... There are some beautiful descriptions of Africa and its vast, often empty expanses. There is also a gentle, but sharply observed flow of dry humour. McCall's descriptions of his host of supporting characters are, unerringly, right on the button. Mr Patel, for example, the wealthy Indian with ... Read review
Wayward daughters. Missing Husbands. Philandering partners. Curious conmen. If you've got ... more
a problem and no one else can help you then pay a visit to Precious Ramotswe Botswana's only - and finest - female private detective. Her methods may not be co...
Postage & Packaging: £0.00 Availability: 3-5 working days
Based on the international bestselling book series The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency by ... more
Alexander McCall Smith.If you've got a problem and no one else can help you, then pay a visit to Precious Romotswe (Jill Scott) Botswana's only - and finest female private detective. Her methods may be unconventional but she's got warmth, wit and canny intuition on her side, not to mention the support of her friends Mr J.L.B. Matekoni (Lucian Msamati), proprietor of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors and Mma Makutsi (Anika Noni Rose), the fastest-typing secretary in Gaborone.Precious is going to need as much help as she can get to solve the mysterious of a missing finger, a dubious Daddy, a cheating husband and as she heads into dark and dangerous territory on the trail of a missing child...
Following on from the late-great Anthony Mingella's adaptation of Alexander McCall Smith's ... more
novel, the spirited Mma Ramotswe (US soul singer Jill Scott) returns in this full television series. Set in Southern Africa's beautiful Botswana, the action centres on the country's first female-owned detective agency. Charles Sturridge (SHACKLETON) and Tim Fywell (SILENT WITNESS) take over the direction of this lavish, charming production.
An exceptional and ambitious single film directed by Anthony Minghella and scripted by ... more
Richard Curtis (Love Actually) based on the best-selling books series by Alexander McCall Smith. Starring Grammy Award Winning Jill Scott as Precious Remotswe this is the first BBC drama to be filmed entirely on location in Botswana and the last Minghella work before he passed away.
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Advantages: Uplifting, honest, heartwarming. Disadvantages: Some critics found it patronising.
...Ramotswe would like to be the Miss Marple of the African continent. When her father dies, she does as he has asked – as any good daughter would – and sets up a business. Mma Ramotswe's business is not exactly the one her father had imagined, though. Precious sets up the very first ladies' private detective agency in Botswana. Its assets are modest: an office; an old white van; two desks; two chairs; a telephone and an underworked secretary. Unambitious ... ...she sets out to solve the cases of the missing boy, the missing husband, the stolen car, the wayward daughter and – her very first case - the father impostor.
Do not expect a twisting, turning mystery story. Expect a sweet, heart-warming story about a wise, kind, sensible woman. McCall Smith's writing is fluid, accessible and highly evocative. There are some beautiful descriptions of Africa and its vast, often empty expanses. There ... more
Precious Ramotswe would like to be the Miss Marple of the African continent. When her father dies, she does as he has asked – as any good daughter would – and sets up a business. Mma Ramotswe's business is not exactly the one her father had imagined, though. Precious sets up the very first ladies' private detective agency in Botswana. Its assets are modest: an office; an old white van; two desks; two chairs; a telephone and an underworked secretary. Unambitious this may seem but the real asset to Mma Ramotswe's detective agency is Mma Ramotswe herself. An ample woman – "Hey fat lady, what are you doing sitting beneath that tree?" – Precious Ramotswe has much experience in life, a keen intelligence and an irrepressible desire to help people and to do good. With her minimal practical resources and her infinite stores of wisdom and keen perception, she sets out to solve the cases of the missing boy, the missing husband, the stolen car, the wayward daughter and – her very first case - the father impostor.
Do not expect a twisting, turning mystery story. Expect a sweet, heart-warming story about a wise, kind, sensible woman. McCall Smith's writing is fluid, accessible and highly evocative. There are some beautiful descriptions of Africa and its vast, often empty expanses. There is also a gentle, but sharply observed flow of dry humour. McCall's descriptions of his host of supporting characters are, unerringly, right on the button. Mr Patel, for example, the wealthy Indian with the wayward daughter, has an over the top house decorated in "Delhi Rococco" style I loved that! Structurally the book is… well… eccentric. All the various plot threads resolve themselves by the end, but there is a fair amount of meandering along the way. I imagine this was deliberate – Precious Ramotswe is not a woman in a hurry, just as Africa, in McCall's vision, should not be a continent in a hurry – and I did not mind it at all. The diversionary chapter in which Obed Ramotswe tells the story of his life working in South African mines I found sad but beautiful. Revenge and retribution are not themes of The No1 Ladies' Detective Agency – no one dies a horrible death, people are not persecuted for their sins – but reconciliation, understanding, honour and justice are real, running issues. I found this deeply refreshing. Even more refreshing was the way in which McCall describes love in terms of all our senses and with reference to everything in our daily lives. This, to me, is just as we should all describe it: rooted in all that we do and all that we are. Like this:
"He looked at her in the darkness, at this woman who was everything to him – mother, Africa, wisdom, understanding, good things to eat, pumpkins, chicken, the smell of sweet cattle breath, the white sky across the endless, endless bush, and the giraffe that cried, giving its tears for women to daub on their baskets; O Botswana, my country, my place."
