No 1 ladies detective agency books4/25/2023 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! 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. 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. there is of course a whole host of deliciously appealing characters still waiting in the wings. What else does a detective agency really need?'Ī few economically descriptive lines of introduction, and the scene is perfectly set.Īs well as the perpetually endearing, big-hearted, and big-bodied Mma Precious Ramotswe herself. And three mugs - one for herself, one for her secretary, and one for the client. There was a teapot, in which Mma Ramotswe - the only lady private detective in Botswana - brewed redbush tea. These were its assets: a tiny white van, two desks, two chairs, a telephone, and an old typewriter. 'Mma Ramotswe had a detective agency in Africa, at the foot of the Kgale Hill. He is married to a doctor and has two daughters. In March of 2011 he received an award from the President of Botswana for his services through literature to that country.Īlexander McCall Smith lives in Edinburgh. He holds honorary doctorates from nine universities in Europe and North America. He has received numerous awards for his writing, including the British Book Awards Author of the Year Award in 2004 and a CBE for service to literature in 2007. Earlier stand alone novels include 'La’s Orchestra Saves the World' and 'Trains and Lovers: A Hearts Journey'.Īlexander is also the author of collections of short stories, academic works, and over thirty books for children. This year there will also be a stunning book on Edinburgh, 'A Work of Beauty: Alexander McCall Smith’s Edinburgh'. 2014 sees publication of three new novels which fall into this area: 'The Forever Girl' 'Fatty O’Leary’s Dinner Party' and 'Emma' – a reworking of the classic Jane Austen novel. In addition to these series, Alexander writes stand-alone books. This series won two major cross-media awards - Association of Online Publishers Digital Publishing Award 2009 for a Cross Media Project and the New Media Age award. These include the Scotland Street novels, first published as a serial novel in The Scotsman, the Isabel Dalhousie novels, the Von Igelfeld series, and the Corduroy Mansions series, novels which started life as a delightful (but challenging to write) cross-media serial, written on the website of the Telegraph Media Group. Then, after the publication of his highly successful 'No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency' series, which has sold over twenty million copies, he devoted his time to the writing of fiction and has seen his various series of books translated into over forty-six languages and become bestsellers through the world. His career has been a varied one: for many years he was a professor of Medical Law and worked in universities in the United Kingdom and abroad. Alexander McCall Smith is one of the world’s most prolific and most popular authors.
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