Espresso Tales by Alexander McCall SmithMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Alexander McCall Smith is my favorite modern day writer. His books are highly entertaining, although I gave this a three because I "liked it," but it wasn't "amazing." The "Scotland Street" series' characters lives and story lines at times feels fairly banal, but my life is also fairly boring and ridiculous at the same time. My favorite character is by far Bertie and I am rooting for him. I realize I'm a bit behind on this series, but I do recommend it if you enjoy Smith's work or would like to check out a very fun series that also makes a lot of wonderful insights into human nature.
The most meaningful part of this second book in the series for me was when Domenica decries modern society to Pat. "I don't know, Pat. I don't know. I have the feeling that we've seen the dismantling of civilisation, brick by brick, and now we're looking at the void. We thought that we were liberating people from oppressive cultural circumstance, but we were in fact, taking something away from them. We were killing off civility and concern. We were undermining all those little ties of loyalty and consideration and affection that are necessary for human flourishing. We thought that tradition was bad, that it create hidebound societies, that it held people down. But, in fact, what tradition was doing all along was affirming community and the sense that we are members one of one another. Do we really love and respect one another more in the absence of tradition and manners and all the rest? Or have we merely converted one another into moral strangers--making our countries nothing more than hotels for the convenience of guests who are required only to avoid stepping on the toes of other guests?" p. 341 and 342 in my edition
Well said, Domenica; well said, Alexander.
Read and reviewed 2017
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