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Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith,
CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
,
FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soc ...
(born 24 August 1948), is a British writer. He was raised in
Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...
(now Zimbabwe) and formerly Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh. He became an expert on
medical law Medical law is the branch of law which concerns the prerogatives and responsibilities of medical professionals and the rights of the patient. It should not be confused with medical jurisprudence, which is a branch of medicine, rather than a ...
and
bioethics Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health (primarily focused on the human, but also increasingly includes animal ethics), including those emerging from advances in biology, med ...
and served on related British and international committees. He has since become known as a fiction writer, with sales in English exceeding 40 million by 2010 and translations into 46 languages. He is known as the creator of ''
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency ''The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' is a series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith set in Botswana and featuring the character Mma Precious Ramotswe. The series is named after the first novel, published in 1998. Twenty-two novels have been p ...
'' series. The "McCall" derives from his great-great-grandmother Bethea McCall, who married James Smith at Glencairn, Dumfries-shire, in 1833.


Early life

Alexander McCall Smith was born in 1948 in
Bulawayo Bulawayo (, ; Ndebele: ''Bulawayo'') is the second largest city in Zimbabwe, and the largest city in the country's Matabeleland region. The city's population is disputed; the 2022 census listed it at 665,940, while the Bulawayo City Council cl ...
in the British colony of
Southern Rhodesia Southern Rhodesia was a landlocked self-governing British Crown colony in southern Africa, established in 1923 and consisting of British South Africa Company (BSAC) territories lying south of the Zambezi River. The region was informally kno ...
(present-day Zimbabwe), to British parents. He was the only son, having three elder sisters. His father worked as a public prosecutor in Bulawayo. McCall Smith's paternal grandfather was the medical doctor and New Zealand community leader
George Marshall McCall Smith George Marshall McCall Smith (1882–1958) was a Scottish medical doctor, medical superintendent and community leader in New Zealand. He was born in Nairn, Scotland in 1882, emigrating to New Zealand in 1914. For 34 years he ran Rawene Hospita ...
, born at
Nairn Nairn (; gd, Inbhir Narann) is a town and royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nairn enters the Moray Firth. It is the tradit ...
in Scotland. McCall Smith was educated at the Christian Brothers College in Bulawayo before moving to Scotland at age 17 to study law at the University of Edinburgh, where he earned his
LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
and PhD degrees. He soon taught at
Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...
, and while teaching there he entered a literary competition: one a children's book and the other a novel for adults. He won in the children's category.


Professional career

He returned to southern Africa in 1981 to help co-found the law school and teach law at the University of Botswana. While there, he co-wrote ''The Criminal Law of Botswana'' (1992). He was Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh and is now Emeritus Professor at its School of Law. He retains a further involvement with the university in relation to the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. He is the former chairman of the Ethics Committee of the ''
British Medical Journal ''The BMJ'' is a weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal, published by the trade union the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Origina ...
'' (until 2002), the former vice-chairman of the
Human Genetics Commission The Human Genetics Commission (HGC) was an advisory non-departmental public body that advised the UK government on the ethical and social aspects of genetics. This included genetic testing, cloning and other aspects of molecular medicine. The Comm ...
of the United Kingdom, and a former member of the
International Bioethics Committee The International Bioethics Committee (IBC) of UNESCO is a body composed of 36 independent experts from all regions and different disciplines (mainly medicine, genetics, law, and philosophy) that follows progress in the life sciences and its applica ...
of UNESCO. After achieving success as a writer, he gave up these commitments. He was appointed a
CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
in the
New Year's Honours List The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...
issued at the end of December 2006 for services to literature. In June 2007, he was awarded the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws at a ceremony celebrating the tercentenary of the University of Edinburgh School of Law. In June 2015 he was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters at a graduation ceremony at the
University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...
.


