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.
