As a writer, I have readers who will have a range of political views. I don’t think they look to me for political guidance. – Alexander McCall Smith
Oh I love gadgets and I pride myself on keeping at the cutting edge of technology. – Alexander McCall Smith
I have three older sisters, so we were a reasonably large family and, in general, a happy one. – Alexander McCall Smith
Botswana is actually very peaceful. It’s democratic. It never was in debt. They’ve been fortunate, they’ve had diamonds. – Alexander McCall Smith
As a writer I’ve learned certain lessons. One of them is to be careful about how you put a view, and to bear in mind how easily and readily you’ll be misinterpreted. – Alexander McCall Smith
It seems to me that we’re in danger of losing sight of certain basic civic values in society by allowing the growth of a whole generation of people who really have no sense of attachment to society. – Alexander McCall Smith
It’s through the small things that we develop our moral imagination, so that we can understand the sufferings of others. – Alexander McCall Smith
I think people in Botswana are pleased that my books paint a positive picture of their lives and portray the country as being very special. They’ve made a great success of their country, and the people are fed up with the constant reporting of only the problems and poverty of the continent. They welcome something which puts the positive side. – Alexander McCall Smith
Well, I’d say all of us are a combination of moods and emotions. In my day to day life I don’t go around skipping, but at times one can feel sheer exhilarating joy at the world. – Alexander McCall Smith
The local community is very important in one’s life; the feelings of identification with a place and people. – Alexander McCall Smith
But you cannot expect every writer to dwell on human suffering. I think my books do deal with grave issues. People who say they are too positive probably haven’t read them. – Alexander McCall Smith
I would certainly never consider myself a Renaissance Man; I’m not fit to look at the dust from the chariot wheels of many of those who have gone before me. – Alexander McCall Smith
Wherever I go in the world, people all know about Scotland Street and are always asking me about what’s going to happen to the characters next. – Alexander McCall Smith
If you lose sight of the smaller accomplishments, you end up with an imbalance in your life. – Alexander McCall Smith
I’m very interested in tea. I wouldn’t mind being involved in some aspect of the tea industry. – Alexander McCall Smith
Serial novels have an unexpected effect; they hook the writer as well as the reader. – Alexander McCall Smith
That my philosophy of life is, as far as possible, one of enjoyment. I’m not nihilistic. – Alexander McCall Smith
Fiction is able to encompass books that are bleak and which dwell on the manifold and terrible problems of our times. But I don’t think that all books need to have that particular focus. – Alexander McCall Smith
My wife Elizabeth and I started The Really Terrible Orchestra for people like us who are pretty hopeless musicians who would like to play in an orchestra. It has been a great success. We give performances; we’ve become the most famous bad orchestra in the world. – Alexander McCall Smith
One of the most destructive things that’s happening in modern society is that we are losing our sense of the bonds that bind people together – which can lead to nightmares of social collapse. – Alexander McCall Smith
Every novel presents a slice of life. A noir policier for example presents one slice, one that perhaps addresses social dysfunction or some sort of pathology, while mine present a slice that is more upbeat and affirmative. – Alexander McCall Smith