Personal life

He settled in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1984. He and his wife Elizabeth, a physician, bought and renovated a large Victorian mansion in the
Merchiston Merchiston ( ) is a residential area around Merchiston Avenue in the south-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Location Merchiston Avenue is 1.3 miles Southwest of the West End of Edinburgh's principal street, Princes Street. Other areas near Merc ...
/ Morningside area of the city. They lived there for almost 30 years, raising their two daughters. Nearby lived the authors
J. K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...
,
Ian Rankin Sir Ian James Rankin (born 28 April 1960) is a Scottish crime writer, best known for his Inspector Rebus novels. Early life Rankin was born in Cardenden, Fife. His father, James, owned a grocery shop, and his mother, Isobel, worked in a scho ...
, and Kate Atkinson. An amateur bassoonist, he co-founded
The Really Terrible Orchestra The Really Terrible Orchestra (RTO) is a British amateur orchestra, founded in 1995 by the Edinburgh-based businessman Peter Stevenson and the author Alexander McCall Smith. The inspiration for Stevenson and McCall Smith was the enjoyment that ...
. He has helped to found Botswana's first centre for opera training, the Number 1 Ladies' Opera House, for whom he wrote the libretto of their first production, a version of '' Macbeth'' set among a troop of
baboon Baboons are primates comprising the genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow baboon, the Kinda baboon and the chacma b ...
s in the Okavango Delta. In 2009 he received the Golden Plate Award of the
American Academy of Achievement The American Academy of Achievement, colloquially known as the Academy of Achievement, is a non-profit educational organization that recognizes some of the highest achieving individuals in diverse fields and gives them the opportunity to meet o ...
presented by Awards Council member Archbishop
Desmond Tutu Desmond Mpilo Tutu (7 October 193126 December 2021) was a South African Anglican bishop and theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic dis ...
at an awards ceremony at St. George's Cathedral in Cape Town, South Africa. In 2012 he appeared in a documentary about the life and work of author
W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...
, ''Revealing Mr. Maugham''. In 2014 McCall Smith purchased the Cairns of Coll, a chain of uninhabited islets in the Hebrides. He said, "I intend to do absolutely nothing with them, and to ensure that, after I am gone, they are held in trust, unspoilt and uninhabited, for the nation. I want them kept in perpetuity as a sanctuary for wildlife – for birds and seals and all the other creatures to which they are home." During a visit to New Zealand in 2014 McCall Smith visited
Rawene Rawene is a town on the south side of the Hokianga harbour, in Northland, New Zealand. State Highway 12 passes to the south. The town lies at the apex of a peninsula. A car ferry links it to Kohukohu and the northern Hokianga. History Rawen ...
, where his grandfather, George McCall Smith, ran the hospital for 34 years and created the Hokianga area health service.


Author

McCall Smith is a prolific author of fiction, with several series to his credit. He writes at a prodigious rate: "Even when travelling, he never loses a day, turning out between 2,000 and 3,000 words day– but more like 5,000 words when at home in Edinburgh. His usual rate is 1,000 words an hour." He has gained the most fame for his '' No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency'' series, featuring Mma Precious Ramotswe and set in Gaborone,
Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
. The first novel was published in 1998. By 2009, the No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series had sold more than 20 million copies in English editions. According to his publisher in Edinburgh, "He was, until 2005, a professor of medical law at the University of Edinburgh, but gave up the position to concentrate on his writing and now writes full time." He published 30 books in the 1980s and 1990s before he began the series that has brought him the world's notice. In 2008 he wrote a serialised online novel '' Corduroy Mansions'', with the audio edition read by
Andrew Sachs Andreas Siegfried Sachs (7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016), known professionally as Andrew Sachs, was a German-born British actor and writer. He made his name on British television and found his greatest fame for his portrayal of the comical Sp ...
made available at the same pace as the daily publication. He wrote more than ten chapters ahead of publication, finding the experience of serialised publication to be "a frightening thing to create a novel while his readers watched. 'I am like a man on a tightrope.'" In 2009 he donated the short story "Still Life" to Oxfam's "
Ox-Tales Ox-Tales refers to four anthologies of short stories written by 38 of the UK's best-known authors. All donated their stories to Oxfam. The books and stories are loosely based on the four elements: Earth, Fire, Air and Water. The Ox-Tales books w ...
" project, comprising four collections of stories written by 38 British authors. McCall Smith's story was published in the "Air" collection.


