Friday, 27 August 2010

Exciting Happenings at the Book Festival

Team Birlinn were out in force today at the Edinburgh International Book Festival to lend a helping hand to one of our resident authors, Alexander McCall Smith, in conversation with Jamie Jauncey.

The event, held in the main RBS Theatre, was packed to capacity with a most welcoming and auspicious audience. Among those in attendance was the UK Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media & Sport, the Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt MP.

The event was an untold success, with all present suitably charmed by the delightful McCall Smith, who enthralled us for 55mins with stories of Isobel Dalhousie, the down-trodden Bertie, Mma. Ramotswe and many of his other popular creations. We were all updated on his various series and there is much to look forward to in the coming installments, so keep your eyes peeled for new releases. In the meantime, if you can't wait, you can now purchase your very own copy of The Importance of Being Seven, the latest from the Scotland Street series, from our website and all good bookshops.

If we were not spoiled enough, the event also included beautiful musical interludes with an excerpt from McCall Smith's No.1 opera, Okavango Macbeth. From this we all learned that female baboons have much in common with the infamous Lady Macbeth and so should never be trifled with. Let it be a lesson to us all readers! We also heard a moving rendition of 'The Parting Glass' which left no heart untouched.

The beauty of the music complemented the charming tete-a-tete between Alexander and Jamie and we were all in agreement that 55mins just wasn't enough. Afterwards, Alexander met fans and signed copies of his current and past editions. From the line of fans snaking out of, and around, the signing tent, it was clear that Alexander, like his beloved characters, has an equally large and devoted following.

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