book data
16,727 ratings,
3.65
average rating, 2,751 reviews
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published
February 6th 2003
(first published 1998)
by Anchor
binding
Paperback, 235 pages
characters
setting
Botswana
isbn
1400034779
(isbn13: 9781400034772)
description
Working in a mystery tradition that will cause genre aficionados to think of such classic sleuths as Melville Davisson Post's Uncle Abner or Robert va...more
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avg 3.65
editions: all | this edition
editions: all | this edition
recommends it for:
everyone
a lot of people are under the impression that alexander mccall smith books are strictly for middle aged women. this is NOT the case at all. these books are for everyone. they are not even just for women. a lot of people are also under the impression that these books are mystery books. this is also a misconception. mysteries are a very small part of these stories. these books are about humanity and the small things that make it so good to be both human and alive. i dare anyone who is not happy to...more
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(18 people liked it)
6 comments
Read in December, 2008
I'm no fan of mystery, crime or detective books - the bore me, generally, though I loved Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher books in high school and Agatha Christie's Ten Little Niggers gave me chills (since renamed And Then There Were None, for obvious reasons - but I've got an old edition).
The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency is a real gem, however. I absolutely loved it. Wise, funny, intelligent, insightful and blushing with vigour and a heartfelt love of Africa, I'm not in the least su...more
The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency is a real gem, however. I absolutely loved it. Wise, funny, intelligent, insightful and blushing with vigour and a heartfelt love of Africa, I'm not in the least su...more
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(7 people liked it)
12 comments
Read in January, 2007
What's all the fuss about? This book didn't have a good story (or any story for that matter), a unique writing style, or a meaningful message. The only thing I can say about it is that it provided a look into a unique culture. Though I love a series, there's something questionable about one with so many books. Does one author really have that many brilliant ideas about a single topic? Most likely not, since he didn't even start with genius. I, for one,will not be reading on to find out.
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Read in January, 2004
recommends it for:
lovers of mysteries and stories about Africa
This collection of vignettes disguised as a novel was a great read. The main character is a gentle African woman who decides to be a detective to help other people. She is a delightful character, with light humor and a big heart. Agency isn't like any other detective novels...the characters are much more developed and the "mysteries" aren't the usual murders, whether cosy or hard-boiled. If you'd like a sweet trip to another culture, calmer and gnetler than ours, this is a book for you...more
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(3 people liked it)
1 comment
Read in June, 2008
recommended to Eric by:
Deb Dooleyrecommends it for: Anyone
I put off reading this series for a long time until I found out that it wasn't a book for "ladies," but one to be enjoyed by readers of both sexes--and enjoy it I did.
In its simple and conversational manner, this book taught me a little bit about many things: Botswana, African culture in general, working in the diamond mines of South Africa, and human nature. Through the first-person account of Precious Ramotswe we are treated to an assortment of quirky detective stories t...more
In its simple and conversational manner, this book taught me a little bit about many things: Botswana, African culture in general, working in the diamond mines of South Africa, and human nature. Through the first-person account of Precious Ramotswe we are treated to an assortment of quirky detective stories t...more
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1 comment
recommended to Ruth by:
Melinda
The only thing I didn't like was that it had to end.
I learned that you don't have to write elloquently to write a book. Marcos keeps telling me I should write children's books. This book was so simple and yet so enjoyable that it makes me wonder if I really could write a book too.
Because each mystery/case is so short and precise, it doesn't need all the suspense other books use. I think the suspense in this book is about finding out what the next problem wil be and how cl...more
I learned that you don't have to write elloquently to write a book. Marcos keeps telling me I should write children's books. This book was so simple and yet so enjoyable that it makes me wonder if I really could write a book too.
Because each mystery/case is so short and precise, it doesn't need all the suspense other books use. I think the suspense in this book is about finding out what the next problem wil be and how cl...more
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(2 people liked it)
1 comment
Has a copy to sell/swap
—
Read in March, 2009
recommended to Luann by:
Verona Jarvis
Excellent! I enjoyed this a lot. Mma Ramotswe is a fun, common-sense character and a great detective. She reminds me of Miss Marple or Mrs. Pollifax. I'll definitely read another in the series sometime.
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(2 people liked it)
7 comments
Read in September, 2007
Just could not get past the very obvious fact that this book is written by a white guy, trying to tell a story through the eyes of a Botswana(ese?) woman. It felt a bit patronising, as in, look how simply these people live, just hanging out in the hot sun watching their cattle, oh to live so simply like this, oh look this woman is setting up a detective agency, can you imagine that, a woman? A black woman? How quaint and adorable, etc. etc. It was a cute story, but that was the problem, it was a...more
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3 comments
Read in September, 2008
oh, i have heard this book is quite charming, but i chose not to read it because i have a prejudice against male authors penning stories of female protagonists (whites writing as black, etc). but, after inadvertently watching the movie version recently produced in the UK (also, another prejudice: never watch the movie version!) i was so Charmed and Astonished by the cleverness and beauty of the characters, land and stories. so, i am reading it now, dropping my reservations and makign plans to li...more
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2 comments
recommended to Lula by:
mom
recommends it for: the ladies
recommends it for: the ladies
I listened to this book on CD! The woman reading it is awesome! And the African Music in the background sets the scene perfectly! This is the perfect, lighthearted book to listen to in the car. I drove around daydreaming that I was driving through the Kalihari! Loved it!
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3 comments
Read in March, 2004
While the book had its charms, it was such a slow read. I kept thinking it would pick up and it didn't.
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1 comment
Read in June, 2007
Christmas present from my sister Gem. She found it reminded her of her childhood in South Africa.
