CORDUROY MANSIONS: REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

GIVEAWAY ENDED
CORDUROY MANSIONS
BY ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Corduroy Mansions is the affectionate nickname given to a genteel, crumbling mansion block in London’s vibrant Pimlico neighborhood and the home turf of a captivating collection of quirky and altogether McCall-Smithian characters. Filled with the ins and outs of neighborliness in all its unexpected variations, CORDUROY MANSIONS showcases the life, laughter and humanity that have become the hallmarks of Alexander McCall Smith’s work.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Alexander McCall Smith is the author of the international phenomenon The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series, the Isabel Dalhousie series, the Portuguese Irregular Verbs series, and the 44 Scotland Street series. He is professor emeritus of medical law at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and has served on many national and international bodies concerned with bioethics. He was born in what is now known as Zimbabwe and he was a law professor at the University of Botswana.

MY REVIEW:

In CORDUROY MANSIONS, Alexander McCall Smith has created a captivating group of people who interact in entertaining and often intriguing ways similar to his best-selling series set in Edinburgh. Written from the perspective of the diverse group of characters, Smith now takes on London with a familiar story line that gives the story an easy going feel and comfortable read. Set near, but not quite in, the nicer part of London, a house has been turned into a group of apartments, or flats, and takes on the name of Corduroy Mansion.

William, who runs a prosperous wine business and is a widower, lives on the top floor of the building. Having lived there longer than anyone else, he would be satisfied to live by himself, but Eddie, his 24-year-old son, is determined on staying with his father, probably because he is unemployed. William’s excuse is that he is there to care for his father as he gets older and then William will take over the house and the business. There is also Marcia, who is a caterer, and she too would like Eddie gone so she can move in on the “eligible” bachelor. William thinks by having Freddie, a vegetarian terrier pup, it might be a reason to get Eddie out but not so, even with Freddie‘s excellent sense of smell that gets everyone into some unusual situations.

Other tenants who live in “the mansion”, all add their part to the overall story. There is a group of girls who share a flat. Dee, works in a vitamin store who I found to be quite amusing, and she lives with Jennifer and two other gals. Jennifer is the personal assistant to a Member of Parliament whose name really ought to be a clue to the kind of person he is…Oedipus Snark.

Nobody seems to like Snark as he can’t be trusted by even those who work close with him. Snark plays a large role in CORDUROY MANSIONS and I imagine will be a big part of this series as well. Readers will find out about his mother, Berthea, who is a well-known psychologist who is writing a biography of her son and includes all the gossip and as well as facts about him. Even she can’t stand her own son, Oedipus Snark, and she moves in with Terence Moongrove, who is her brother and a rather peculiar but rich old guy who is quite a character himself. There is also Snark’s ex, Barbara Ragg, and this entire group could be a book unto themselves, I think, especially with their addition of some political aspects to the story, and a few twists and turns as well.

McCall Smith writes like he is thinking out loud and in that way, adds in his personal opinions about culture, society and the part the youth play in it all today. He is thoughtful, quite intelligent, and full of creative ideas that add to the story and entertain readers. This was only the second of Alexander McCall Smith’s books that I have read and I have many friends who adore his writing and he is quite popular and well thought of as an entertaining, clever, and well liked author. I don’t think this book was quite as good as some of his others but it was pleasant enough and perhaps will age well as it leads readers into the rest of this series that I imagine will come from CORDUROY MANSIONS.

GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO THE GOOD FOLKS AT
KNOPF DOUBLEDAY PUBLISHING,
I HAVE 1 COPY OF THIS POPULAR
NEW BOOK TO GIVE AWAY.

--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES
---INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
IN CASE YOU WIN!
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE TO
COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE!

HOW TO ENTER:

+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON WHY YOU WOULD LIKE TO WIN A COPY OF THIS BOOK BY READING "ABOUT THE BOOK" ABOVE AND IN MY REVIEW

+1 MORE ENTRY: GO TO ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH'S WEBSITE HERE AND COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FIND INTERESTING IN ALL THERE IS TO SEE AT HIS CHARMING SITE

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND LEAVE A LINK I CAN FOLLOW IN THE ENTRY

GIVEAWAY ENDS

6 PM, EST, SEPTEMBER 21!

GOOD LUCK!