Rating: 
Summary: This is a GREAT author who fully deserves his fame!
Review: I had the enormous pleasure of meeting the author when he came to Cambridge - and a more deserving, utterly nice, and hilariously funny person you could not find! He was every bit as funny in real life as his novels are wonderful: and it is great to see positive stories coming out of Africa for a change. My wife and I have not only all his Botswana books but the equally funny new series satirising academic life that he has just completed - all of them are compulsary reading in these troubled times in which we live. Buy the whole set and enjoy! Christopher Catherwood, author of CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND ISLAMIC RAGE (Zondervan, 2003)
Rating:
Summary: Beguiling and evocative narrative left me wanting more!
Review: At first glance, the writing in The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency seemed simple. But after a few pages, I realized that the simplicity of narrative was deceptive. I believe it was the author's intention to give us his story as a proficient speaker of English, native to Botswana (where the story takes place) might tell it. The net result is beguiling and evocative of the culture. I was left feeling that I'd spent some time in Botswana, that I'd learned something of the people and place.Precious Ramotswe, the author's protagonist, is a woman no longer young, but hardly old, one of substantial girth, highly intelligent, worldly wise and not afraid of much. Having inherited a sum of money from her father, Mma Ramotswe decided to do something unexpected of a woman in Botswana and open a detective agency. This first series entry is really a series of interlaced short stories that tells us a great deal of the people, the place and Mma Ramotswe's background. In the course of the novel, she solves a number of mysteries and we see her intelligence and integrity at work. It doesn't take long for a reader to love this woman who has known pain and suffering and has become compassionate and committed in the process. By the end of the novel, I was thoroughly appreciative of this author's prose and I regard him as a master storyteller. Each sentence made me want to read the next one, and before I knew it, I'd reached the end of the book. Today I'm buying the rest of the series and I sincerely hope the author will give us more. Alexander McCall Smith pays tribute to Agatha Christie in this novel and were Ms. Christie still alive, I'm sure she would highly approve of Mr. Smith! (By the way, "Mma" and "Rra" are titles of courtesy and respect in Botswana, equivalent respectively to "Ma'am" and "Sir" when used alone or "Ms." and "Mr." when used before a surname.)
Rating:
Summary: Enchanting
Review: Every so often, something comes along that is all new, that makes you fall in love with reading all over again. This is one of those books. With a literary grace filled with wit, wonderful characters and intelligence, Alexander McCall Smith introduces how Mma Precious Ramotswe, an independent contemporary woman of Botswana, came to set up her own business, the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, and the cases that came her way. The plot is episodic, though a central mystery is built in slyly. Smith experiments a bit with perspective but mostly sticks to Mma Ramotswe's point of view. She is in her mid-thirties, a person of generous proportions who catches the eye of more than one man. There is tragedy in her background, but for the most part she has succeeded in life and uses her intuition well. She is honest, compassionate and ethical even as she cunningly lays a trap (her rationale for lying in such a situation is hilarious, coming as it does as she is brushing off a border guard). Most important, in Mma Ramotswe, who was born about the time the country became an independent state, Smith captures the tension that is contemporary Botswana, an African success story that enjoys stability and modern conveniences but is worried about losing tradition in a changing world. Civilization largely clings to the southern and eastern edges of the country, and beyond that rim is a wide-open, ancient land that holds beauty but sometimes danger, too. As an admirer concludes, Mma Ramotswe is all the best things of the old and the new Africa.
Rating: 
Summary: A compelling read
Review: I read this book in one day. In scarcely populated land-locked Botswana, Mma Ramotswe inherits 180 head of cattle from her frugal father. From age 18 to age 30 Obed Ramotswe worked in an Oppenheimer mine in Johannesburg and saved almost everything he earned buying cattle. But in the mines his lungs filled with dust, eventually causing his death of emphysema at age 64. From the proceeds of the sale of her father's cattle, Precious Ramotswe buys a house and an office, hires as her Secretary Mma Makutsi, a widow who "passed the general typing and secretarial examinations with an average grade of ninety-senven per cent" and opens "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency." From her eyes as a detective, we have a fascinating view of life in Botswana: a crocodile devouring a man being baptized, a witchdoctor kidnapping an eleven year old boy, an Indian merchant prince spying on his teenage daughter, an imposter Daddy living off of his successful "daughter," twin doctors one of whom has a degree and the other not, a man who keeps filing claims against different employers for the loss of the same finger; and cars that always break down but are kept running by Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni The main resources of this country are cattle and diamonds and 70% of its land is the lion inhabited Kalahari Desert. The people maintain the formalism of an English colony. It is a simple country, yet a country filled with morality and all the human emotions, joy and dispair, that can be found anywhere. This is a book that should be read before the other books in the series as it sets the stage for the characters that will be developed later.