The book has charm, especially the main character, Precious Ramotswe. (When her much beloved father is on his deathbed, he summons her and says that he is leaving her money for her to start a business that will make her financially secure, such as a butchery or bottle store. She takes his hand and tells him she will open a detective agency. He looks startled, says "But... but..."...more
The book has charm, especially the main character, Precious Ramotswe. (When her much beloved father is on his deathbed, he summons her and says that he is leaving her money for her to start a business that will make her financially secure, such as a butchery or bottle store. She takes his hand and tells him she will open a detective agency. He looks startled, says "But... but..."...more
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Read in September, 2008
recommends it for:
anyone with 3-4 hrs to spare--doesn't care much for tv
I read about Africa and I quickly want to be transported there. I want a more simple life...
The heart of this novel is its feminist protagonist, Mma Ramotswe who lives in a precious town in Gaborone, still untouched by technology or South African cosmopolitanism. This book is extremely feminist, in a very good, positive and enlightening way and it is anti-colonialist.
But to counter this notion there is a heartwarming case that Mma Ramotswe, the number one (and sole) fema...more
The heart of this novel is its feminist protagonist, Mma Ramotswe who lives in a precious town in Gaborone, still untouched by technology or South African cosmopolitanism. This book is extremely feminist, in a very good, positive and enlightening way and it is anti-colonialist.
But to counter this notion there is a heartwarming case that Mma Ramotswe, the number one (and sole) fema...more
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1 comment
Read in March, 2009
I found this book pleasant and somewhat interesting. I did not find it compelling.
It's my impression that mystery novels are part puzzle and part vehicle for depicting a cross-section of life in some locale. The puzzle part in No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency was never very elaborate. Most mysteries arose and resolved in the span of one chapter. In fact it seemed like the point was to showcase Precious' subtle knack for zeroing in and keeping things from being more complex than the...more
It's my impression that mystery novels are part puzzle and part vehicle for depicting a cross-section of life in some locale. The puzzle part in No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency was never very elaborate. Most mysteries arose and resolved in the span of one chapter. In fact it seemed like the point was to showcase Precious' subtle knack for zeroing in and keeping things from being more complex than the...more
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1 comment
Read in January, 2009
Besides being a good read, it can double as an info guide on Africa. The author mentions animals and items you would see in Africa. I looked them up on google under images and saw what Africans see all the time. Some of the events in the book relate common occurances in the country. You get an idea of everyday life there and everyday thought processes of the peoples.
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Read in January, 2009
I really liked this one, an extremely quick read and quite enjoyable. About a lady in Africa who sets up the first (and only) detective agency with a female detective.
It has nice short chapters with different cases, so it can be picked up and put down easily and can be read while reading something else without being distracted.
It has nice short chapters with different cases, so it can be picked up and put down easily and can be read while reading something else without being distracted.
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2 comments
Read in January, 2009
recommended to Jon by:
Shannon
Closer to 3.5 stars.
This is my first foray into literature set in Africa, and Botswana in particular. Others have mentioned, as does the cover's blurbs, that this is story has hilarious elements in it. While some of Mma Ramotswe antics and detective techniques brought a smile to my face, most of what she relates is heartbreaking. I think my heart would burst with the pain and suffering Africans endure on a daily basis.
Mma Ramotswe is a strong, intelligent woman, fu...more
This is my first foray into literature set in Africa, and Botswana in particular. Others have mentioned, as does the cover's blurbs, that this is story has hilarious elements in it. While some of Mma Ramotswe antics and detective techniques brought a smile to my face, most of what she relates is heartbreaking. I think my heart would burst with the pain and suffering Africans endure on a daily basis.
Mma Ramotswe is a strong, intelligent woman, fu...more
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1 comment
Read in February, 2009
Don't know how I've gone so long without reading these books. Utterly charming and sweet and gentle. Also, quite funny in a way that will appeal to older readers. Loved it and you will quickly see the rest of the series hit my 'read' shelf.
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Read in November, 2007
This book is written in a style where it's not clear whether the narrator is just being very understated, or whether the characters are all just kinda simple-minded. I love that style in Daniel Pinkwater when he's writing about New Jersey, but I feel reservations about it when it's a white guy (even one raised in southern Africa) writing about Africa.
Granted, when the narrator makes sweeping generalizations about Africa as a whole (which happens a number of times), they are generally...more
Granted, when the narrator makes sweeping generalizations about Africa as a whole (which happens a number of times), they are generally...more
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Read in October, 2008
Very peaceful reading experience. McCall Smith is true to the African novel. This novel will not be hurried, and as is the tradition, the reader must first understand the past history. I just relaxed, read, and waited for the story to unfold.
The entire feeling of this book brought to mind my friends from college who were natives of Africa. I felt the language of this book echoed the way they spoke. It seems to me that Africa is a place where people have time to think and meditat...more
The entire feeling of this book brought to mind my friends from college who were natives of Africa. I felt the language of this book echoed the way they spoke. It seems to me that Africa is a place where people have time to think and meditat...more
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quotes from this book
"We were the Bechuanaland Protectorate then, and the British ran our country, to protect us from the Boers (or that is what they said). There was a Commissioner down in Mafikeng, over the border into South Africa, and he would come up the road and speak to the chiefs. He would say: "You do this thing; you do that thing." And the chiefs all obeyed him because they knew that if they did not he would have them deposed. But some of them were clever, and while the British said "You do this," they would say "Yes, yes, sir, I will do that" and all the time, behind their backs, they did the other thing or they just pretended to do something. So for many years, nothing at all happened. It was a good system of government, because most people want nothing to happen. That is the problem with governments these days. They want to do things all the time; they are always very busy thinking of what things they can do next. That is not what people want. People want to be left alone to look after their cattle."
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