Order of Alexander McCall Smith Books
Born in Rhodesia but Scottish by heritage, Alexander McCall Smith has established himself as a prolific writer spanning multiple genres, from captivating crime fiction to delightful children's literature. His impressive portfolio includes beloved series such as the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, the Professor Dr. Von Igelfeld Entertainment series, Isabel Dalhousie mysteries, and 44 Scotland Street, among others. Beyond his fiction work, McCall Smith also contributes to academic literature through his non-fiction writings on medical law and bioethics.
While McCall Smith had been writing non-fiction and children's books since 1978, his journey into novel writing began in 1999 with the publication of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. The following list presents all of McCall Smith's fiction works arranged by their original publication dates, which corresponds to their chronological sequence:
(with LeUyen Pham)
Publication Order of 44 Scotland Street Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  44 Scotland Street | 2005 | |
| 2 |  Espresso Tales | 2005 | |
| 3 |  Love Over Scotland | 2006 | |
| 4 |  The World According to Bertie | 2007 | |
| 5 |  The Unbearable Lightness Of Scones | 2008 | |
| 6 |  The Importance of Being Seven | 2010 | |
| 7 |  Bertie Plays the Blues | 2011 | |
| 8 |  Sunshine on Scotland Street | 2012 | |
| 9 |  Bertie's Guide to Life and Mothers | 2013 | |
| 10 |  The Revolving Door of Life | 2015 | |
| 11 |  The Bertie Project | 2017 | |
| 12 |  A Time of Love and Tartan | 2017 | |
| 13 |  The Peppermint Tea Chronicles | 2019 | |
| 14 |  A Promise of Ankles | 2020 | |
| 15 |  Love in the Time of Bertie | 2021 | |
| 16 |  The Enigma of Garlic | 2023 | |
| 17 |  The Stellar Debut of Galactica Macfee | 2024 | |
| 18 |  Bertie's Theory of Ice Cream | 2025 |
Publication Order of Akimbo Books
Publication Order of Anthologies
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  A Treasury of Five-Minute Stories | 2000 | |
| 2 |  One City | 2005 | |
| 3 |  A New Omnibus of Crime | 2005 | |
| 4 |  The Sunday Night Book Club | 2006 | |
| 5 |  The Best British Mysteries IV | 2007 | |
| 6 |  Midsummer Nights | 2009 | |
| 7 |  Ox-Tales | 2009 | |
| 8 |  Crimespotting | 2009 | |
| 9 |  The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 7 | 2010 | |
| 10 |  Imagined Lives | 2010 | |
| 11 |  No Rest for the Dead | 2011 | |
| 12 |  The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 8 | 2011 | |
| 13 |  What You Wish For | 2011 | |
| 14 |  Better Than Fiction: True Travel Tales From Great Fiction Writers | 2012 | |
| 15 |  How Rude! Modern Manners Defined | 2012 | |
| 16 |  OxCrimes: 27 Killer Stories from the Cream of Crimewriters | 2014 | |
| 17 |  The Lonely Planet Travel Anthology | 2016 | |
| 18 |  The People's City: One City Trust | 2022 |
Publication Order of Austen Project Books
Publication Order of Children's Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  White Hippo | 1980 | |
| 2 |  Film Boy | 1988 | |
| 3 |  The Joke Machine | 1990 | |
| 4 |  Marzipan Max | 1991 | |
| 5 |  The Girl Who Changed the Weather | 1991 | |
| 6 |  Calculator Annie | 1992 | |
| 7 |  Springy Jane | 1992 | |
| 8 |  Who Invented Peanut Butter? | 1993 | |
| 9 |  My Chameleon Uncle | 1993 | |
| 10 |  The Doughnut Ring | 1994 | |
| 11 |  The Princess Trick | 1994 | |
| 12 |  Paddy and the Ratcatcher | 1994 | |
| 13 |  The Banana Machine | 1994 | |
| 14 |  Billy Rubbish | 1995 | |
| 15 |  The Bubblegum Tree | 1996 | |
| 16 |  The Watermelon Boys | 1996 | |
| 17 |  The Popcorn Pirates | 1999 | |
| 18 |  Monkey Boy | 2000 | |
| 19 |  Teacher Trouble | 2000 | |
| 20 |  The Spaghetti Tangle | 2005 | |
| 21 |  The Muscle Machine | 2006 | |
| 22 |  Boing Boing | 2016 | |
| 23 |  Hari & His Electric Feet | 2017 | |
| 24 |  Max Champion and the Great Race Car Robbery | 2018 | |
| 25 |  Freddie Mole | 2018 | |
| 26 |  The Great Clown Conundrum | 2019 | |
| 27 |  Noah Wild and the Floating Zoo | 2020 |
Publication Order of Corduroy Mansions Books
Publication Order of Detective Varg Books
Publication Order of Detective Varg Short Stories/Novellas
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Strange Case of the Moderate Extremists | 2019 |
Publication Order of Harriet Bean Books
Publication Order of Isabel Dalhousie Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Sunday Philosophy Club | 2004 | |
| 2 |  Friends, Lovers, Chocolate | 2005 | |
| 3 |  The Right Attitude to Rain | 2006 | |
| 4 |  The Careful Use of Compliments | 2007 | |
| 5 |  The Comforts of a Muddy Saturday / The Comfort Of Saturdays | 2008 | |
| 6 |  The Lost Art of Gratitude | 2009 | |
| 7 |  The Charming Quirks of Others | 2010 | |
