What a beautifully put together little novel this was.  McCall Smith is well known for several series of fiction, the best known being The Ladies No 1 Detective Agency, set in Botswana.  This story is nothing like those books.  The heroine, Lavender (or La), is nothing like Mma Ramotswe.  It is not amusing, but serious – and about a serious time.

La’s husband has left her and gone to live in France with a woman he met during the course of work with his family’s wine import business.  When an accident in one of the cellars leaves him unconscious, we know that he will die and La will be on her own.   She moves from London to a cottage in a small Suffolk village owned by her in-laws.  Learning to live in a small village, volunteering to help a local farmer out with his chickens and learning how small a world a village can be,  La decides to set up a small orchestra, give a couple of concerts, and hopefully, if Britain wins WW2,  give a victory concert.

That’s it.  But it isn’t at all, for knitted into that little life are a few characters who are interwined with La’s, and one of them is Feliks, a Polish airman who can no longer fly.  He becomes part of her orchestra, and part of her life for a short while.  The doubts of a woman badly let down by her husband, the surroundings of war from the air base just up the road, the strangeness of  the Pole, who is obviously a gentleman rather than a peasant...... 

There are some uncomfortable truths here;  some people don’t like foreigners, and La herself discovers something very unsettling.  But it is so nicely put together it is worth reading – and I had to go back to the first few pages as soon as I had read the last page – because the circle is joined.

It is a lovely, lovely read, and such a surprise from this author – I obviously missed it a few years ago when first published but I’ve made up for that now.  For those of you who love a well constructed story, do read about La – for although she is as pale a character as her name suggests,  you will be on her side.

Great review Susan, I remember reading this one a couple of years ago and really enjoying it.  A really charming story.

I finished this one last night, after only starting it Tues morning!  Another wonderful story from AMS!  He just has a knack for writing characters that you can fall in love with!  i really liked La!  As Susan said, she's nothing like Precious from the Detective Agency, or Isabel from the Philosophy Club books, she's entirely herself, but every bit as lovable!

Nat

I read this some time ago and loved it. So different from his usual books. Great review.