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.
Rating:
Summary: Getting the Most from This Book
Review: This book is a very charming one. Its heroine is both adorable and admirable, and its author is a master of story telling, from comedy to tragedy. All that has been said by other reviewers, of course. I just want to add that the unabridged audio version of the book is a real winner. Its narrator is terrific with accents and characterizations and she really brings the book alive. Apparently she has been recognized for her narration, and deservedly so. This is easily the best-read book on tape I have ever experienced. My husband agrees. So we'd both recommend the audio version over the print version in this particular case.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant in its simplicity
Review: I know. It's a pretty lame title, but it's true. The writing is simple and compact and yet very descriptive without unnecessary dialogue and description. No predictable plot twists, not even a lot of twists. Just very good storytelling without all the frills. And the story leaves you appreciating the simpler way to live.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring!!!!!!!!
Review: This book was very slow moving and lacked the ability to hold my interest. I'd recommend the Poisonwood Bible instead.
Rating:
Summary: Oh to be back in Africa
Review: "She approached one of the woman traders and spoke to her in Setswana.
"Are you well today, Mma?" she said politely.
"I am well, and you are well, too, Mma?"
"I am well, and I have slept very well."
"Good."" Pretty much the same as "How are you?", but so much more lyrical and slower in pace. This is the Africa I miss and the Africa the reader gets a taste of in this book. I too cannot wait to read the whole series. What a joy it was to read. Enjoy!!!
Rating:
Summary: Very good light read! Very entertaining!
Review: Botswana lady sleuth Mma (pronounced "mee-muh" in my head, but represents your standard gender term for a female) Ramotswe solves local Botswana crimes: family problems, fraud, kidnappings and disappearances. What makes this book so readable (for me) is that the "crimes" are rather mundane compared to what we see on the 5 o'clock news. This is a welcome change when one has grown tired of all those mystery novels out there that start with a dead prostitute lying face down in a city gutter and the ubiquitous hard-boiled detective spouting hardened prose like, "In a city like this, you wake up everyday wishing you were dead". This book is also worth a read as the story is peppered with local images/cultural idiosyncrasies that one might not know about Africa and, more specifically, Botswana.
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