• Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

  • The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency
  • By: Alexander McCall Smith
  • Narrated by: Lisette Lecat
  • Length: 8 hrs and 23 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (1,437 ratings)

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Tea Time for the Traditionally Built  By  cover art

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

By: Alexander McCall Smith
Narrated by: Lisette Lecat
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Publisher's summary

The 10th entry in the internationally best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series finds Precious Ramotswe investigating a mystery that hits close to home.

When she asks her dependable husband, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, to fix her tiny white van, Precious fears he might just sell the vehicle and buy her something more modern. And so he does. But this will not do. So Precious tries to track her beloved van down - and learns it has already been stolen from its new owner.

Listen to the other titles in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series.
©2009 Alexander McCall Smith (P)2009 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"A literary confection of gossamer deliciousness....There is no end to the pleasure that may be extracted from these books." ( The New York Times Book Review)

What listeners say about Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    903
  • 4 Stars
    355
  • 3 Stars
    110
  • 2 Stars
    38
  • 1 Stars
    31
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
    112
  • 3 Stars
    38
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    9
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    635
  • 4 Stars
    224
  • 3 Stars
    72
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    6

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Fun Like Always

Precious Ramotswe is one of my very favorite woman characters among a small handful. Being a guy I usually love gritty, hard boiled, raw, action detective stories. I like my mysteries complex and I like the thrills to keep me glued to my ipod. The series of books in the Number One Ladies Detective collection are totally the opposite of all this.

There is never violence. The mysteries are small and sometimes almost nonexistent. There is no action. Us "tough" guys would call this a "ladies novel" except that they are precious, magic, and life affirming.

Everything I shouldn't like about this series is what makes them special, a joy, and pleasure. The reader is awesome which adds extra magic.

What makes the story work is the atmosphere, the unique story idea, the simple mysteries of a simple life, a fresh perspective, and a set of characters you'll think of as part of your family.

I only use 4 stars instead of 5 because there was not a great a mystery in this one as in some although the story is still great fun. I suggest anyone that has not been reading the series start at the beginning to really be able to enjoy them all fully. The one fault of find with most of the series after the first is the lack of mysteries in them. Most of the series from about the 3rd or 4th one are mainly about the personal views and challenges of the main characters. While these are fun they are much more enjoyable when the detectives are also detecting. If you have enjoyed the series so far then don't miss this one.

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21 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent

As always, go into these novels with the understanding that you need to sit back, relax, and calm down. These are not thrillers; the action is slow. I read thrillers as well and they have their rewards, but the rewards of this series are completely different. Most books in the series don't even hint at a plot in the first few chapters. The draws here are the characters and setting, which are both wonderfully drawn and suprisingly compelling. The rewards are scattered throughout the novels (most of which come from the insights of the main character), with the biggest of these coming near the end as all the loose ends are tied up and all the events come to their conclusions, nearly always in satisfying - if unexpected - ways.

One other comment: I've read one book in the series and listened to the other 9. Lisette Lecat is one of the best narrators I've ever heard. I found myself hearing her voice in my head when I read the print book. After that I went back to audio... her voice and presentation are definitely and enhancement, a rare quality.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

JUST OK - HORRIBLE NARRATOR

I have NEVER heard anyone from Botswana drag the "M" in names and words like this narrator! Everything sounds like "Mmmmmother mmmmmmakes mmmmmuch mmmmmmoney! IRRITATING! And it makes what could be a pleasing story drag along. I guess I got used to Jill Scott's expert acting as Precious Ramotswe in the HBO series. No one in the series went around drawling out "Mma" like "Mmmmmmmmmma". Hearing this over and over again, several times in one sentence hurts my ears! ! Lisette Lecat may be South African-born but not BLACK SOUTH AFRICAN! I'm tired of white narrators thinking that they know how we talk. Guess what? YOU DON'T!!!!

This is the only one of many reviews that I've written here where I have nothing to say about the story because the narration is the worst in over 300 Audible.com I've purchased. Glad I got this book on sale but it's not even worth the sales price! Does Audible even listen to these books when the narration is completed? Obviously not! I know there must be black, African-American, and African narrators out there to do justice to our voices. Find some, Audible! I'm getting weary of listening to us sound like minstrels or just plain ridiculous as in this book! A MEERKAT could have done better than LECAT!

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Mr. McCall Smith does it again!

I simply can not get enough of the characters in this series. I wish it were a soap opera that I could watch everyday! Mma Makutsi gets funnier with each book. Mma Ramotswe is my age but she seems so much wiser! These books are so enjoyable. I was listening today at Walmart and laughing out loud. Again, the mysteries keep you guessing. Ms. Lecat is amazing. Thank you, thank you Mma for your wonderful narration. I especially love the way you do Puso. If you have listened to all of the books up to this point, you will not be disappointed.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

.00001 star.. SAVE your MONEY...

I have an accent... but THIS ... every 2.5 seconds. the author repeats the names of the characters and it HURTS your ears.. the story does not evolve, it is stagnant... don't buy... the narrator is below ok, but the author - a nah.. save your credits....

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    out of 5 stars

Mma. Ramotswe never disappoints=

This was another fun one.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful--down to the last drop.

Mr Smith and Ms Lecat are wonderful yet again. You will not be disappointed. By this time in a lengthy series, there is one book that may not stand up to to others in quality. But not this one, and not any of the previous ones. This series is a bargain at twice the price. I only wish I had found it sooner.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

very good

This is one of the books in the Ladies #1 Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith. This is a top notch series and I believe that to truly enjoy the series, every book should be read in the order written. The characters and story line develop over time in the series and they are people you really want to get to know. The story lines and characters can be funny, disgraceful or tragic, but they are always interesting. Smith is a keen observer of people and has great talent for drawing characters and telling whopping good stories.
The reader is the same for each book in the series and she is one of the best I have ever heard. She gives consistly solid performances over the entire series. The characters remain the same from one book to the other. Her accents are extrordinarily good. If I had to choose between reading this series and listening to it read by this reader (Lisette Lecat) I would without hesitation choose the audible version. Purchase them all - they are so very good.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

the ladies detective agency is number 1

once again alexander mccall smith does not disappoint. i believe this is number 10 in the detective agency series and i have enjoyed it as much as all the rest. the narration is fabulous and the story flows so smoothly.. light easy summertime listening. the tiny white van? the husband stealer? it's all here.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

This series makes my life better

After reading the first Ladies No 1 Detective Agency book, I wrote that it could cure any existential crisis. This latest is just as good - extremely pleasurable and captivating. A few of the other books in the series have not been quite as fantastic as the original, but this installment keeps the series alive and kicking. There is not much going on in the way of suspense or "detection," but the characters are compelling, and I remain captivated by the cultural tidbits that McCall Smith provides. Lesette Lecat is a fantastic narrator, and the tempo of the book is slow, calm, and lovely.

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3 people found this helpful