he picks up his pen...

The World According to Bertie - Alexander McCall Smith

I am continuing my reading of the 44 Scotland Street series by Alexander McCall Smith with The World According to Bertie, the 4th book in the series.

It actually pains me to say that I did not enjoy this book as much as the first 3 - I don't think this really has anything to do with the quality of the book - I think it is just an indication that I probably need to move on and read something a little different before I lose my infatuation with all things McCall Smith!

The characters are all still doing their thing in and around Scotland Street and Edinburgh but I just felt that things were a little stuck in this book - not a lot of movement either backwards or forwards really. Poor Bertie still seems caught in the over-bearing, ridiculous world of his mother (I'm really starting to yell at Bertie's dad to get a move on and leave this woman and take Bertie with him!!). I also thought the storyline involving Cyril the dog was a little far fetched and didn't really seem to serve a purpose.

But, as I said, I think it is more the case of me needing to take a Scotland Street break and come back to it well refreshed and ready to go again!

The Sunday Philosophy Club - Alexander McCall Smith

After reading and loving 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith A Devoted Reader recommended another series by the same author, starting with The Sunday Philosophy Club. So, in keeping with my current McCall Smith marathon I picked The Sunday Philosophy Club up the other day and finished it in less than 24 hours.

I am not usually into reading murder mysteries - not really sure why - just not a genre I have ever really branched into, I might have to change that now I think.

The Sunday Philosophy Club centres around the character of Isabel Dalhousie, a single woman in her mid 40's living quite comfortably in Edinburgh. The story starts with Isabel witnessing the tragic, and presumably accidental, death of a young man at the Edinburgh Concert Hall. Of course, Isabel being who she is she finds she needs to explore the story further to get to the truth of the matter.

I found the writing and characterisation in this book very similar to the style of the 44 Scotland Street series so that made me feel quite at home. I thought there were quite a few convenient coincidences that helped the plot along but I was prepared to ignore these because I was enjoying the ride along with the characters so much. I'll definitely be reading the rest of this series to see what happens to Isabel and the rest of the crew.

I am also really keen to pick up some other mystery novels in a similar style so if anyone has any other suggestions I would love to hear about them.

Love Over Scotland - Alexander McCall Smith

I realise this blog is fast becoming a homage to all things Alexander McCall Smith - I promise I am reading books by other authors! I am just loving this author so much right now that I am sticking to a good thing.

Love Over Scotland is the third book in the 44 Scotland Street series - a continuation of the lives and loves of the characters introduced and discovered in the first two books.

I can see that the author is starting to dig deeper in some areas - I'm not sure if he ever envisaged writing this many books in the series but it still feels like he has plenty of emotional baggage to work with in terms of the characters and their relationships.

I have to say that my favourite character by far is 6 year old Bertie - I am so hanging out for him to do something ghastly to his bloody awful mother, Irene (something that she will duly deserve if you ask me!). The chapters which take place in Bertie's school with his classmates involvement are hilarious - especially when they start to discuss a school production of "The Sound of Music". As much as I love Bertie there are characters I am not especially fond of - particularly annoying and whiny Pat - I know she's only 20 and I should give her a break but I just want to yell at her most of the time!

But I guess this is what is keeping me reading - whether I love them or can't stand them - I want to know what will end up happening to them all!

Espresso Tales - Alexander McCall Smith

I think I am in love - Alexander McCall Smith has helped me find my reading groove again - I was starting to worry I might have lost it!

I have just finished Espresso Tales the second book in the 44 Scotland Street series and I have started the third book in the tale immediately - just can't get enough.

Espresso Tales continues the story started in 44 Scotland Street - a lot more of a focus on my favourite character, the gorgeous 6 year old star, Bertie (and unfortunately his overbearing mother, Irene!).

If you haven't read this series at all I would highly recommend it - it is a great reading escape without being frivolous or silly - just funny, honest writing and characterisation. My only fear is that after I read the 5 books in the series I will be grief stricken if there are no more!

44 Scotland Street - Alexander McCall Smith

I was searching for a particular book when I visited my library last week - I wasn't exactly sure what the book was which made the search a little difficult! I needed a book that wasn't too intense - something I could read before going to sleep that wouldn't keep me thinking too much and yet not "fluff" either.

Then I saw 44 Scotland Street by Alexander McCall Smith - I read the first page and was hooked - the search was over. I had read a couple of the books in the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series by the same author quite some time ago now and I remember really enjoying them (not sure why I didn't keep reading the rest of the series really?) so I thought this new series was worth a try.

McCall Smith first wrote 44 Scotland Street as a serialised novel in the Scottish newspaper The Scotsman - it was extremely successful so the novel of the serial was born (and 4 sequels as well). The novel is set in Edinburgh and follows the rather ordinary, but at times extraordinary, lives of a set of characters and their numerous associates, friends and foes, living in the apartments of 44 Scotland Street.

I have to say from the beginning that I adore books set in the UK - absolutely love reading about the lives of people living here (even if they are fictional!) so this book did grab me from the start simply because of this. Even without the setting though, the author's writing style is so engaging you just want to keep digging deeper and deeper into the plot and the character's personalities and actions. It's as though McCall Smith is telling the story just to you - he knows what you want to hear about next and he never rests too long on one setting or one character.

I loved this book completely - totally gorgeous is how I would describe it! I'm already on to the sequel - Expresso Tales.