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Book Summary and Reviews of The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith

The Lost Art of Gratitude by Alexander McCall Smith

The Lost Art of Gratitude

An Isabel Dalhousie Novel

by Alexander McCall Smith

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  • Sep 2009, 272 pages
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Book Summary

Isabel's son, Charlie, is now of an age—eighteen months—to have a social life, and so off they go to a birthday party, where, much to Isabel’s surprise, she finds Minty Auchterlonie, the high-flying financier she first encountered in The Sunday Philosophy Club. Minty had seemed to Isabel a woman of ruthless ambition, but the question of her integrity had never truly been answered. Now, when Minty takes Isabel into her confidence about the complicated troubles at the investment bank she heads, Isabel finds herself going another round: Is Minty to be trusted? Or is she the perpetrator of an enormous financial fraud?

Not that this is the only dilemma facing Isabel: she also crosses swords again with her nemesis Professor Dove, in an argument over plagiarism. Her niece, Cat, of course, has a new, problematic man (a stunt man!) in her life. And Jamie—doting father of Charlie—is still pressing Isabel to solve his dilemma: getting her to marry him.

As always, there is no end to the delight in accompanying Isabel as she makes her way toward the heart of every problem: philosophizing, sleuthing, and downright snooping, in her inimitable—and inimitably charming—fashion.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. Smith's trademark humor and telling observations about people heighten the appeal." - Publishers Weekly

This information about The Lost Art of Gratitude was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Cloggie Downunder

Truly Delightful!
The Lost Art of Gratitude is the 6th novel in the Isabel Dalhousie series by Alexander McCall Smith. In this installment, Isabel has to deal with an accusation by Christopher Dove of plagiarism in the Review of Applied Ethics, has to break the news of her engagement to Jamie to her prickly niece, Cat, is coerced into mediating with the father of Minty Auchterlonie's baby, meets Cats new boyfriend (a tightrope walker), engages a professional to capture Brother Fox and has lunch (a salad) with Professor Lettuce. As usual, Jamie is the voice of reason when Isabel feels action is needed, and Isabel's musings on many and varied subjects are a continual source of humour. And despite everything sent to try her, Isabel finds she has much to be grateful for. Alexander McCall Smiths novels are filled with gentle philosophy, charming characters and laugh-out-loud humour. This audiobook, skilfully abridged by Katy Nichol so that no relevant parts are omitted, is beautifully narrated by Hilary Neville. Truly delightful!

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Author Information

Alexander McCall Smith Author Biography

Alexander McCall Smith began the now highly successful 'No 1 Ladies Detective Agency' series in 1996, after being inspired by the sight of a 'traditionally built' Botswanan lady chasing down a chicken for a meal. The first book in the series - 'The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency' was published in the UK in 1998 but didn't arrive in the USA until 2001.

Known to his friends as Sandy, McCall Smith describes the Botswanans as 'genuinely courteous people' He knows Botswana well as he grew up there and also spent several years on the law faculty of the University of Botswana; his volume on the legal system of Botswana (The Criminal Law of Botswana) remains the definitive and in fact, only book on the subject.

In 2004 he published the first in a...

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