Trains and Lovers

“In Trains and Lovers, the beloved Alexander McCall Smith is at his most enchanting.” —Newsroom America  “The best thing McCall Smith has written so far…. These stories are told better than their protagonists would ever tell them in real life, underpinned as they are by that rare combination of moral seriousness and playful wit that informs most of McCall Smith’s prolific work. But they remind us that…he is a virtuoso storyteller whose tales from the human heart remain very definitely on track.” —The Scotsman “Alexander McCall Smith is a charmer and he loves the details of ordinary life. He expresses the lives of his characters with wit and in his books follows the joys and irritations of life with compassion…. Like all of Alexander McCall Smith’s books, this story is charming…. A quick and interesting read—perfect for a summer afternoon on the deck.” —The Millstone (Mississippi) “The characters in Alexander McCall Smith’s books often feel like the kind of old friends that you can go years without seeing but when you do get together, you immediately pick up as if you’d seen each other last week…. You will not find serial killers or heartless psychopaths in Smith’s books; his stories will not be labeled ‘dark’ or ‘gritty.’ And this means that the pleasant nature of his books often belies the incisive observations on human nature that they contain. His books may not be heavy, but they can be deep…. Trains and Lovers’ stories envelop us, each in its own way…and they resist reducing emotion to platitudes. Love doesn’t always end happily, but even then it can end well, with hope, dignity and humanity, and that’s just what Trains and Lovers celebrates.” —The Wichita Eagle