"Corduroy is a bear in the toy department of a store. He does not look new because one of the buttons on his overalls is missing, but he wants a home of his own." --

Corduroy Mansions is the nickname given to a building in London's vibrant Pimlico neighborhood, home to a captivating collection of quirky characters. The author traces their amusing foibles and interactions through the ins and outs of neighborliness in all its unexpected variations.

"It's back to Corduroy Mansions--the slightly dilapidated but well-lived-in mansion block in London's hip Pimlico neighborhood--for the third installment in Alexander McCall Smith's newest popular series. There's never a dull moment for the residents of Corduroy Mansions: Berthea Snark is still at work on her scathing biography of the only loathsome Liberal Democrat member of Parliament--her own son, Oedipus; literary agents Rupert Porter and Barbara...