The first novel in Alexander McCall Smith’s beloved series introduces us to Bertie and the wide cast of characters who live on 44 Scotland Street. There’s Pat, a twenty-year-old who has recently moved into a flat with Bruce, an athletic young man with a keen awareness of his own appearance. Their neighbor, Domenica, is an eccentric and insightful widow. Love triangles, a lost painting, intriguing new friends, and an encounter with a famous Scottish crime writer are just a few of the ingredients that add to this delightful and witty portrait of Edinburgh society. After Bruce is caught enjoying a romantic meal with his employer’s wife, he loses his job and his American girlfriend rejects him. This disillusioned ex-surveyor prepares to embark on a new career as a wine merchant.

But McCall Smith grew up long ago, and he discovered then that the whole game's Absurd - and never really in good taste. I believed (whether it was true or not) that I could see McCall at night, biting his lip while he thought up another so many words to have it at the newspaper in time. The city of Edinburgh vividly comes to life in this gently satirical and humorous serial novel featuring the adventures of Bertie, a child prodigy and remarkably over-psychoanalyzed five-year-old; Cyril the dog, with a penchant for ankles; and the stylish painter, Angus Lordie. Scotland Street is an episodic novel by Alexander McCall Smith, the author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. The story was first published as a serial in The Scotsman, starting 26 January 2004, every weekday, for six months. The book retains the 100+ short chapters of the original. It was partially influenced by Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City, a famous serial story. It is the first book in a series of the same name. The series now has 15 books, as of 2021. Olive and Pansy indulge in cancel culture but are unable to get Tofu to react as intended; Irene coins the term “toxic caninity” with reference to the gold-toothed Cyril; Sister Maria-Fiore reveals a past in the Vatican’s Intelligence Service and puts it to good use in discovering the truth about Fat Bob.

Surprised at how much I enjoyed this, really surprised… Before you read this review make some tea get cosy because you are about to take a sneak peek into other people’s lives While Bruce certainly has his flaws, Pat cannot help falling for him. The situation becomes even more complicated when Bruce, a stalwart of the South Edinburgh Conservative Association, gives the painting to the Conservative Association for a fund-raising auction. Matthew and Pat are anxious to recover this painting that they believe is very valuable. On the upside, Bertie has been happily free from psychoanalysis, saxophone lessons, yoga classes, Italian lessons, etc. since his mother Irene moved to Aberdeen to get a Ph.D. Summer has come to Scotland Street, and the long days have prompted its denizens to engage in flights of fancy. With the domineering Irene off pursuing academic challenges, Stuart and Bertie are free to indulge in summer fun. Stuart reconnects with an old acquaintance over refreshing peppermint tea while Bertie takes his friend Ranald Braveheart Macpherson to the circus. But their trip to the big top becomes rather more than the pleasant diversion they were hoping for. Once again, Scotland Street teems with the daily triumphs and challenges of those who call it home, and provides a warm, wise, and witty chronicle of the affairs in this corner of the world.

Last week the 14th volume – a world record for a serialised novel, no less – ended its run in The Scotsman, ahead of publication this week by Polygon as The Promise of Ankles. Time perhaps for an insider’s guide to the crafting of a serial novel. Welcome to 44 Scotland Street, home to some of Edinburgh's most colorful characters. There's Pat, a twenty-year-old who has recently moved into a flat with Bruce, an athletic young man with a keen awareness of his own appearance. Their neighbor, Domenica, is an eccentric and insightful widow. In the flat below are Irene and her appealing son Bertie, who is the victim of his mother’s desire for him to learn the saxophone and italian–all at the tender age of five.

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As for Bruce, I am left wondering how long this new persona will last. Not to be too much of a pessimist, and I do believe people can change, but … really??

I suppose we should all remind ourselves of our view. things may get bad and then we say to ourselves remember your view and then everything looks better.” Last, but not least, the latest book in the 44 Scotland Street series, The Enigma of Garlic, is now available! It’s the most anticipated event of the decade—Big Lou and Fat Bob’s wedding—and everyone is invited! But the relative peace and tranquillity of 44 Scotland Street is about to be disrupted. Domineering Irene is set to return for a two-month stay, Bruce Anderson’s new-found outlook on life is being put by the test as he prepares to leave his creature comforts for the monastic simplicity of Pluscarden Abbey, and young Bertie is being shipped off to a summer camp. Alexander McCall Smith’s delightfully witty, wise and sometimes surreal comedy spirals out in surprising ways in this new installment, but its heart remains where it has always been, at the center of life in Edinburgh’s New Town. I will be clear up front that this isn’t a book I would have chosen on my own, since I primarily read classics and nonfiction. That said, I do see why my friend liked it. I though it was okay, but no more than that. There is some humor, but it’s a muted humor. It’s not the wit of Austen, nor the hilarity of Wodehouse, nor the wry English humor of John Mortimer. It’s humor strained through a screen of cheesecloth. McCall Smith did this serial novel for The Scotsman newspaper in Edinburgh. Each chapter is short -- about 9 inches of copy for a daily newspaper run.As always, many topics are mulled over or discussed: expert knowledge vs pretentiousness; the Dunbar Number of close friends; social climbers; guilt over the amount of water needed to produce coffee. Domenica MacDonald cultivates a friendship with Tarquin, one of the downstairs student neighbours, and they have some stimulating conversations. The characters are flawed, but forgiven for their weaknesses, and readers are treated to satirical humor throughout. For instance, Ramsey Dubarton, the lawyer, puts his wife to sleep by reading his memoirs to her. I really hope Big Lou’s marriage holds up — she certainly deserves some happiness — although I have my doubts about her new husband. And I want to scream at Stuart “What the hell are you doing?” Let’s pause here and imagine that you or I had to choose the characters for a series novel set in Edinburgh’s New Town. My guess is that we’d aim for a rough sociological mirroring for our fiction. And why not?