Bibliography


''The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' series

#1998: ''
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency ''The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' is a series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith set in Botswana and featuring the character Mma Precious Ramotswe. The series is named after the first novel, published in 1998. Twenty-two novels have been p ...
'' #2000: '' Tears of the Giraffe'' #2001: ''
Morality for Beautiful Girls ''Morality for Beautiful Girls'' is the third detective novel in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Gaborone, Botswana. The novel features the Motswana protagonist Mma Precious Ramotswe. Her fiancé i ...
'' #2002: ''
The Kalahari Typing School for Men ''The Kalahari Typing School for Men'' is the fourth in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Gaborone, Botswana, and featuring the Motswana protagonist Precious Ramotswe. Plot summary Mma Ramots ...
'' #2003: ''
The Full Cupboard of Life ''The Full Cupboard of Life'' is the fifth in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Gaborone, Botswana, and featuring the Motswana protagonist Precious Ramotswe as principal detective. In this ...
'' #2004: ''
In the Company of Cheerful Ladies ''In the Company of Cheerful Ladies'' is the sixth in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Gaborone, Botswana, and featuring the Motswana protagonist Precious Ramotswe. Work and personal worries ...
'' (also known as: ''The Night-Time Dancer'') #2006: '' Blue Shoes and Happiness'' #2007: '' The Good Husband of Zebra Drive'' #2008: '' The Miracle at Speedy Motors'' #2009: '' Tea Time for the Traditionally Built'' #2010: ''
The Double Comfort Safari Club ''The Double Comfort Safari Club'', published in 2010, is the eleventh in '' The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, set in Gaborone, Botswana, and featuring the Motswana protagonist Precious Ramotswe. ...
'' #2011: ''
The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party ''The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party'' is the twelfth mystery novel '' The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' series by Alexander McCall Smith Alexander "Sandy" McCall Smith, CBE, FRSE (born 24 August 1948), is a British writer. He was raise ...
'' #2012: ''
The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection ''The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection'' is the thirteenth mystery novel by Alexander McCall Smith in '' The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency'' series, first published in 2012. The story is set primarily in Gaborone, with Motswana Precious Ram ...
'' #2013: ''
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon ''The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon'' is the fourteenth mystery novel by Alexander McCall Smith in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, first published in 2013. The novel features the Motswana protagonist Precious Ramotswe and is set in B ...
'' #2014: '' The Handsome Man's De Luxe Café'' #2015: ''
The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' #2016: '' Precious and Grace'' #2017: '' The House of Unexpected Sisters'' #2018: '' The Colors of All the Cattle'' #2019: '' To the Land of Long Lost Friends'' #2020: ''
How to Raise an Elephant How may refer to: * How (greeting), a word used in some misrepresentations of Native American/First Nations speech * How, an interrogative word in English grammar Art and entertainment Literature * ''How'' (book), a 2007 book by Dov Seidma ...
'' #2021: '' The Joy and Light Bus Company'' #2022: '' A Song of Comfortable Chairs'' Extra: 2013: '' The Slice of No. 1 Celebration Storybook'' (ebook only)


''44 Scotland Street'' series

*See also: Bertie Pollock, 44 Scotland Street #2005: '' 44 Scotland Street'' #2005: '' Espresso Tales'' #2006: '' Love Over Scotland'' #2007: '' The World According to Bertie'' #2008: '' The Unbearable Lightness of Scones'' #2010: '' The Importance of Being Seven'' #2011: '' Bertie Plays The Blues'' #2012: '' Sunshine on Scotland Street'' #2013: '' Bertie's Guide to Life and Mothers'' #2015: '' The Revolving Door of Life'' #2016: '' The Bertie Project'' #2017: '' A Time of Love and Tartan'' #2019: '' The Peppermint Tea Chronicles'' #2020: '' A Promise of Ankles'' #2022: '' Love in the Time of Bertie''


''The Sunday Philosophy Club'' series

also known as Isabel Dalhousie Mysteries #2004: '' The Sunday Philosophy Club'' #2005: '' Friends, Lovers, Chocolate'' #2006: '' The Right Attitude to Rain'' #2007: '' The Careful Use of Compliments'' #2008: '' The Comfort of Saturdays'' (UK title) or: ''The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday'' (American title) #2009: '' The Lost Art of Gratitude'' #2010: '' The Charming Quirks of Others'' #2011: '' The Forgotten Affairs of Youth'' #2011: '' The Perils of Morning Coffee'' (ebook only) #2012: '' The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds'' #2015: '' The Novel Habits of Happiness'' #2015: '' At the Reunion Buffet'' (ebook only) #2016: '' Sweet, Thoughtful Valentine'' (ebook only) #2017: '' A Distant View of Everything'' #2018: '' The Quiet Side of Passion'' #2020: '' The Geometry of Holding Hands'' #2022: '' The Sweet Remnants of Summer''


