Widdershins

When he leaves his two-year-old in the Tesco shopping trolley, Robin MacFarlane knows he needs help. A middle-aged Scotsman, he juggles teaching and the upbringing of his children after the unexpected death of his wife. Morag McCoul, the family's new nanny, unpacks alternative paraphernalia from her Mary Poppins carpet bag, spellbinding the children and terrifying Robin's conventional relatives. McCoul works her magic on an emotional level while sister Fiona's chiropractor offers solutions to Robin's chronic back pain. Edinburgh in the first decade of the millennium provides the rich, textured backdrop of this bittersweet tale of grief and rekindling of meaning: It puts a New Age spin on historic tradition in the world's first UNESCO City of Literature.