At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances

This, the third installment in the Professor Dr. Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld series, is witty and sly like the predecessors, but I found it to be slightly weaker than the first two. The first volume "Portuguese Irregular Verbs" is my clear favorite, and is one of the best things written in the last ten years; likewise "The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs" never fails to entertain (I still laugh when I think about von Igelfeld practicing veterinary medicine without a license.) In the earlier books, von Igelfeld had more numerous (but briefer) adventures that allowed for a quick pacing; here the plotlines begin to drag a bit. Don't misunderstand me, I loved "At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances," I just liked the other two storylines more. Since this book makes reference to events and characters in the first two volumes, I do recommend reading (or listening to) them in order, though it isn't strictly mandatory.This time, von Igelfeld absorbs himself in a faculty political intrigue (which is sly, yet at times candidly accurate in its absurdity) as he takes a visiting professorship at Cambridge. Not only does he get totally immersed in academic political struggles, he has major issues with English toilets. (These two parallels surely can't be coincidental.) In the end his dealings with the politics of Cambridge and English bathroom design leave a clear opinion of Germanic superiority in von Igelfeld's mind.Soon after the return from Cambridge, von Igelfeld is invited to become a Distinguished Corresponding Fellow at the Colombian Academy of Letters. This eventually leads to political intrigue at a different level when von Igelfeld is held captive at the Villa of Reduced Circumstances and encounters a strange group of rebels and government loyalists. It all concludes with von Igelfeld becoming the President (yes, of the country, not the Academy) and thus a target for violent overthrow. His ability to extract himself gracefully from that situation is dealt with in a most ingenious and amusing manner.This is another great volume by Alexander McCall Smith, and I recommend it everyone with a dry sense of humor and an inclination to mock the excesses of academia. I have read the book and listened to this reading by Hugh Laurie, and they provide different but complimentary experiences. Laurie is an excellent choice to read this book as he excels at accents and linguistic nuances. The four CD's are divided into numerous short tracks pausing at logical points in the plot, making it very user friendly for people listening in short sessions. I love to read, and I recommend reading the original highly, but also love this audiobook adaptation, which is perfect for those on the go.

In this book, the latest of the Professor Dr. Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, the Full Professor of Romance Philology, Smith reaches into the surreal. In the first instance, it should be pointed out that a German professor of Romance languages is almost surreal in itself. The Romance languages, the ones based on Latin such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Rumanian, etc. have no relationship to German at all. In fact, English is really the combination of German and Latin.Nonetheless, the good Doctor still exists. And in this adventure, we see a story in 2 parts. The first part describes the Professor's 4 month visit to Cambridge. Smith focuses on the differences between manners, mannerisms, modes of speaking and other idiosyncrasies about England and Germany in relating his story of the Professor's stay at Cambridge.The second part gets even more interesting as the Professor finally gets the recognition he feels he deserves. In fact perhaps he gets just a little more recognition than he bargained for when he is taken prisoner by Columbian Guerilla Fighters in the midst of a revolution. At this point, Smith moves into the dream state of a story unfolding without the protagonist having any control over the outcome. Yet the outcome is indeed a grand one.The book is highly recommended to Alexander McCall Smith enthusiasts. It is also recommended to those who wish to see how academicians sometimes interact with the real world in a very strange manner.

Not a 5 star as that is reserved for Isobel and Bertie. By the conclusion this rose to 4 star but took a while to get there. Which is .... Okay . Not all books can be a burning page turner. Some are slow but steady burners. That is this character`s narrative. In the end , lots of fun twists. & turns with late night chuckles. Look forward to the Professor`s next adventure!

I absolutely love all of the Igelfeld books & wish there were more. I'm a huge fan of the author and own most of his books. If you're on the fence, just get this book (and all of the other ones in this series) - you will LOVE them. The understated sense of humor is fantastic and the writing is wry and witty. Five stars always.

Alexander McCall Smith should be congratulated for getting "At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances" published. Unlike the previous two books where the "story" was fairly pointless, with this book, the "story" reads like an LSD dream. I fully expected Herr Professor Dr von Igelfeld to suddenly awaken and express his thankfulness for still being in Germany. Alas, it was not to be. The story is what the story appears to be. OK. That out the way, on to a bit more detail. Whereas the first book in the series contained eight mostly unrelated vignettes (i.e., "chapters"), and the second book five slightly more cohesive "chapters," this book consists of a mere two "chapters" that are entirely unrelated to each other. In the first chapter, Professor Dr von Igelfeld is at Cambridge scratching his head at the behavior and politics of English academia. This is actually the good, fairly rational chapter. In the second chapter, he's in Columbia having pipe dreams or something. It's just crazy stuff (and not in a good way). I have no idea why any publishing house would have accepted such a thing and published it. If the technical writing weren't decent, I'd have rated it at rock bottom. But, I'll be generous and give it a merely Pretty Bad 2 stars out of 5.The books in Alexander McCall Smith's "Professor Dr von Igelfeld" series are:1.  Portuguese Irregular Verbs: A Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainment Novel (1) 2.  The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs: A Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainment Novel (2) 3.  At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances: A Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainment Novel (3) 4.  Unusual Uses for Olive Oil: A Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainment Novel (4)

McCall Smith's books can be likened to Bovril.You either adore the product or you loathe it. There seems to be no inbetween position.I hate Bovril - but I love McCall Smith's books.I found that I liked this one in particular.The main character is an opinionated boorish highly educated academic. He is also hilarious.Hugh Laurie voices the book marvellously bringing each of the characters involved to life in a splendid fashion. The voice he adopts for Von Iglefeld is especially amusing.It found it a worthwhile buy; investing in it when I knew that I was scheduled for more surgery. Disinclined to read I popped this in to my CD player and the time passed by most pleasurably. I was so cheered up I forgot my pain.A fine book and a fine recording.

As always a very excellent read from Alexander McCall Smith, highly recommended.

excellent as always mearly completed collection of his books.

Sent promptly, packed very carefully - thank you for great value!

Bon roman.