''Corduroy Mansions'' series

#2009: '' Corduroy Mansions'' #2009: ''
The Dog Who Came in from the Cold ''The Dog Who Came in from the Cold'' is the second online novel by Alexander McCall Smith, author of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. In the first series, the author wrote a chapter a day, starting on 15 Sep 2008, the series running fo ...
'' (published online daily i
serial form
also published as a hardcover book on 1 May 2010) #2011: '' A Conspiracy of Friends''


''Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainments'' series

#1997: ''
Portuguese Irregular Verbs ''Portuguese Irregular Verbs'' is a short comic novel by Alexander McCall Smith, and the first of McCall Smith's series of novels featuring Professor Dr von Igelfeld. It was first published in 1997. Some consider the book to be a series of con ...
'' #2003: ''
The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs ''The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs'' is a novel by Scottish author and academic Alexander McCall Smith. The book relates further matters in the life of the main character, Professor Dr Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, following on from the first book ...
'' #2003: '' At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances'' #2004: ''The 2 Pillars of Wisdom'' – An
omnibus edition An omnibus edition or omnibus is a creative work containing one or more works by the same or, more rarely, different authors. Commonly two or more components have been previously published as books but a collection of shorter works, or shorter wor ...
of the first three von Igelfeld titles #2011: ''
Unusual Uses for Olive Oil Unusual or The Unusual or The Unusuals may refer to: Film and TV *''The Unusuals'', a 2009 TV series. Music *'' The Unusual'', an El Da Sensei album * Unusual (album) Giuni Russo 2006 Songs * Unusual (song) Trey Songz *"Unusual", song by Franc ...
'' #2021: '' Your inner hedgehog''


''Detective Varg'' series

#2019: ''The Strange Case of the Moderate Extremists'' (ebook only) #2019: ''The Department of Sensitive Crimes'' (his given name is stylised as Älexander on the cover) #2019: ''Varg in Love'' (ebook only) #2020: ''The Talented Mr. Varg'' #2021: ''The Man with the Silver Saab''


''Big-Top Mysteries'' series

#2019: ''The Case of the Vanishing Granny'' #2019: ''The Great Clown Conundrum''


''Paul Stewart'' series

#2016: '' My Italian Bulldozer'' #2019: ''The Second Worst Restaurant in France''


Other novels

#2008: '' La's Orchestra Saves the World'' #2012: '' Trains and Lovers'' #2014: '' The Forever Girl'' #2014: '' Fatty O'Leary's Dinner Party'' #2015: '' Emma: A Modern Retelling'' #2017: '' The Good Pilot, Peter Woodhouse'' #2022: '' The Pavilion in the Clouds''


Short stories

*2011: "The Strange Story of Bobby Box" (published in the young adult anthology ''What You Wish For'')


Anthologies

*1991: ''Children of Wax: African Folk Tales'' *1995: ''Heavenly Date and Other Flirtations'' *2004: ''The Girl Who Married a Lion and Other Tales from Africa'' *2006: ''Baboons Who Went This Way and That (Tales from Africa)'' *2015: ''Chance Developments: Unexpected Love Stories'' *2016: ''Marvellous Mix-ups'' *2019: ''Pianos and Flowers''


Children's novels

*1980: '' The White Hippo'' *1984: '' The Perfect Hamburger'' *1988: '' Alix and the Tigers'' *1990: '' The Tin Dog'' *1991: '' Calculator Annie'' *1991: '' Marzipan Max'' *1991: '' The Popcorn Pirates'' *1992: '' The Doughnut Ring'' *1993: Who Invented Peanut Butter? *1994: '' Paddy and the Ratcatcher'' *1995: '' The Muscle Machine'' *1996: '' The Bubblegum Tree'' *1997: '' The Five Lost Aunts of Harriet Bean'' *2000: '' Teacher Trouble'' *2006: '' Dream Angus'' *2016: '' Freddie Mole, Lion Tamer'' *2018: '' Hari and his Electric Feet'' *2018: '' Max Champion and the Great Race Car Robbery''


