The unbearable lightness of scones (by Alexander McCall Smith)

(Amazon UK link)

I really want to like Alexander McCall Smith’s books. Several people whose literary tastes I respect consider his novels wonderful.Yet, in the two that I have read so far by this author, I have been unable to feel more than mild amusement. This is combined - usually - with a slight sense of tedium at the immense amount of minute detail inherent in his writing.

However, I quite liked the friendly and somewhat satirical style, free for the most part from violence or bad language. So when I spotted the novel ‘The unbearable lightness of scones’ going for a euro on a church bookstall, it was not a hard decision to buy it.

The title intrigued me. It is apparently part of a series about 44 Scotland Street in Edinburgh. As I gradually realised, it might have been better to have read at least one of the others in the series beforehand.

The book starts with a wedding. A young couple called Matthew and Elspeth tie the knot, despite a few last-minute reservations, and set off on their honeymoon. This takes a few chapters, and gives a nice cameo. There are ironic asides, and rather a large number of minor characters. But I was quite enjoying it when suddenly the viewpoint switches to the middle of someone else’s life, after the newly-weds have left by plane for Australia. By the time the story has followed them on their honeymoon, I had almost forgotten who they were.

I usually read light fiction for fifteen minutes or so before going to sleep, and unfortunately this is not the ideal kind of book for that treatment. I simply could not keep track of all the people in this book, which feels at times more like a few episodes from a soap rather than a novel. My favourite character was the delightfully precocious six-year-old Bertie who wants nothing more than to join Cub Scouts. However his mother wants him to join only gender-neutral groups and to play with the bossy Olive. I don't recall any of the others particularly. They all seemed so similar.

There’s a thread about a missing blue teacup, another about a valuable long-lost painting, another about someone who breaks up with his girlfriend and is offered a modelling job. And there are many conversations between people who, unfortunately, I found it hard to care about. Or even to distinguish. Perhaps the book is not meant to stand alone - or perhaps the intention is to be snapshots of several people’s lives as they intertwine and overlap. But since I could not grasp who was whom, or remember from one chapter to another what relationship they had with each other, this point was rather lost.

All of which sounds rather negative. But to be fair, the writing for the most part is enjoyable enough, with some nice irony here and there. I was tempted to give up a couple of times but kept going despite the lack of coherent story.. and enjoyed some interesting insights into people whose lives - albeit caricatured - are far removed from mine.

If I come across another in this series second-hand, I might well consider reading it...

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 11th October 2013

The Sunday philosophy club (by Alexander McCall Smith)

(Amazon UK link)

I'd heard of Alexander McCall Smith as a writer more than once. Various friends had recommended his detective series set in Botswana, featuring the 'number 1 lady detective' Precious Ramotswe. But the only book I've read so far in that series, 'The Kalahari typing school for men' left me underwhelmed, wondering what people could see in his writing.

But it's not fair to judge an author on just one book. So when I saw 'The Sunday philosophy club' in the local thrift store, I decided to buy it. It's the first in a separate series about another detective, and set in Scotland.

The detective in this series is the middle-aged Isabel Dalhousie. She's a review editor, and also something of a philosopher - although the 'Sunday philosophy club' of the title is only mentioned in passing throughout the novel. She's also intrigued by people, and by motivations, and likes to follow up her instincts although they prove to be somewhat unreliable at times.

The story opens as Isabel witnesses a tragedy at the end of a concert. It disturbs her, naturally, and after giving an interview to a rather insensitive journalist, it preys on her mind more and more. She determines to find out as much as she can about the circumstances, in the hope of putting her mind to rest. But the more she discovers, the more confused she becomes.

She follows up various trails, some of them leading nowhere, and has a few tense moments that make her wonder if she might be the next victim of another tragedy.

I found the book a bit long-winded in places, decidedly prone to digression. All the same, I found it surprisingly enjoyable. There are some mildly amusing moments, and also a few pages that kept me rather strongly in suspense. I quickly warmed to Isabel and also to her no-nonsense housekeeper Grace. Despite the plethora of minor characters, I didn't have too much trouble remembering who was who.

While I'm still not certain if I want to read any more about Precious Ramotswe, I'm intrigued by Isabel Dalhousie and her philosophy club. I may look for more books in this series in future.

Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 26th August 2010

The Kalahari typing school for men (by Alexander McCall Smith)

(Amazon UK link)

I haven't read anything else by Alexander McCall Smith. But I have heard and read several enthusiastic reviews of his series based in Botswana, featuring Precious Ramotswe, a lady detective. I gathered that each of his novels is complete in itself. So I decided to read 'The Kalahari Typing School for Men', which is the fourth in the series, rather than worry about finding the first one.

It's certainly a bit different from my normal reads. Despite being about detectives, it's not a mystery or whodunnit type of novel. It's not remotely like a thriller either - there's not a lot of action, and it's quite slow-paced. It's really more reminiscent of a village-type book, except that it's set in a small town in Africa rather than somewhere in the UK.

There are snippets of information about Botswana throughout the book, mostly in the thoughts or speech of the characters, and they seem realistic. Mma (which appears to be the equivalent of Mrs) Ramotswe often deplores the changing, materialistic society that's growing up around her.

The title of the book relates to Mma Ramotswe's assistant, who decides to set up a typing school specially for men. That's one thread of the story. Another is about the young men who work in the garage owned by Mma Ramotswe's fiancé, Mr JLB Matekoni. Yet another introduces a competetive element - a New York trained CID detective who sets up an agency in the same town, claiming that men are better detectives than women. Then there's a thread about Mma Ramotswe's fostered children. Almost as an aside there are a couple of detecting subplots, but no mystery involved.

It's all quite well woven together, and the story flows reasonably as far as the plots go. What made it less enjoyable is the very stilted language style. Perhaps it's supposed to reflect the way that people with second language English would speak, or perhaps it's a quirk of the author. Whatever was intended, it wasn't a relaxing read as I kept finding that the style jarred, at least until I got used to it.

I also found the extreme formality very wearing. The author refers to all his characters by their titles (hence Mma Ramotswe), but in addition they all refer to each other equally formally, other than children. What's more, Mr JLB Matekoni is always referred to in exactly that way, even when his fiancée is speaking to him!  Surely no culture takes formality that seriously, not allowing someone to be on first name terms with their intended spouse.

There were places that made me smile slightly - one or two - but it wasn't the highly amusing style or anecdotes that the blurb (and some other reviews) suggest. Moreover, despite a great many thoughts being expressed in full rambling detail, the characters all seemed very one-dimensional. I really couldn't care about any of them, and while I read to the end to see how the various plots resolved themselves, it wasn't with any great enthusiasm.

Only just over 200 pages of relatively easy reading, and it was a struggle to finish in four days. Sometimes I simply couldn't stand more than a chapter at a time.

We have another book by this author, so I'll probably try it, but won't be rushing out to buy any more. Still, on the plus side, there's no bad language, violence or sex, so it's quite suitable for anyone of any age who wants to read it.