The Five Lost Aunts of Harriet Bean
by Alexander McCall Smith
Illustrated by Ian Bilbey
I think this book would once have been called a 'charming conceit', for there is much charm in it. Indeed, the warmth and kindness of the writer, which comes over very strongly, is most appealing. The 'conceit' part, though, isn't so great, for this brings with it the assumption that the torn cobweb of characters, circumstance and coincidence that make up this story actually succeeds in weaving together what is described on the back cover as 'a fun adventure'.
And it doesn't.
Harriet Bean is a child with a mission. A mission to reunite her father with his five sisters, but he is so selfish, one can only wonder why she bothers. The self-absorbed 'vagueness' of the father is clearly meant to be endearing but it's hard to see what is endearing about him. Harriet's dead grand-parents are even worse.
They, too, are presented as loving parents, yet, protesting they cannot afford to keep their six children, they scatter them to the four winds, so it is with some surprise we find that they can afford to have a portrait of Harriet's father and his five sisters painted. It is this portrait, of course, which is central to the story as Harriet strives to find her missing Aunts.
With coincidence on her side, Harriet soon finds Aunts Majolica, Thessalonika, Harmonica, etcetera, (you get the drift), even though they have been missing for years. I think then that the adventure element is to be found in the Aunts' exotic jobs and behaviour and the fun part in ...
erm.
The whole time I was reading, I was trying to work out what period this story was set in. I know, I know, the Russian sailor outfit and French Foreign Legion uniform used as disguises by the two Detective Aunts should have told me something but if you're not hot at history, you could use a little help.
Despite all this, I like Harriet Bean. She has a strong character and it would have been good to see her meet far more difficult challenges. She'd have been up for it. And that really would have been fun. The ease with which all the problems are solved does no favours for Harriet or for the story. The quite difficult language doesn't do much for it, either.
I admit it. I read this book for Harriet Bean and she, at least, did not disappoint.
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