Alexander Mccall Smith Popular Books
Alexander Mccall Smith Biography & Facts
Sir Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith (born 24 August 1948) is a Scottish legal scholar and author of fiction. He was raised in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and was formerly Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. He became an expert on medical law and bioethics and served on related British and international committees. He has since become known as a fiction writer, with sales in English exceeding 40 million by 2010 and translations into 46 languages. He is known as the creator of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. The "McCall" derives from his great-great-grandmother Bethea McCall, who married James Smith at Glencairn, Dumfries-shire, in 1833. Early life Rodney Alexander Alasdair McCall Smith was born in 1948 in Bulawayo in the British colony of Southern Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe), to British parents. He was the only son, having three elder sisters. His father worked as a public prosecutor in Bulawayo. McCall Smith's paternal grandfather, Dr. George Marshall McCall Smith, born in Nairn, abandoned his wife and four children in Scotland and ran off with one of his patients to New Zealand in 1914. They settled in Rawene where he became the medical doctor and a community leader. McCall Smith was educated at the Christian Brothers College in Bulawayo before moving to Scotland at age 17 to study law at the University of Edinburgh, where he earned his LLB and PhD degrees. He soon taught at Queen's University Belfast, and while teaching there he entered a literary competition: one a children's book and the other a novel for adults. He won in the children's category. Professional career McCall Smith returned to southern Africa in 1981 to help co-found the law school and teach law at the University of Botswana. While there, he co-wrote The Criminal Law of Botswana (1992). He was Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh and is now Emeritus Professor at its School of Law. He retains a further involvement with the university in relation to the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. McCall Smith is the former chairman of the Ethics Committee of the British Medical Journal (until 2002), the former vice-chairman of the Human Genetics Commission of the United Kingdom, and a former member of the International Bioethics Committee of UNESCO. After achieving success as a writer, he gave up these commitments. Honours McCall Smith was appointed a CBE in the 2007 New Year Honours List issued at the end of December 2006 for services to literature. In the 2024 New Year Honours he was appointed Knight Bachelor for services to Literature, to Academia and to Charity. In June 2007, he was awarded the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws at a ceremony celebrating the tercentenary of the University of Edinburgh School of Law. In June 2015 he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters at a graduation ceremony at the University of St Andrews. Personal life He settled in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1984. He and his wife Elizabeth, a physician, bought and renovated a large Victorian mansion in the Merchiston/Morningside area of the city. They lived there for almost 30 years, raising their two daughters. Nearby lived the authors J. K. Rowling, Ian Rankin, and Kate Atkinson. An amateur bassoonist, he co-founded The Really Terrible Orchestra. He has helped to found Botswana's first centre for opera training, the Number 1 Ladies' Opera House, for whom he wrote the libretto of their first production, a version of Macbeth set among a troop of baboons in the Okavango Delta. In 2009 he received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member Archbishop Desmond Tutu at an awards ceremony at St. George's Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2012 he appeared in a documentary about the life and work of author W. Somerset Maugham, Revealing Mr. Maugham. In 2014 McCall Smith purchased the Cairns of Coll, a chain of uninhabited islets in the Hebrides. He said, "I intend to do absolutely nothing with them, and to ensure that, after I am gone, they are held in trust, unspoilt and uninhabited, for the nation. I want them kept in perpetuity as a sanctuary for wildlife – for birds and seals and all the other creatures to which they are home." During a visit to New Zealand in 2014 McCall Smith visited Rawene, where his grandfather, George McCall Smith, ran the hospital for 34 years and created the Hokianga area health service. Writing career McCall Smith is a prolific author of fiction, with several series to his credit. He writes at a prodigious rate: "Even when travelling, he never loses a day, turning out between 2,000 and 3,000 words [a day] – but more like 5,000 words when at home in Edinburgh. His usual rate is 1,000 words an hour". He has gained the most fame for his No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series, featuring Mma Precious Ramotswe and set in Gaborone, Botswana. The first novel was published in 1998. By 2009, the series had sold more than 20 million copies in English editions. According to his publisher in Edinburgh, "He was, until 2005, a professor of medical law at the University of Edinburgh, but gave up the position to concentrate on his writing and now writes full time." He published 30 books in the 1980s and 1990s before he began the series that has brought him the world's notice. In 2008 he wrote a serialised online novel Corduroy Mansions, with the audio edition read by Andrew Sachs made available at the same pace as the daily publication. He wrote more than ten chapters ahead of publication, finding the experience of serialised publication to be "a frightening thing to create a novel while his readers watched. 'I am like a man on a tightrope.'" In 2009 he donated the short story "Still Life" to Oxfam's "Ox-Tales" project, comprising four collections of stories written by 38 British authors. McCall Smith's story was published in the "Air" collection. In 2020 he published a collection of poetry entitled In a Time of Distance: And Other Poems. Selected bibliography See also White people in Zimbabwe References External links Prof. Alexander McCall Smith's homepage at the Law School, University of Edinburgh Author's homepage at Random House Author's homepage at Polygon & Birlinn Limited Author's homepage at Little, Brown Alexander McCall Smith at IMDb Alexander McCall Smith at British Council: Literature Alexander McCall Smith interviewed on Conversations from Penn State Write TV Public Television Interview with Alexander McCall Smith Interview with the author at Powells.com. Discover the Alexander Mccall Smith popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Alexander Mccall Smith books.
