Booksellers in fiction appear to conform to one of several stereotypes, and Muir’s protagonist certainly conforms to the most obvious; the autodidact who believes that his hard-learned knowledge entitles him to a better life than the lot he has been cast. Despite the inevitable bitterness that accompanies such a character, Baxter is someone to whom it is impossible not to warm as the book unfolds, and his final realization that he is content with his quiet life in a small Scottish bookshop comes as no surprise at the conclusion of the book.