| 8 |  The Forgotten Affairs of Youth | 2011 | |
| 9 |  The Uncommon Appeal of Clouds | 2012 | |
| 10 |  The Novel Habits of Happiness | 2015 | |
| 11 |  A Distant View of Everything | 2017 | |
| 12 |  The Quiet Side of Passion | 2018 | |
| 13 |  The Geometry of Holding Hands | 2020 | |
| 14 |  The Sweet Remnants of Summer | 2022 | |
| 15 |  The Conditions of Unconditional Love | 2024 |
Publication Order of Isabel Dalhousie Short Stories/Novellas
Publication Order of Max & Maddy Books
Publication Order of Mysterious Profiles Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rambo | 2022 | |
| 2 |  Elvis Cole and Joe Pike | 2022 | |
| 3 |  Jack Taylor | 2022 | |
| 4 |  Jack Reacher | 2022 | |
| 5 |  Charlie Parker | 2022 | |
| 6 |  Hieronymus Bosch | 2022 | |
| 7 |  Lincoln Rhyme | 2022 | |
| 8 |  Alex Delaware | 2022 | |
| 9 |  Tess Monaghan | 2022 | |
| 10 |  Charlie Resnick | 2022 | |
| 11 |  Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus | 2022 | |
| 12 |  Inspector Morse | 2022 | |
| 13 |  Dismas Hardy | 2022 | |
| 14 |  Bob Lee Swagger | 2022 | |
| 15 |  Aloysius X. L. Pendergast | 2022 | |
| 16 |  Lou Boldt | 2022 | |
| 17 |  Spenser | 2022 | |
| 18 |  Charlotte and Thomas Pitt | 2022 | |
| 19 |  John Rebus | 2022 | |
| 20 |  Mallory | 2022 | |
| 21 |  Jane Whitefield | 2022 | |
| 22 |  Ian Rutledge | 2022 | |
| 23 |  Amos Walker | 2022 | |
| 24 |  Precious Ramotswe | 2022 | |
| 25 |  Maisie Dobbs | 2022 | |
| 26 |  The Lincoln Lawyer | 2022 | |
| 27 |  Condor | 2023 | |
| 28 |  Ben Kincaid | 2023 | |
| 29 |  Repairman Jack | 2023 | |
| 30 |  Joe Pickett | 2024 | |
| 31 |  Peter Diamond | 2024 | |
| 32 |  Nathan Heller | 2024 | |
| 33 |  Orphan X | 2025 |
Publication Order of Myths Books
Publication Order of No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency | 1998 | |
| 2 |  Tears of the Giraffe | 2000 | |
| 3 |  Morality for Beautiful Girls | 2001 | |
| 4 |  The Kalahari Typing School for Men | 2002 | |
| 5 |  The Full Cupboard of Life | 2003 | |
| 6 |  In the Company of Cheerful Ladies | 2004 | |
| 7 |  Blue Shoes and Happiness | 2006 | |
| 8 |  The Good Husband of Zebra Drive | 2007 | |
| 9 |  The Miracle at Speedy Motors | 2008 | |
| 10 |  Tea Time for the Traditionally Built | 2009 | |
| 11 |  The Double Comfort Safari Club | 2010 | |
| 12 |  The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party | 2010 | |
| 13 |  The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection | 2012 | |
| 14 |  The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon | 2013 | |
| 15 |  The Handsome Man's De Luxe Café | 2014 | |
| 16 |  The Woman Who Walked in Sunshine | 2015 | |
| 17 |  Precious and Grace | 2016 | |
| 18 |  The House of Unexpected Sisters | 2017 | |
| 19 |  The Colors of All the Cattle | 2018 | |
| 20 |  To the Land of Long Lost Friends | 2019 | |
| 21 |  How to Raise an Elephant | 2020 | |
| 22 |  The Joy and Light Bus Company | 2021 | |
| 23 |  A Song of Comfortable Chairs | 2022 | |
| 24 |  From a Far and Lovely Country | 2023 | |
| 25 |  The Great Hippopotamus Hotel | 2024 | |
| 26 |  In the Time of Five Pumpkins | 2025 | |
| 27 |  The Big Cats Dance Party | 2026 |
Publication Order of No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Collections
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Cleverness of Ladies | 2012 |
Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  A Work of Beauty: Alexander McCall Smith's Edinburgh | 2014 |
Publication Order of Paul Stuart Books
Publication Order of Precious Ramotswe's Very First Cases Books
Publication Order of Professor Dr. Von Igelfeld Books
Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas
Publication Order of Short Story Collections
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Children of Wax: African Folk Tales | 1989 | |
| 2 |  Heavenly Date and Other Flirtations | 1995 | |
| 3 |  "Trouble at the North Pole" and Other Stories | 1996 | |
| 4 |  The Perfect Hamburger and Other Delicious Stories | 2001 | |
| 5 |  The Girl Who Married a Lion: and Other Tales from Africa | 2004 | |
| 6 |  The Baboons Who Went This Way and That: Folktales from Africa | 2006 | |
| 7 |  The Book That Changed My Life | 2006 | |
| 8 |  Trains and Lovers | 2012 | |
| 9 |  Chance Developments | 2016 | |
| 10 |  Pianos and Flowers | 2019 | |
| 11 |  Marvellous Mix-ups | 2020 | |
| 12 |  In a Time of Distance and Other Poems | 2020 | |
| 13 |  Tiny Tales: Stories of Romance, Ambition, Kindness, and Happiness | 2021 | |
| 14 |  The Private Life of Spies and the Exquisite Art of Getting Even | 2023 |
Publication Order of The Big-Top Mysteries Books
| # | Title | Year | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  The Big-Top Mysteries– The Case of the Vanishing Granny | 2020 |
