I was delighted to be invited to attend a lecture by Alexander McCall Smith at the American Embassy. The event for the American School of Paris is apparently an annual event and fundraiser for the school. I think someone said this was the 7 or 8th year for having a guest author and hosting it at the Embassy. The Embassy was beautiful and really a treat to see. The current ambassador, Craig Stapleton made the joke that his time there might be limited (as he is after all a political appointee) but that he was really happy to share the embassy with the Americans and their guests. The place is palatial. The ornate details and the art collection is worth the visit, but I don't know how to get in there, unless you know someone who can get you an invite. There is a magnificent portrait of George Washington on horseback preparing to enter battle, several artists' perspectives of the statue of liberty on canvas and in sculpture. The ceilings are coffered or gilded and the walls are covered in really rich fabrics. The furniture is definitely french and very richly colored. The marble columns and tiled entry was beautiful...and everyone spoke english.
As for Mr. McCall Smith, he is scottish and probably best known for his series of books that start with the The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, but he has at least 4 different series, including the 44 Scotland Street series. If you ever get the chance to hear him speak, do. He is very engaging, and has had some really wonderful experiences. His sense of self is casual and easy -- translate that into genial, but also proud of his work. He truly enjoys his characters.
The Scotland Street series is written in a very interesting format because each book is based on his weekly newspaper column, by the same name I think, so each column is a chapter.
The Scotland Street series is written in a very interesting format because each book is based on his weekly newspaper column, by the same name I think, so each column is a chapter.
When Mom gave me the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, I thought the writing style was fresh and a little quirky, and kept me on my intellectual toes, but I wasn't sure if I liked it. Even the wording of the title threw me and I was drawn to read more to figure it out. (I can never remember it correctly and had to look it up even to write this blog.) It's not at all in the market-catching tradition of the very telegraphed titles like One for the Money (Evanovich), but then this is no ordinary detective novel. It is based in a Botswana village and follows the life of a really interesting woman who starts her own business (ergo the title) to her father's dismay and with the complete expectation of building on it. I was decidedly on the fence about it because it doesn't have the big adrenaline pumping crescendo, but instead it is rather a fun, light-hearted endearing and pleasant stroll through a small village. Now, knowing the background on the novel, I can't wait to read more.
Then when I bought 44 Scotland Street and started reading it (mistakenly thinking it was a follow up to No. 1), I was again taken aback by this even more atypical style. There is NO thread of connectivity here --- not because it wasn't related to No. 1 (I had already figured out that mistake), but throughout the first few chapters, I couldn't figure out how they built on eachother. Each chapter seemed a story of its own rather than a traditional novel, so I was having a hard time sticking with it. I thought, "he just keeps introducing character after character -- when will he tell the story???"
But that's exactly what it was, a neatly tied up bundle of stories of the lives of the neighbors on Scotland St. Each chapter was a self-contained newspaper column and because that's how real life is, each neighbor has a story and it's completely independent of the other neighbors, and the only thing that weaves them all together is fact that they all live within the same patch of earth so their paths constantly cross creating a kind of loosely macraméed mulit-colored scarf in which all threads of yarn exist on their own, but knitted together they become a warm and peaceful wrap for keeping out the chill.
