Book review: Chance Developments by Alexander McCall Smith

Alexander McCall Smith. Picture: Phil Wilkinson

EVERY old picture tells a story for prolific McCall Smith, writes Roger Cox

Chance Developments by Alexander McCall Smith | Polygon, £9.99

Alexander McCall Smith is so prolific it can be hard to keep track of the many different strands of his literary output, from the two series he is best known for, The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency and 44 Scotland Street, to the deliciously mischievous Professor Dr von Igelfeld Entertainments, the Sunday Philosophy Club series, an array of children’s books and more. You could be forgiven for thinking, then, that this latest release, consisting of five short stories inspired by five old, anonymous photographs, was a new departure, but in fact it is part of yet another, albeit lesser-known strand of the labyrinthine McCall Smith catalogue: works inspired by photography.