Lovely.
McCall Smith has been criticised for presenting a patronising, condescending picture of Africa and its people. Critics say that his characters are mere caricatures representing an almost offensive - and certainly anachronistic - view of Africans as simple, childlike natives. Oh, hear me sigh. Why, just because something is not arch, or sarcastic or satirically self-aware, must it be not only unfashionable, but also patronising? What is wrong with simplicity? What is wrong with writing about good people? Good people are not necessarily foolish or ripe for patronising. What is wrong with niceness? The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency is a nice book but it is not a naïve one. It sees and acknowledges evil and it is not afraid to face it. Precious Ramotswe is a good woman but she is also a wise woman with an awareness of human nature borne from experience. She is the wise grandmother or aunt to whom you often turned as a child when you were in need of advice. Frankly, I think the literary world could do with a few more like her. We have edgy in plenty in books, do we not? We have plenty of leading characters who carry their "issues" like a badge of pride. In any case, underneath the feel-good factor in No1 Ladies' Detective Agency runs a rueful, honest commentary on some of the problems facing Africa: gender issues; development; poverty; "progress". I don't think McCall Smith presents a patronising view of these issues at all; I think he gets right to the heart of them. And, in his gentle, distilled words, I think he has more of the answers to these problems than do the tub-thumpers and satirists. We need more people like Mma Ramotswe and if we had them, the world would be a better place.
I truly enjoyed reading The No1 Ladies' Detective Agency, but, if I am honest, I shall not be rushing over to Amazon to buy the following books in the series. This is not so much a matter of my not thinking they would be worth my while, because I am quite sure that they would be. It is more a matter of so many writers, so many books and so little time. I am not really a "series person" and I think I would rather move on to pastures new. Whether you are a "series person" or not, though, I am sure you would enjoy this first of McCall's LDA books. It reads wonderfully as a standalone novel and achieves enough closure for you to feel satisfied. Yet also, it sets up an endearing, interesting character for anyone who likes to see a favourite person appear again and again. It is a captivating little book, wonderfully uplifting to read. As for my title: well, it says it all really, I think. I found it among the testimonials on the inside cover of the book. Amidst the various lit crit sound bites from the usual [pompous] reviewing suspects there are a few words from Flea of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. With a similarly simple, direct approach to that of Precious Ramotswe, I think he hit the nail on the head of this book's appeal. And so, I will echo him…
… if you like to be happy, I highly recommend The No1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
jillmurphy 11.03.2004
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Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
...Alexander McCall Smith to work the following day, along with the second book in the series “Tears of the Giraffe”, knowing I’d probably get through them both on the journey. I’m not a big fan of detective stories as such. I’ve read a few Agatha Christies, and I like Ian Rankin, but that’s about as far as it goes. I shouldn’t have worried. Despite the title, this is less detective story and more beautifully crafted novel. What is instantly striking ... ...uses it to set up the The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency. Like so much in the novel, the name of the agency is exactly what it says it is: no more and no less: Precious is Botswana's only female detective. She has no experience, but she does have intuition, common sense, intelligence, and a personality that commands the respect and trust of those around her. Her initial needs seem sensible enough: an expert secretary, (in order for the agency to be ...
molelover 26.02.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
Advantages: charming Disadvantages: could be longer
...No. 1 Ladies´ Detective Agency´. The colours and the design have an ethno touch, the bush hut in the upper part and the crocodile in the lower part suggest Africa. Why is there an inlay in the beast´s belly containing a wrist watch? Mystery!
Then the title; not short, not snappy, indicating maybe a slow-go, old-fashioned thriller. The blurbs on the back mention Botswana, a country which unto now hasn´t been on the world wide map of thrillers. Curiosity!
... ...stick-like creatures one saw in the advertisements.´ On the first page we learn that she had a detective agency with the assets: a tiny white van, two desks, two chairs, a telephone, an old typewriter, a teapot and three mugs - one for herself, one for the secretary, one for the client.
In her opinion that´s enough, because what detective agencies rely on is ´human intuition and intelligence, both of which Mma Ramotswe had in abundance.´ I don´t ...
MALU 11.03.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
Advantages: a charming simple read, unusual setting and plot Disadvantages: pared down writing, sometimes unbelievable characters
...there are currently five in the series - have dominated both the bestsellers list and the bookshop shelves. Whilst in Waterstones at the weekend, I wryly noted that his books are heavily displayed in several sections of the shop. So i thought i would add to the current and excellent reviews of the first book in the series - the no. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.
