How does it compare to audio works by the same author?
Very good
Advantages:
An irresistible instalment in one of the finest series around .
Disadvantages:
Not everybody's cup of bush tea .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
There can't be too many people left who are completely unfamiliar with Alexander McCall Smith's No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series... if not through the books, then perhaps through the recent one-off TV dramatisation. McCall Smith (Professor of Medical Law at the University of Edinburgh and , in his spare time, of whch it's difficult to imagine he has much, a bassoonist with the Really Terrible Orchestra) is a prolific writer... nine Ladies ' Detective Agency books to date, of which "Blue Shoes and Happiness" is the seventh, not to mention the Sunday Philosophy Club series (four to date), the 44 Scotland Street series and a series featuring Professor Moritz-Maria von Igelfeld. Clearly a busy man.
For those who've somehow contrived to remain in ignorance, the Ladies' Detective Agency books are set in Botswana, where McCall Smith lived for a while, and revolve around the adventures, if that's not too strong a word (there is little in the way of murder and mayhem here) of "traditionally built" lady detective, Mma Precious Ramotswe, and her eponymous agency. Aided by a supporting cast of characters including her assistant, Mma Makutsi, and her husband, Mr J.L.B.Matekoni (Proprietor of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors), Mma Ramotswe investigates suspicious goings-on of various types and generally brings matters to a satisfactory conclusion.
It's difficult to describe the charm and atmosphere of this series to those who haven't read it. McCall Smith's portrayals of the country and characters are shot through with warmth and humour. The "detective" plots are almost incidental; we read in order to catch up with the well-loved characters and step again into a world which is entirely different from our own yet which feels, by now, comfortingly familiar.
As far as it goes, the plot runs roughly thus: the intelligent and perspicacious Mma Ramotswe is now finally, and happily, married to the delightful Mr J.L.B.Matekoni, while Mma Makutsi is engaged to furniture-shop owner Mr Phuti Radiphuti - at least, until she fears she has scared him off by unwisely answering "yes" to his query about whether she is a feminist. Meanwhile, there is investigating to be done... a case of blackmail in the kitchens of a Government college, a rumour of witchcraft at the Mokolodi Game Reserve, and a general practitioner whose practices may be less than entirely ethical. Between such excitements as an encounter with a cobra and the purchase of a chair (and indeed a pair of blue shoes) all will eventually be resolved... oh, and Mma Ramotswe comes to an unexpected, not to say unprecedented, decision which may shock many! Meanwhile, there are ruminations on the nature of happiness and the places it can be found...
Paperback edition published by Abacus, cover price £7.99, available new from Amazon for £4.84. 256pp.
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Ramotswe series Now that she is finally and happily married to her long-term suitor Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, Mma Ramotswe of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency of Botswana ...
