The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency ~ by Alexander McCall Smith

Title, author, date of book, and genre?
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (1998), by Alexander McCall Smith, is fiction.

Summarize the book without giving away the ending.
Precious Ramotswe opens a detective agency, in spite of the apparent culture of disbelief that a woman could do such work. In fact, she flaunts it by naming her agency the No. 1 LADIES’ Detective Agency. The book shows her going about solving lots of small problems for people, unlike most mysteries I’ve read that give us the details of one great big case. Her ways of working are nothing short of magnificent ... and hilarious.

What did you think of the main character?
Mma Ramotswe is a hoot. I don’t know anyone who thinks quite the way she does, and that makes her interesting to me.

Which character could you relate to best, and why?
Although her thinking was beyond me for most of the book, it was Precious all the way. I would never have thought of her solutions to some of the problems because I don’t think in terms of crocodiles and cobras, but Precious is really ... well ... precious.

Were there any other especially interesting characters?
Just about all of them. I rather liked her secretary just out of secretarial school, and the mechanic from her hometown, and the doctor who is her neighbor and friend, and the Indian teenage girl who just may have deceived Mma Ramotswe herself. I think she did.

Did you think the characters and their problems were believable?
Sometimes it was hard, but that’s because I don’t live in Africa. I can’t imagine losing someone at a baptism, for instance. When I willingly suspend a bit of my stuffy ole ways of thinking, though, it begins to make sense. Africa is quite different from America, and Precious has a few opinions about why she hopes Africa never changes.

From whose point of view is the story told?
Precious Ramotswe, of course. Who else? Through her we see why a proper detective agency must have a secretary, even if it never has another client. We get her viewpoint of men, and except for her daddy, men don’t rate very highly in her opinion, generally speaking.

Was location important to the story?
Oh, yes! Google “Botswana” so you’ll see where the city of Gaborone is in relation to South Africa, the Kalahari Desert, and the towns of Mahalapye and Francistown. I made a copy of the map to put in the book along with my bookmark.

Was the time period important to the story?
I think so. Mma Ramotswe was pleased how far her country of Botswana had come in 30 years (now over 40 years since its 1966 independence). She happily lists the reasons her beloved Botswana is the most progressive country in Africa.

Was the story told chronologically? Was there foreshadowing?
Yes, it was told chronologically. There was foreshadowing, though I was sometimes quite surprised by the outcome of a case she solved. Having identical twin daughters myself, I was fascinated by the case that involved identical twins.

Did you think the story was funny, sad, touching, disturbing, moving?
Yes. Okay, I know that looks like a cop-out, but it was funny in parts, sad and touching in other parts, disturbing a time or two, and moving ... when I watched how Mma Ramotswe cared for her people.

What did you like most about the book?
I liked Africa! Botswana, specifically. I don’t think I would care for the wildlife, but Precious made me more aware of the good in that place.

What did you like least?
Same answer: Africa. I would not like to live so near the wildness of the Kalahari Desert, and yet that’s what made the book so fascinating ... that learning about an exotic place. It was exotic to me, anyway. I need to ask my South African friend if she has read the book and what she thinks of it.

Share a quote from the book.
"I love all the people whom God made, but I especially know how to love the people who live in this place. They are my people, my brothers and sisters. It is my duty to help them to solve the mysteries in their lives. That is what I am called to do" (p. 4).

Share a favorite scene from the book.
Oh, I really want to, but it would spoil that scene for you. So I won’t share this time. (It's chapter 9, if you read the book.)

What about the ending?
All along I was thinking it had to be this way ... or that other way. Well, “this way” turned out to be better, and I was pleased by the ending. Yes, very satisfactory indeed.

What do you think will be your lasting impression of this book?
I think I will remember the book with a smile ... and total admiration for Precious Ramotswe.

Which readers are most likely to enjoy this book, and why?
People who enjoy visiting new places in their reading.

Rated: 9/10, an excellent book.