At the villa of reduced circumstances

In these three novellas, Smith (The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency) introduces a new character, Dr. Moriz-Maria von Igelfeld, a professor of romance philology whose most noted (and only) book is Portuguese Irregular Verbs. Other recurring characters include von Igelfeld's colleagues at the Institute of Romance Philology, Dr. Florianus Prinzel and Dr. Detlev Amadeus Unterholzer. Von Igelfeld continuously tries to prove to himself and others that he is the absolute best in his field and as such he should be shown the utmost respect. This often results in the most humorous situations, as things do not go according to plan. In Portuguese Irregular Verbs, von Igelfeld gets Dr. Prinzel involved in a duel, which results in the loss of the tip of Prinzel's nose. In The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs, Dr. Unterholzer's beloved pet dachshund is left with only one leg after von Igelfeld, mistaken for a veterinarian, amputates the other three. And in At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances, von Igelfeld becomes involved in academic intrigue at Cambridge and a little misadventure in Colombia. This delightful head-in-the-clouds professor will enthrall the author's many fans. Recommended for most popular fiction collections.-Karen Core, Kent Dist. Lib., Grand Rapids, MI (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Smith completes the saga of Prof. Dr. Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld (see below) with a pair of long stories that transport him to Cambridge University and a faded Colombia salon. "On Being Light Blue" indulges the eminent scholar's long-time wish for a visiting appointment at Cambridge courtesy of his colleague Prof. Dr. Detlev Amadeus Unterholzer's equally ardent desire to appropriate his office during his absence. Von Igelfeld's tenancy at Cambridge is a series of lightweight comic sketches: his mistaking Prof. Porter for the College Porter, his attempt to prevent visiting American opera writer Matthew Gurewitsch from using his shared bathroom without lying about its availability, his seduction into some collegiate intrigue--the last of which supplies an anticlimax worthy of Botswana private detective Precious Ramotswe (The Full Cupboard of Life, p. 158, etc.). If this tale depends a little too completely on Smith's ear for the absurdity of academic persiflage just as it's lifting off from reality, the title story takes von Igelfeld to an altogether higher plane. Returning to the Institute for Romance Philology, he's settling into his amusingly small-minded routine, holding his blotter up to a mirror to see whether he can identify Unterholzer's handwriting, when he learns that his magnum opus Portuguese Irregular Verbs has been checked out of the Institute's library in his absence. The upshot finds von Igelfeld in Colombia, where he receives a series of increasingly improbable appointments, spends a memorable few days at SeÑora Dolores Quinta Barranquilla's Villa of Reduced Circumstances, comes face-to-face with a guerilla uprising, and distinguishes himself as a statesman and war hero before floating back home. Though the first story is piffle, the second is a worthy apotheosis for Smith's charmingly clueless pedagogue. (Illus. throughout with b&w block prints) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

In these three novellas, Smith (The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency) introduces a new character, Dr. Moriz-Maria von Igelfeld, a professor of romance philology whose most noted (and only) book is Portuguese Irregular Verbs. Other recurring characters include von Igelfeld's colleagues at the Institute of Romance Philology, Dr. Florianus Prinzel and Dr. Detlev Amadeus Unterholzer. Von Igelfeld continuously tries to prove to himself and others that he is the absolute best in his field and as such he should be shown the utmost respect. This often results in the most humorous situations, as things do not go according to plan. In Portuguese Irregular Verbs, von Igelfeld gets Dr. Prinzel involved in a duel, which results in the loss of the tip of Prinzel's nose. In The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs, Dr. Unterholzer's beloved pet dachshund is left with only one leg after von Igelfeld, mistaken for a veterinarian, amputates the other three. And in At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances, von Igelfeld becomes involved in academic intrigue at Cambridge and a little misadventure in Colombia. This delightful head-in-the-clouds professor will enthrall the author's many fans. Recommended for most popular fiction collections.-Karen Core, Kent Dist. Lib., Grand Rapids, MI Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.