I have mixed feelings about this book and the series in general. Sometimes I agree with ... ...know a little bit about the author and where he or she is coming from. With Alexander McCall Smith it is clear that both his childhood and career have greatly influenced this series of books. About the Author
Alexander McCall Smith was born in Zimbabwe in 1948, educated there and in Scotland. He became a law professor and returned to Africa to help set up a law school at the University of Botswana. He currently operates a double life as a prolific ...
littlem 06.04.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
Advantages: Good read, engaging characters, authentic African culture Disadvantages: African names can put off people
...heard quite a bit about The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, but had never really been interested in reading it. Then I saw a TV interview with the author Alexander McCall Smith. One thing he said really intrigued me. To paraphrase, he said people had enough worries in their lives, so he wrote books that were generally upbeat and where bad things didn't really happen. This surprised me. As a writer, I have been told many times that you need conflict ... ...to read the book and see what I thought to it.
It isn't really a novel I would have chosen otherwise. It is set in Africa - specifically in Botswana - and I'm not very interested in that part of the world, favouring books set in Europe. The cover is bright and colourful and of an African design. I got the book free through www.readitswapit.co.uk but it is readily available from all the usual places. The cover price is £6.99 for the paperback version ...
KarenUK 04.12.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
Advantages: Different setting; lovely dialogue Disadvantages: Drags at the start; my daughter could solve the cases!
WHAT'S THIS THEN?
------------------------------
It's the first in a series of books by Alexander McCall Smith about Precious Ramotswe, the only female private detective in Botswana. She is, by Smith's admission, overweight, overbearing and underloved but in Africa and especially Botswana this is a look considered sexy and desirable by men.
PLOT
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Precious Ramotswe's father left her an inheritance and, being a liberal man, said that ... ...be proud of her.
The first quarter of the book lays the foundations of Precious' upbringing. A whole chapter is dedicated to her father's working history in the gold mines of South Africa; another focuses on Precious' teenage years and a third concentrates on her doomed, violent marriage to a jazz trumpeter to whom she later became pregnant by. The baby died a few hours after birth.
It is this torrid past that serves Ramotswe well in her detective ...
waynehorrigan 28.09.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency - Alexander McCall Smith
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Advantages: funny, heartwarming, fantastic characters Disadvantages: a little "scrappy" in places
I'm already a fan of the No.1Ladies' DetectiveAgency series, so it's no surprise that I like the 8th addition to the family - The Good Husband of Zebra Drive. As usual, there are superb characters with a decent narrative holding them together and a lot of humour; pretty much what I've come to expect from AlexanderMcCallSmith. In fact, the only criticism I have is that the narrative isn't quite as good as some of the other books in the series and it's a bit "scrappy" in places, not flowing quite as well as it should. This isn't my favourite novel in the series, but it's certainly an entertaining and worthwhile read.
AlexanderMcCallSmith also writes the 44 Scotland Street series (incidentally, my favourite of his works) and a series featuring philosopher Isabel Dalhousie, among others. He is a Scottish author and those two series ...
Advantages: A delectable easy read. The story continues in 'Tears of the Giraffe'. Disadvantages: It is so captivating that it comes to an end far too soon.
This book is as good as a really great trip out with your best girl friends! It is warm, light hearted, sincere and funny! The character of Precious Ramotswe is feisty, tenacious and, above all, one of the guys. Those who get on the wrong side of her certainly know about it!
What I love about this book is how McCallSmith cleverly retains your attention throughout. It is one of those books that you feel pained to put down. The sort that leads you to snap at loved ones when they interrupt you...
It may be called the No.1Ladies' DetectiveAgency and follow Precious in her day-to-day ramblings as a self-taught detective but what I particularly love about the book is how it explores her relationships. Her relationship with her father, Botswana, Note Mokoti, Mma Makutsi and best of all, JLB Matekoni.
By the end you are ...
Advantages: Engaging characters and a good story Disadvantages: If you didn't like the earlier books, you probably won't enjoy this one!
I'm a fan of AlexanderMcCallSmith's books, especially this series, and this latest work didn't disappoint. You could probably dive right in with this book, but in my opinion it's better to read the series as a whole since this book continues the character development of the lead people already introduced in the earlier stories.
We find Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi still running their detectiveagency, and this time they face some anonymous threatening letters. At the same time, there are ramifications after Mma Makutsi persuades her fiance to buy a new bed, whilst Mma Ramotswe's husband, Mr JLB Maketoni is trying to find a miracle cure for their adopted daughter's paralysis.
If you've read the other stories you'll already know that these books are less crime fiction and more gentle, amusing character based tales. I thoroughly ...
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