Rating:
Summary: Precious Ramotswe Discovers Her Vocation
Review: The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency is the first volume in this series. Precious Ramotswe is a Botswana woman, the daughter of Obed Ramotswe. Her mother was killed by a train when she was very young and she had been raised by various aunts and a cousin. Precious was married for a short time to Note Mokoti, a jazz trumpeter, but left him after the death of their premature baby. When Obed Ramotswe died, he left Precious a herd of 2000 cattle. Not wanting to raise cattle, she sold most of the herd, bought a home on Zebra Drive, and acquired another building just off the Lobatse Road where she opened the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Of course, the agency accepted men as well as women clients, but it was run by Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi. When Precious called the Botswana College of Secretarial and Office Skills to hire a secretary, they immediately recommended Mma Makutsi, an honor graduate, who had achieved an unprecedented score of 97% on the completion examination. Despite her fine qualifications, Mma Makutsi was having difficulties finding a job; the best jobs seem to go to beautiful girls who had only barely passed the examination. Mma Ramotswe liked her immediately. Mma Makutsi proved to be a very competent typists and efficiently handled all aspects of the agency business. Moreover, she made a very good cup of bush tea. In their first case, Precious is asked to find the husband of Mma Malatsi, who disappeared while attending a church service. Then they are asked to find a missing boy and the boyfriend of a young girl. In another case, they are asked to determine whether a certain man is the father of their client. They do well and the success of the agency is assured for a while longer. In this novel, Precious refers to Agatha Christie when she declares her intentions to start a detective agency and many reviewers have since compared her to Miss Marple. While it is true that Precious Ramotswe has the folk wisdom of her people, she is also only in her mid-30's. She has had several suitors whom she has refused, but she has only regretted one denial: Mr. J.L.B Maketoni, owner and operator of the Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors garage. This novel is a true gem, written by a talented and prolific author who was born in Zimbabwe and has lived and taught in Botswana. The author now teaches medical law at Edinburgh University, but apparently has had practical experience in forensic medicine within Botswana. The writing is so authentic that the reader can almost smell the dust in the hot afternoon sun and the characters come alive as you read the stories. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys interesting people, exotic locations, and realistic detective stories.
Rating:
Summary: Very, very entertaining.
Review: Ah, what a book. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency was so intriguing with all the different detective cases Mme Ramotswe had to deal with. Each one more mysterious than the one before.
Mme Ramotswe is a remarkable character whom is able to stay calm at all situations. She is cool, and extremely astute in solving her mysteries. Plus, she is not like other women main characters. Instead of being beautifully thin, she is fat. Instead of being blonde and white, she is African. And instead of being in her 20s and drive a fancy car, she is in her late 30s and drives a big white van. Even with these traits, she was able to get 4 proposals in the book. She is quite the inspirational character with all the things she was able to overcome, such as miscarriage, an abusive husband, etc...and shows women that they can do whatever they want even in a "male-dominated" society (even make a detective agency).
That is why I give this book 5 stars. It's fully entertaining with some jokes as well.
Read it. You will enjoy it.
Rating:
Summary: Nice Stories with great endings
Review: This book was a nice read and it reads very easy and quickly.
Rating: 
Summary: What's all the fuss about?
Review: I probably shouldn't even contribute since I only read about 25 pages of this, but I just couldn't "get into" this book because I found the author's writing style self-consciously quaint (maybe "twee" is the right word), boring, and overall irritating. It's a pet peeve of mine when an author refers to a character by his full name EVERY SINGLE TIME he mentions the character -- for example, "Mr. J.M.B. Matekoni did this. Then Mr. J.M.B. Matekoni did that. Then Mma. Ramotswe asked Mr. J.M.B. Matekoni to do this for her..." Tedious! Is there some literary value to that endless repetition that I'm not aware of?
Rating:
Summary: a rare treasure.
Review: This book is a tapestry overflowing with the richness and warmth of Africa. I have never been to that beautiful land in person, but through this book am transported there every time I open its pages. I start reading and am instantly awash with exotic African sunsets, rich wildlife, immersed at once in a culture of beauty, gentle humor and a quieter pace of life than I have ever known. Every time I close the book, with a smile on my face, it is a shock to find myself back in North America. Contrary to the popular saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words", I would have to say that this book is worth a thousand pictures.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant... & Visceral!
Review: In this book, Smith writes about a place very little known to his American readers, his story is located in Botswana. This country is a free, independent, Democratic state that borders South Africa. But given its placement in world geography, it is at a very different stage of development, than our world in the USA. Botswana has telephones, and electricity. But no high speed Internet. And not that many paved roads. Life is much simpler there than it is here, but by no means easier. And a traditional morality is still pervasive, although diminishing. But the beauty of Alexander McCall Smith's book is that it is so simple, yet so elegant. It seems very much like he went to the "J.M. Coetzee" school of authorship. He is able to convey intense human feelings and interactions without resorting to 'highbrow' vocabulary. He conveys the values and the visual images of Botswana with tremendous aplomb and creativity. The entire story is based on a tremendously creative and almost brazen assumption. This concept being, that a lady, could actually become a private detective in Botswana. Not only does she make this attempt, but in fact, she is the ONLY lady detective in Botswana. And without any of the high speed computer data base technology of America and Western Europe, she solves her cases, the very old fashioned way, as they did about 50 or 60 years ago in America, with good, hard work and research, and great intuition. But more than the plot lines, Smith seems dedicated to helping his readers understand, that even though some things may be different in different cultures and different locations, people are still people, and there are some universal values, that are shared, by most of the hard working and industrious people all over the world. This book is truly a very thought provoking one. It is also a wonderful example of cross-cultural interaction. For, even as it is cross cultural for Americans to look at Botswana. It is also cross cultural, for a Botswanian to look at the other cultures of Africa in comparison to their own. And they are very proud of their own. This book is high level conceptual philosophy in a format, that masquerades as simple mystery, but is much more. Truly, it is one that no one should miss.
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