The series have a structural problem however. This is because all four of the books began life in a daily serial in Edinburgh's The Scotsman. (The first book ran for 110 episodes over 22 weeks.) McCall Smith himself had suggested the format, and to his surprise the newspaper took it up. Initially he was well ahead of his deadlines; towards the end of the first book he had only three days in hand.
McCall Smith admits that the main difficulty of serial writing is being unable to go back and "fix" anything. This may be why, early in the first book, an anonymous man survives a fall off a balcony after catching his wife with her lover, and then vanishes from the story, along with the person who observes him. It may be why, late in the same book, three of the characters go exploring a tunnel under Scotland St, come across the AGM of the Edinburgh Establishment in a room above their heads - and never mention it again.
Most disturbing, though, for those who read that first book, is the way the five-year old boy, Bertie, who is such an important and delightful character (in spite of his appalling mother), has his story truncated just when we have hope things will come out well for him.
Warming Up
The first book takes a few chapters to warm up, but once it's running, the rich mix of characters and stories - and hilarity, sometimes of the laugh-out-loud kind - give the thing its own momentum. Pat, (initially) the main character, is a slightly bland young woman, trying to decide how to deal with her narcissistic flatmate, Bruce. She works for Matthew, the gallery owner, who fancies her but doesn't think he has a chance. Downstairs in number 44 is the astute saxophone-playing and Italian-speaking Bertie (yes, he's only five), and his ambitious mother; she's keen on a psychiatrist whom Bertie decides must be mad because he asks such daft questions.
Across the road from the gallery is the coffee-shop owner who's reading her way systematically through an entire stock of secondhand books inherited from the previous proprietor. Bruce has a boss who insists that the South Edinburgh Conservative Association Ball must go ahead even though only six people attend. Pat meets an artist and his dog, Cyril; both of them have some gold teeth, while Cyril also drinks beer and winks at ladies. And then there's the incident of the lack of underpants, and a painting that might or might not be a Peploe and which never seems to be where it's supposed to be.
The (First) Sequel
The second title in the series is Espresso Tales. Itwas to have been McCall Smith's final go at doing a daily chapter centred round the lives of the people at 44 Scotland St. However, at the party celebrating the end of the second series, someone persuaded him to carry on for another term. Which is just as well for his readers.
This second book, like its predecessor, has a number of hilarious situations, and some rather plodding ones, such as the several chapters of Ramsey Dunbarton's biography. (That's not to say the latter isn't funny; there's just a bit too much of it.) Still, the hilarious parts of the book far outweigh the others. And some of the more obnoxious characters, such as Dr Fairbairn, the psychiatrist, and Bruce, the narcissist, get their comeuppance. (Even if Bruce does bounce straight back!)
It's good to see little Bertie, the six-year old wonder-kid, rescued from the clutches of his over-ambitious mother - at least for a while. It won't spoil anything to tell you that it's his own mild-mannered father who takes Bertie under his wing and gives him some of the adventures he's long desired - and some he hasn't. Bertie ranks as one of the most delightful of McCall Smith's characters, a little person in whom hope springs eternal.
And Another Sequel
The third in the series, Love Over Scotland, is perhaps the best of the three. (At least it was until number four came thundering up behind.)
McCall Smith continues to thoroughly enjoy his characters, and there's a sense of liberation in this volume that wasn't quite so apparent in the others, liberation in the sense of wild humour, and hilariously improbable situations.
The best character remains little six-year-old Bertie, who is still engaged in his mild but ongoing battle with his ambitious mother: he just wants to be an ordinary six-year-old. Her ambitions so far have seen him learn the saxophone, learn Italian, go to a psychiatrist and attend yoga classes. And here she convinces herself that he can join the Edinburgh Teenage Orchestra! This gives Bertie a taste of freedom: by accident he's left in Paris on his own for a couple of days.