Best Seller Alexander Mccall Smith Books of 2024
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The Pavilion in the Clouds
Alexander McCall Smith“This is one of the most enjoyable of his many enjoyable novels” –The ScotsmanIt is 1938 and the final days of the British Empire. In a bungalow high up in the green hills above th...
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The Mimosa Tree Mystery
Ovidia YuLONGLISTED FOR THE CWA HISTORICAL DAGGER'Simply glorious. Every nook and cranny of 1930s Singapore is brought richly to life' CATRIONA MCPHERSON 'Charming' RHYS BOWEN'One of the mo...
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A Distant View of Everything
Alexander McCall SmithIn this installment of the beloved Isabel Dalhousie series, Isabel is called upon to navigate complex social situations both at home and in her community.A new baby brings an abund...
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Denial
Peter JamesIntroducing policeman Glenn Branson...When actress Gloria Lamark takes her own life, her devoted son, Thomas, is heartbroken. Something must be wrong with a world in which such a t...
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Friends, Lovers, Chocolate
Alexander McCall SmithISABEL DALHOUSIE Book 2 Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman detec...
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The Good Pilot Peter Woodhouse
Alexander McCall SmithFrom the beloved and bestselling author of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series comes a heartwarming tale of hope and friendship set amid the turmoil of World War II. Val Elio...
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The Paper Bark Tree Mystery
Ovidia YuSHORTLISTED FOR THE CWA SAPERE BOOKS HISTORICAL DAGGER'Simply glorious. Every nook and cranny of 1930s Singapore is brought richly to life' CATRIONA MCPHERSON 'Charming' RHYS BOWEN...
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Blue Shoes and Happiness
Alexander McCall SmithFans around the world adore the bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series,...
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The Enigma of Garlic
Alexander McCall SmithThe latest installment in the charming and congenial 44 Scotland Street series finds all our favorite residents of Scotland's most celebrated address up to their usual hilarious hi...
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How to Raise an Elephant
Alexander McCall SmithIn this latest installment in the cherished No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe must balance family obligations with the growing needs of one of Charlie’s pet proje...
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In the Company of Cheerful Ladies
Alexander McCall SmithFans around the world adore the bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series,...
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The Joy and Light Bus Company
Alexander McCall SmithNATIONAL BESTSELLER In this latest installment in the beloved No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe is tempted to put the brakes on a business venture before it...
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The Betel Nut Tree Mystery
Ovidia Yu'Great protagonist, great setting this is a delightful book' Morning Star The second novel in Ovidia Yu's delightfully charming crime series set in 1930s Singapore, featuring amat...
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The Discreet Charm of the Big Bad Wolf
Alexander McCall SmithIn the hilarious new novel in the bestselling Detective Varg series, Ulf Varg will need to resolve both a sensitive crime and his own delicate dilemma in the hopes of preserving th...
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The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday
Alexander McCall SmithISABEL DALHOUSIE Book 5 Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman detec...
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Paw and Order
Spencer QuinnIn the seventh installment in the brilliant New York Times bestselling mystery series, canine narrator Chet and PI Bernie Little journey to Washington, DC, and the dogeatdog world ...
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The Frangipani Tree Mystery
Ovidia YuFirst in a delightfully charming crime series set in 1930s Singapore, introducing amateur sleuth Su Lin, a local girl stepping in as governess for the Acting Governor of Singapore...
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Thereby Hangs a Tail
Spencer QuinnIn the irresistible second installment of the New York Times bestselling Chet and Bernie mystery series, which has been hailed as “enchanting [and] oneofakind” (Stephen King), Chet...
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The Man with the Silver Saab
Alexander McCall SmithIn the hilarious new novel in the bestselling Detective Varg series, an eminent art historian is framed and the ace investigators of the department of sensitive crimes are on the c...
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A Cat Was Involved
Spencer QuinnSpencer Quinn’s first original eshort story reveals how everyone’s favorite detective duoChet the Dog and P.I. Bernie Littlecame to meet before their first big case in Dog On It.As...
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Picture Perfect Frame
Lynn CahoonIn the newest cozy caper in the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Tourist Trap series, a new art studio has opened in the coastal California town of South Covebut it’s about...
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The Peppermint Tea Chronicles
Alexander McCall SmithThe latest book in Alexander McCall Smith's popular 44 Scotland Street series is a sheer delight. Summer has come to Scotland Street. The long days have prompted its denizen...
