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detective agency mma ramotswe ladies detective mccall smith precious ramotswe alexander mccall bush tea common sense forward to reading books in the series book club white van tears of the giraffe agatha christie thoroughly enjoyed miss marple looking forward really enjoyed human nature well written
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Linda
5.0 out of 5 stars HUMOROUSLY BRILLIANT!!
Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2020
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“Don’t disregard a hunch. Hunches are another form of knowledge.” —Alexander McCall Smith, No 1 Ladies Detective Agency

The ‘No 1 Ladies Detective Agency’ series is truly a love story of Africa! Book one is a heartfelt, emotional, humorous story about the adventures of Mma [Madam] Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s premier lady detective. With the help of her associates and friends, Mma Ramotswe navigates her cases and personal life with a great deal of wisdom, creativity, and humor, not to mention an occasional cup of Bush tea. You’ll fall in love with this confident, stubborn, self assured, modern woman full of love for her country.

I find it most interesting that the author of this delightful series, Alexander “Sandy" McCall Smith (McCall-Smith being his surname), is male, especially since he has managed to brilliantly write a very strong feminine voice perspective, a voice that I would have expected more from a female author. McCall Smith, a British-Zimbabwean writer and Emeritus Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh, is internationally known as a writer of fiction. He is an excellent gifted writer and storyteller, and this book is both educational and humorous. His interesting characters definitely do not disappoint. There is a bit of a plot hole that went unanswered at the end of book one, involving the superstitions of black medicine, but perhaps this was on purpose, leading into future storylines in one of the series 19 books. It’s a great read, so enjoy!!

“Every man has a map in his heart of his own country and … the heart will never allow you to forget this map.” —Alexander McCall Smith, No 1 Ladies Detective Agency

“There is no difference between white men and black men; we are all the same; we are just people.” —Alexander McCall Smith, No 1 Ladies Detective Agency

“If we could go back and know then what we know now, … my goodness, I would live my life differently!” —Alexander McCall Smith, No 1 Ladies Detective Agency

“How sorry she felt for white people, … who were always dashing around and worrying themselves over things that were going to happen anyway. What use was it having all that money if you could never sit still?” —Alexander McCall Smith, No 1 Ladies Detective Agency
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cmann
5.0 out of 5 stars The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Book Series Hits a Home run with High School Girls Reading Club.
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2016
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The story is filled with African cultural information that engages members of my Reading Club in productive discussions. Having little knowledge of Africa, they are learning through this medium cultural information that they can relate to some common practices they have experienced in their everyday lives. The humor of the book keeps readers looking for the next minutes. The book is morally strong and provides good examples of integrity, character, selflessness, and a range of other modes of behavior that children of this generation rarely consider. I will be looking for the next book in a few weeks.
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James EllsworthTop Contributor: Cooking
5.0 out of 5 stars Feminine but Feminist African Woman; 'Cozy' Mystery Series
Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2015
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I DO love 'The Number 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series' by Alexander McCall Smith. While the author is 'white' (and so am I), his stories show a deep love for Africa and an appreciation for the dignity of ins indigenous people. Well...at least the people of Botswana. I recommend starting with this book since it is the first in the series. It is also as fine a beginning as any series could hope to be. We find the heroine reflecting on her life as a young girl in a British Colonial milieu and we see her in adult life as the intelligent and practical product of a prosperous father and a good high school education. We find her to be independent-natured, self-sufficient and willing and able to stand up for independent women anywhere. She starts her own business...and since she admires Agatha Christie, she decides to become a detective.

Each of these books picks up and drops a single overall case, separating each phase of its solution with chapters dealing mostly with other cases that can be solved more quickly. Each case requires some ingenious thinking and a deep understanding of local culture and practices and, of course, of basic human nature. In spite of having to deal with darker events such as kidnapping, witchcraft, impersonation, philandering, insurance fraud and employee theft, there is something life-affirming about the heroine's approach to each case and in the way she stays 'centered' as a human being. Readers looking for a 'cozy' mystery series that is not set in England will very much enjoy this series!
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Cottage Woman
5.0 out of 5 stars AN AWESOME, FUN READ!
Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2018
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The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency is such a engaging first novel in Alexander McCall Smith’s series of twenty so far. The characters really come to life on every page. I’ve read all twenty of the books in the series and am never disappointed. This first novel was promoted again recently as a special edition because the author had been writing the series for twenty years. I decided to re-read the first story after all these years. I love recommending this fun collection.
I’m eagerly waiting for the next book, in fact, I believe it’s already pre-ordered!
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Misty609
5.0 out of 5 stars Makes Me Want to Visit Botswana
Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2017
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Each One Gets Better - each book in the series, that is. I think the one I am currently reading is the best one thus far, until I finish reading and then realize that each one is as good as the next one. I love learning things about Africa, at least Botswana, things I did not know. Botswana sounds so wonderful and its people so delightful. This series makes me want to visit Botswana and have some Bush tea and converse with its inhabitants.

