Overall, did I enjoy this novel? Yup. I'm not sure that I completely got it, though.

I believe I'd call it literary humor. Not side-splitting for me or anything, but I did chuckle a few times. I saw that the publisher subcategorizes the book as romance. Alongside Paul's traveling adventure and writing work, the story does indeed go into his romantic life.

But at various moments, the scenes and characters mosey off on tangents. While I can appreciate slower-paced fiction as much as fast-paced, I still like to have a firm sense that the story's going somewhere. Although I felt relaxed throughout this read, I started to feel a little lost at times. Honestly, while this isn't a long novel, it took me a couple more days to finish it than I thought it would. It was pretty easy for me to pause and nap during more than one sitting.

Still, Paul has some touching and relatable moments. And one little part that stood out to me:

[Onesto, referring to a newspaper]: "The world. Politicians and their tricks. Wars. Floods. Bad accidents. That's our world, isn't it?"

[Paul]: "It's the world that people report."

There's a lot I could say about that, but my main thought is about how it can be beneficial to find good on your own. To have your own good day, whether or not everyone would deem it newsworthy. There are countless folks out there making good days, leading good lives, doing good for other people...

Anyhow. I plan on reading the sequel to this novel and will likely check out some of this new-to-me author's even more popular work sometime. ( )

I borrowed this one from the library because I realized I had the second in the "series" (so far there are only two) in my Audible library, and obviously, I couldn't listen to that one until I'd listened to the first. But I'm not sure I'll even bother with #2. My Italian Bulldozer was fine - there just wasn't much there there, if you know what I mean. I did enjoy the food and wine descriptions, but the story of a Scottish writer's 3 week visit to a Tuscan village was pretty shallow and a bit "twee" for me.

3 stars ( )

After being spurned by his girlfriend, foodie writer Paul Stewart heads to Italy in hopes of finishing his latest book. Following an issue with the car rental agency, through another source he is offered the only means of transportation left, which is a tractor. Sounds nutty and silly? Well, it kind of is, but McCall Smith manages to make the premise sound believable.

I wasn't a big fan of all the relationship related drama in the book, but overall it was a pleasant and quick read. There are some deeper moral/philosophical questions inserted into the story but much of the premise based on the cozy, feel-good stuff that is typical of the author's usual writing.

As a side note, I started off with the audio but didn't really care for the narration in relation to some characters. I ended up switching to an ebook version. ( )

Engaging and humorous, My Italian Bulldozer, speaks from the heart about lost and found love, the nuances of friendship, respect, listening and understanding, and open-mindedness.

A key reason I enjoy Alexander McCall-Smith's books is because he always finds a way of instilling them with philosophy and wisdom. They can be viewed as gentle morality tales demonstrating how most of us benefit greatly by giving and receiving kindness. But McCall-Smith recognizes human failings in the form of bullying, corruption and evil-mindednes; his books demonstrate ways that people could respond with strong and meaningful actions peacefully.

Good read.

This is a charming story of a food and wine writer who goers to Italy to write a book and recover from a recent breakup. The people he meets in Italy help him see his situation differently and he learns a great deal more than about Italian food and wine. ( )