Alexander McCall Smith is the author of more than fifty works, including the Ladies' First Detective Agency series of novels, published in the United States alone with a circulation of 2.5 million copies. Alexander McCall Smith's books have been translated into 26 languages. In 2003, he won the United Kingdom's highest award for humorous fiction, Saga, and in the same year won the Glenfiddish Prize for Literature. The book consists of nine short stories, each of which describes a meeting between a man and a woman, the result of which becomes an unexpected action or event. Alexander McCall Smith, a master of twists and turns and a great storyteller, delights in revealing the sometimes complicated situations that people create for themselves, which can be shocking, senseless, and sometimes tragic. These stories, with unexpected emotional nuances, are written with insight, deftness and humor, making them a real pleasure to read.