I love the series, love Mma Ramotswe and enjoy spending time in her company. I would love to have a cup of Bush Tea or lunch at the President's Hotel, joined by Alexander McCall Smith himself. Can you imagine the wonderful, inspiring, thought-provoking conversations we could have?

Alexander McCall Smith never disappoints and "The No. Ladies' Detective Agency" series is proof of that.
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browse shop review
4.0 out of 5 stars Certainly no defective detective!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 6, 2015
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'Mma Ramotswe had a detective agency in Africa, at the foot of the Kgale Hill. These were its assets: a tiny white van, two desks, two chairs, a telephone, and an old typewriter. There was a teapot, in which Mma Ramotswe - the only lady private detective in Botswana - brewed redbush tea. And three mugs - one for herself, one for her secretary, and one for the client. What else does a detective agency really need?'

A few economically descriptive lines of introduction, and the scene is perfectly set...

As well as the perpetually endearing, big-hearted, and big-bodied Mma Precious Ramotswe herself. there is of course a whole host of deliciously appealing characters still waiting in the wings. There's the agency's formidable secretary, Mma Makutsi ('Miss ninety-seven per cent', though perhaps the character is a little under-used in this initial instalment); there's Dr Maketsi (a close friend from Mma Ramotswe's home village of Mochudi); there's Mr J L B Matekoni (the ever-helpful proprietor of 'Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors', hailing also from Mochudi, and so hopelessly in love with our very own lady detective); there's Note Mokoti (our lady detective's worthless first love); there's Charlie Gotso (Gaborone's premier local gangster); and last but not least, Obed Ramotswe - the beloved father whose passing made it possible for Botswana's only ladies' detective agency to exist, and who is never very far from Precious's thoughts.

The twenty-two chapters of this book don't really contain tales of detection in the purest sense of the word and shouldn't be approached with that expectation in mind. They are, instead, rather gentle - even whimsical - examinations of a place and a people so utterly captivating that you desperately hope that it does all exist just so, exactly as portrayed...even though a niggling doubt persists that it can't quite be true - can it...? For if this IS Botswana, then and now, and if these are its people - well, who wouldn't want to visit or even live there...? This is the fundamental joy of this novel: its depiction of time, place, and people - clad in such unalloyed appeal!

Some reviewers have criticised the style of prose adopted here by Alexander McCall Smith - that it lacks sophistication. Well, I suppose it does. But so what? I certainly wasn't expecting Tolstoy or Dostoyevsky - and I wouldn't want the contributions from either, in this context, because that simply wouldn't work; it wouldn't fit. Mr McCall Smith has resorted to a style, on the contrary, that works a treat because it perfectly sets the tone of place and personalities: the people and their country are (mostly) honest, candid, and uncomplicated - and surely, so must be the language and idiom that defines them, too!

To conclude:

I thoroughly enjoyed 'The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency' and don't fully understand how anyone who reads it could fail to be beguiled by the citizens of Botswana and its capital, Gaborone - and in particular, by the exploits of the one very special resident who lives in the corner house on Zebra Drive. As far as introductory volumes go, it's a winner as far as I'm concerned...though stretching the entire series to a considerable 15 volumes does present something of a daunting challenge, at this moment in time, and perhaps does carry the faintest whiff of 'overkill' about it...
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Woolco
3.0 out of 5 stars Teen Lit?
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 1, 2015
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It's certainly a fluent, easy read with a sympathetic and appealing lead character in the fulsome shape of Mma Precious Ramotswe. Some historical and cultural detail embellishes the story effectively, and the landscape and setting are brought to life perfectly adequately.

My criticisms are perhaps a matter of taste. Though difficult to fault the writing, at times, both the content and the delivery border on over-simplification, the mysteries themselves also suffer from this weakness. Dark, unhappy events are not overlooked, it must be said, but, somehow, they evaporate a little too satisfactorily. Put it that way.

Ultimately, I was left me with the general impression that this undemanding, life-affirming read might best engage the younger reader.
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Guy Clapperton
3.0 out of 5 stars Relaxing enough to read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 13, 2020
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I read this as a book group choice and it was much as I expected - not too taxing, nicely written and with a well-filled-in backdrop. Perfectly likeable but I don't imagine I'll be racing back for more - it just didn't grab me and if I'm honest I found this white author putting so many words into the mouths of the black community a little patronising, but there's no arguing with the popularity.
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Ladydragon
5.0 out of 5 stars The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency - a wonderful read!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 17, 2020
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Simple and beautifully written with charm and wit, I quickly fell in love with the characters and storyline. This is a lovely book that leaves you craving more. Brilliant all round & would totally recommend. If you are a fan of the TV show, you will love this and the other books in this series. Would totally recommend ++
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reader
3.0 out of 5 stars Rather Short
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 12, 2018
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This was the first of the "No. 1 ladies' Detective Agency". It is delightful, and a good read, introducing the main characters. The reason I have only given it three stars is because I think it's too short. It needed to be longer to develop the characters of the main characters, Instead you have to buy further books in the series, all still too short.
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