REVIEW: The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency
Author: Alexander McCall Smith

This story is absolutely charming! Mma Precious Ramotswe spends several years caring for her elderly father in his home in Botswana. Her father suffers from lung disease after years working in the mines. When he passes away, Mma Ramotswe inherits his money and uses it to open a business....a detective agency. She is the only female detective in Botswana and isn't really trained in investigation, but she has wits, intelligence, and intuition. At first, cases are few and she worries her business will not take off. But then cases start trickling in.....cheating husbands, a disappearance, a stolen car, a boy who may have been killed by witch doctors, a rich man's daughter who sneaks out to be with boys.....  As the list of cases grows, so does Mma Ramotswe's confidence and reputation. She is not just the only female detective in Botswana....she is the BEST female detective in Botswana. The Number One. :)

I have to say that this book surprised me. I have had this first book on my TBR shelf for YEARS....and it just seemed to always get pushed aside for other things. I'm sorry I waited so long! Mma Ramotswe is such an intelligent, witty and capable main character. She greets her every day tasks with love, understanding and diligence. Within this first story her background and history are recounted along with the stories of how she became a detective and her first few cases. Sprinkled in among the cases and anecdotes about Mma Ramotswe's life, there is also the story of the history and people of Botswana. It's just a beautiful, humorous and incredibly entertaining story. I'm sorry I took so long to read it!

I listened to the audio book version of this story. Narrated by Lisette LeCat, the audio is just over 8 hours long. LeCat has a beautiful voice and she brings the characters in the story to life. Totally entertaining performance! I will definitely be listening to more books in this series. I love reading....but having this series read to me will be awesome!  I already have the second book, Tears of the Giraffe, checked out from my library's digital site!

There are 19 books in this series so far, with a 20th (To the Land of Long Lost Friends) coming out in September 2019.