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I don't know whether the books are getting better as the series continues, or if I have simply slid into the comfort zone they create for me, with all their repetition and rambling and familiarity, but it seems to me that they are becoming more thematically focused and cohesive. This book's intertwining plots center on appearance and reality, on expectations and prejudgment and how they may obscure the truth: from the book's beginning, where Mma Ramotswe, trying to stop a crime, is taken for a c...
Delightful!The more I read McCall Smith, the more I look forward to reading more.
Reading a McCall Smith book is like meeting an old friend, filled with a softness, a gentleness, and a quiet belief in the goodness of the world. I enjoyed it just like I’ve enjoyed every other of this series.
Come spend some time in Botswana with the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. This series is like visiting an old friend and learning about a new place. Each installment adds to the store of knowledge one accumulates about this part of Africa. The characters become more defined. Mma Ramatswe and Mma Makutzi are indeed cheerful ladies for the most part. As they help their clients and assist Mr. J.L.B. Matakoni with the workload of the car repair business, we are reminded of Mma Ramatswe's traditional...
Upset by all of the chaos in the world, I was looking for something lighter to read when I selected this book. I remembered how my mother, now deceased, had loved the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. It's approaching her birthday and I'm thinking of her strongly. I'm at the halfway mark in the book, but am putting it aside. It's like reading about Andy Griffith's Mayberry, but it's set in Botswana with African characters. For a detective with a detective agency to run, there is not much my...
It is always wonderful to return to Botswana in the company of Precious Ramotswe and friends. The slow pace of life and the kindness which permeates the pages are soothing. The crime solving is a small portion of these novels, the wisdom is what makes them special.
There is something so comforting about this series. Even though life in Botswana is most likely very different than life in Canada, there is something about the tone or writing style that reminds me of life at my grandparent's house. I love the traditional values, the respect for people/property/manners. And most of all, I love that it is important to slow down and really be in the moment with those important to you. I know that the future installments become a little formulaic. However, every s...
The entire #1 Ladies Detective Agency series is the most unique set of books I have ever read. I really believe McCall deserves all of the hype he gets for this series, as it has universal appeal.Mma Ramoswe ponders the questions in life that so many of us do, (or would, if we would just slow down a bit!) But she is so human, too, and some of my favorite parts of this recent addition are the instances in which she muses about Mma Makutsi's "97 percent", but stops just shy of admitting that she i...
Lovely prose, gentle clever people.
It is such a treat and a delight to read these books. I indeed feel like I am in the company of cheerful ladies, sharing a cup of tea with Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi. Highly recommend this wonderful series!
I really liked this book. All the problems were solved. This is the best out of the first 6 of the series.
Precious Ramotswe, Botwana's No.1 Lady Detective, is usually concerned with other people's problems and mishaps. She handles these with aplomb, common sense and, sometimes a little pressure... Her usual cheerfulness is rarely put to the test. Yet, when it comes to difficulties in her own life, she is not so well prepared. She has, after all, a position to maintain and this limits her options. Mma Makutsi is her junior in the agency, which makes her unsuitable as a confidante. And Mr J.L.B. Matek...
On page 110 and 111 I was very much able to relate to the issue Mma Ramotswe and Mma Potekwane discussed, I wrote the quotes from those pages down, for your entertainment:)"Mma Ramotswe sighed. "We are all tempted, Mma. We are all tempted when it comes to cake." "That is true," said Mma Potekwane. "There are many temptations in this life, but cake is probably one of the biggest of them.""""Temptation is very difficult," said Mma Ramotswe quietly. "I do not always resist it. I am not a strong wom...
***Fifth read***These books feel like my children. Hard to pick a favorite but if I had to, this would be it. Special people come into play here and some terrific things happen. I love this series so much. It has become part of my soul. I want to live in Botswana with Mma Ramotswe and the rest of the crew; now, more than ever. If it weren't so hot there, I might be making tentative plans, just in case America hasn't come fully to its senses in November. 😉 AMS, I hope to meet you one day. You are...
Whenever I am stressed, have too many deadlines, or simply have been reading too much heavy, sad stuff, I look for another in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. It is just relaxing, pleasant reading to imagine myself sitting under an acacia tree in the hot Botswana sun drinking bush tea... Although a totally different climate and history, Botswanna in a way reminds me of rural Costa Rica 20 years ago. The slow pace of life, everyone knows each other, and honesty and reputation and ethics...
These are cozy little reads that are really more about the characters' relationships to each other than about any mysteries taken on by the detective agency. I recently saw a documentary about Alexander McCall Smith. He confesses that he wants to present books about Africa that are not tragedies. He sets the pace slowly (as per the "cozy mystery" genre conventions). He likes to imagine himself as grounded and wise as Mma Ramotswe. He also explains how he travels from Scotland back to Botwana onc...
Since so many people are writing reviews about these wonderful books and discussing the plot, I think I will talk about Africa and especially the way Mma Ramotswe feels about her home and her people. Reading these books has given me the same feeling I got from the beginning of Out of Africa and Cry, the Beloved Country. There is such a deep love of the land in these characters and I find myself wanting to be there with them. I also find myself remembering how I felt in Mississippi in the days of...
I found this one to be more entertaining than some of the books in the series. I wouldn't recommend the "No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series to just anyone, but I admit I have enjoyed it. The landscape of Botswana is depicted beautifully, lovingly throughout. I think some folks might NOT appreciate the idyllicism, the simplicity of characters, the repetition. The people and situations are charmingly simple (the style has been called utopian)and it really worked for me but I wonder if some migh...
Another trip to Botswana so couldn't let it pass without another glimpse into the world of Mma Ramotswe. As always it was a delight. I love getting to be on location as I read as the books are so visual already and being there just brings it even more to life. Can't help but adopt the Botswanan accent as I read as well. :)
The 6th of this series and they keep getting better and better.