School Ship Tobermory

*2015: '' School Ship Tobermory'' *2016: '' The Sands of Shark Island'' *2018: '' The Race to Kangaroo Cliff'' *2019: '' The Secret of the Dark Waterfall''


Akimbo

*1992: '' Akimbo and the Lions'' *1993: '' Akimbo and the Crocodile Man'' *2005: '' Akimbo and the Elephants'' *2006: '' Akimbo and the Snakes'' *2008: '' Akimbo and the Baboons''


Harriet Bean

* 1993: '' The Cowgirl Aunt of Harriet Bean'' * 1990: '' The Five Lost Aunts of Harriet Bean'' * 1991: '' Harriet Bean and the League of Cheats''


Max & Maddy

* 1997: '' Max & Maddy and the Bursting Balloons Mystery'' * 1999: '' Max & Maddy and the Chocolate Money Mystery''


Young Precious Ramotswe

* 2010: '' Precious and the Puggies'' (republished in 2011 as: ''Precious and the Monkeys'', and in 2012 as '' The Great Cake Mystery'') * 2012: '' Precious and the Mystery of Meerkat Hill'' * 2013: '' Precious and the Missing Lion'' * 2015: '' Precious and the Zebra Necklace''


Memoir/literary appreciation

* 2013: ''
What Auden Can Do for You What or WHAT may refer to: * What, an interrogative pronoun and adverb * "What?", one of the Five Ws used in journalism Film and television * ''What!'' (film) or ''The Whip and the Body'', a 1963 Italian film directed by Mario Bava * '' Wha ...
''


Academic texts

*1978: ''Power and Manoeuvrability'' (with Tony Carty) *1983: ''Law and Medical Ethics'' (with J. Kenyon Mason) (this text has gone through several editions: an eighth, by Mason and Graeme Laurie, was published in 2010; McCall Smith contributed to the first six editions) *1987: ''Butterworths Medico-Legal Encyclopaedia'' (with J. Kenyon Mason) *1990: ''Family Rights: Family Law and Medical Advances'' (with Elaine Sutherland) *1991: ''All About Drink and Drug Abuse'' (educational text) *1992: ''The Criminal Law of Botswana'' (with Kwame Frimpong) *1993: ''The Duty to Rescue'' (with Michael Menlowe, 1993) *1992: ''Scots Criminal Law'' (with David H Sheldon, second edition published 1997) *1997: ''Forensic Aspects of Sleep'' (with Colin Shapiro) *2000: ''Justice and the Prosecution of Old Crimes'' (with Daniel W. Shuman) *2001: ''Errors, Medicine and the Law'' (with Alan Merry) *2003: ''A Draft Criminal Code for Scotland'' (with Eric Clive, Pamela Ferguson and Christopher Gane) *2004: ''Creating Humans: Ethical Questions where Reproduction and Science Collide'' (collected lectures, audio recordings)


See also

* White people in Zimbabwe


References


External links


Prof. Alexander McCall Smith's homepage at the Law School, University of Edinburgh

Author's homepage at Random House

Author's homepage at Polygon & Birlinn Limited

Author's homepage at Little, Brown
* *
Alexander McCall Smith interviewed on ''Conversations from Penn State''

''Write TV'' Public Television Interview with Alexander McCall Smith

Interview with the author
at Powells.com {{DEFAULTSORT:McCall Smith, Alexander 1948 births Living people People from Bulawayo Writers from Edinburgh Alumni of Christian Brothers College, Bulawayo Alumni of the University of Edinburgh School of Law Academics of the University of Edinburgh Bioethics British Book Award winners Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature Scholars of medical law People associated with Edinburgh Rhodesian novelists Scottish children's writers Scottish crime fiction writers Scottish legal scholars Scottish novelists Scottish short story writers Zimbabwean children's writers Zimbabwean novelists Zimbabwean male writers British male novelists Zimbabwean male short story writers Zimbabwean short story writers Zimbabwean people of Scottish descent Scottish people of Zimbabwean descent Audiobook narrators Zimbabwean emigrants to the United Kingdom University of Botswana faculty