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The Unbearable Lightness of Scones
Alexander McCall Smith44 SCOTLAND STREET Book 5 The residents and neighbors of 44 Scotland Street and the city of Edinburgh come to vivid life in these gently satirical, wonderfully perceptive serial n...
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The Geometry of Holding Hands
Alexander McCall SmithIsabel finds herself entangled in some tricky familial and financial situations that will require all of her kindness, charm, and philosophical expertise to navigate. Just w...
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Poems That Make Grown Men Cry
Anthony Holden & Ben HoldenA lifeenhancing tour through classic and contemporary poems that have made men cry: “The Holdens remind us that you don’t have to be an academic or a postgraduate in creative writi...
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The Department of Sensitive Crimes
Alexander McCall SmithNATIONAL BESTSELLER In the Swedish criminal justice system, certain cases are considered especially strange and difficult, in Malmö, the dedicated detectives who investigate these...
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My Italian Bulldozer
Alexander McCall SmithThe bestselling author of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series returns with an irresistible new novel about one man’s adventures in the Italian countryside.Paul Stuart, a reno...
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The Right Side
Spencer QuinnIn this "brilliant...deeply felt" (Stephen King) novel by the New York Times bestselling author of the Chet and Bernie mystery series, a deeply damaged female soldier home from the...
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The Fine Art of Invisible Detection
Robert Goddard'One of the finest crime writers of any generation' Daily Mail'He's the high priest of plot ... deftly woven, but also beautifully written ... I loved it' Mel GiedroycUmiko Wada ha...
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At the Reunion Buffet
Alexander McCall SmithA Vintage Shorts “Short Story Month” Original SelectionIn this warm, intelligently observed novella, Isabel Dalhousie, Alexander McCall Smith's wonderful heroine, learns valuable l...
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The Sweet Remnants of Summer
Alexander McCall SmithThe latest Isabel Dalhousie novel finds our favorite moral philosopher is caught up in a delicate dispute between members of a prominent family as her husband, Jamie, is dragged in...
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The Sunday Philosophy Club
Alexander McCall SmithISABEL DALHOUSIE Book 1 Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman...
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To Fetch a Thief
Spencer QuinnIn the third installment in the brilliant New York Times bestselling series featuring a lovable and wise dog narrator, Chet and Bernie go under the big top to solve the most unlike...
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From a Far and Lovely Country
Alexander McCall SmithIn this latest installment in Alexander McCall Smith’s cherished No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, two confounding cases compete for Mma Ramotswe’s attentionand she may need t...
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The Second-Worst Restaurant in France
Alexander McCall SmithIn this delightful sequel to the bestselling comedic novel My Italian Bulldozer, Paul Stuart's travels take him to a French village, where the local restaurant's haute cuisine leav...
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The Right Attitude to Rain
Alexander McCall SmithISABEL DALHOUSIE Book 3 Nothing captures the charm of Edinburgh like the bestselling Isabel Dalhousie series of novels featuring the insatiably curious philosopher and woman detec...
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Tears of the Giraffe
Alexander McCall SmithFans around the world adore the bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series,...
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Scents and Sensibility
Spencer QuinnIn the eighth installment in the New York Times bestselling mystery series that makes “even cat lovers…howl with delight” (USA TODAY), Chet and his human PI companion, Bernie Littl...
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Sweet, Thoughtful Valentine
Alexander McCall SmithPhilosopher and amateur sleuth Isabel Dalhousie has an unstinting commitment to her principles. Sticking to her promises has always been one of them. Then Isabel runs into an old c...
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The Sound and the Furry
Spencer QuinnIn the sixth installment in the New York Times bestselling mystery series that the Los Angeles Times called “nothing short of masterful,” Chet and Bernie are handed a hard case in ...
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The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine
Alexander McCall SmithFans around the world adore the bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series,...
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Precious and Grace
Alexander McCall SmithFans around the world adore the bestselling No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series and its proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. In this charming series,...
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To the Land of Long Lost Friends
Alexander McCall SmithIn the latest book in the widely beloved No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, Precious Ramotswe takes on a case for a childhood acquaintance and finds that family relationships a...
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A Time of Love and Tartan
Alexander McCall SmithThe latest installment of Alexander McCall Smith's perennially popular and irresistibly charming 44 Scotland Street series.When Pat accepts her narcissistic exboyfriend Bruce's inv...
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44 Scotland Street
Alexander McCall Smith44 SCOTLAND STREET Book 1 The residents and neighbors of 44 Scotland Street and the city of Edinburgh come to vivid life in these gently satirical, wonderfully perceptive serial n...
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A Fistful of Collars
Spencer QuinnThe fifth installment in the New York Times bestselling mystery series that the Los Angeles Times says is “nothing short of masterful.”Everyone’s favorite detective team returns in...
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Elizabeth of East Hampton
Audrey Bellezza & Emily HardingThis fresh and whipsmart modern retelling of Jane Austen’s classic Pride and Prejudicefrom the authors of the “great beach read” (Bookreporter) Emma of 83rd Streettransports you to...