Professor Dr. Von Igelfeld Books in Order
Part ofAlexander McCall Smith Books in OrderSee the Professor Dr. Von Igelfeld books in order by Alexander McCall Smith, with quick summaries, series background, and where to start.
Last updated: January 16, 2026
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Publication Order
12 books
The Lost Language of Oysters
by Alexander McCall Smith
2026
Professor von Igelfeld finds himself caught up in another scholarly tangle, where grand theories meet messy reality. The book continues the series’ gentle academic satire, full of misplaced confidence, rivalry, and travel plans that go wrong.
Your Inner Hedgehog
by Alexander McCall Smith
2021
Professor von Igelfeld stumbles into a new situation where academic pride meets self-improvement talk and social confusion. The result is another gentle farce, full of misunderstandings, misplaced confidence, and the professor’s unwavering belief in his own importance.
Your Inner Hedgehog
by Alexander McCall Smith
2021
Unusual Uses for Olive Oil
by Alexander McCall Smith
2011
The residents of Corduroy Mansions continue their everyday dramas, from romance to ambition to mild scandal. McCall Smith follows multiple storylines in quick scenes, showing how a community forms, and frays, over small things.
Unusual Uses for Olive Oil
by Alexander McCall Smith
2011
The 2½ Pillars of Wisdom
by Alexander McCall Smith
2004
Professor von Igelfeld is once again certain he is destined for greatness, and once again life has other plans. This installment continues the mild campus satire and travel mishaps, where ambition, jealousy, and pride do most of the damage.
The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
Professor von Igelfeld returns for another round of academic mishap, pride, and unlikely travel. His careful plans unravel in the face of other people’s behavior and his own vanity, in a calm, funny satire of scholarly life.
The Finer Points of Sausage Dogs
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
Portuguese Irregular Verbs
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
Professor Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld takes his academic reputation very seriously, which is exactly why trouble finds him. This is a gentle, absurd comedy of scholarship, rivalry, and misadventure, where status games matter far too much.
Portuguese Irregular Verbs
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
Von Igelfeld’s life takes another turn into farce as he gets tangled in status worries and questionable opportunities. The book leans into gentle comedy, showing how easily a pompous man can misunderstand the world, and himself.
At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances
by Alexander McCall Smith
2003
Series background & context
The Professor Dr. von Igelfeld books are gentle, absurd comedies about academic life and the strange things people will do for prestige. The central figure is Professor Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld, a German philologist who takes his scholarship very seriously, even when the world refuses to cooperate.
The humor comes from a familiar place: vanity, rivalry, and the small humiliations of professional life. Von Igelfeld and his colleagues attend conferences, chase recognition, and become convinced that tiny slights are major scandals. McCall Smith plays all of this straight, which makes it funnier, the characters truly believe their academic dramas are life-and-death.
While the books are full of farce, they are not cruel. Von Igelfeld can be pompous, but he is also oddly endearing. His misadventures tend to reveal how fragile status is, and how easily people confuse being important with doing something important.
It is comedy built on manners and misunderstandings.
You can start with Portuguese Irregular Verbs, which sets up von Igelfeld’s worldview and introduces the series’ tone. Later installments expand the circle and send the professor into new situations where his confidence keeps colliding with reality.
If you like campus satire that stays light and readable, this series is an easy recommendation. Expect mistaken identities, misfiring schemes, and a steady stream of academic overthinking, all delivered with a calm, conversational voice.
Edited by
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