“….at the foot of the Ngong hills.” is the opening of the classic memoir by Isak Dinesen (Karen Blixen), Out of Africa. This is echoed in the first sentence of Alexander McCall Smith’s extremely popular novel The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency. “Mma Ramotswe had a detective agency in Africa, at the foot of the Kgale Hill.” By the way, Mma is not a typing mistake on my part, but the polite way to address a woman in Setswana, the national language of Botswana. A man would be addressed Rra. Precious Ramotswe uses the money bequeathed to her by her beloved father to set up in business as a private detective. She hereself is unsure of how successful she will be, although she has no doubts about her ability: she knows she needs to find wealthy clients. Her material assets may only be her tiny white van, two desks, two chairs, a telephone, an old typewriter, a teapot and three cups (for herself, her secretary and the client), but she has those invisible assets so necessary to a detective: perseverance, intuition, curiosity and a strong sense of right and wrong. She also inspires trust in those whom she meets, perhaps because they sense her warmth and idealism and love of her fellow men:”They are my people, my brothers and sisters. It is my duty to help them solve the mysteries of their lives. It is what I am called to do.”
These mysteries are not the usual stuff of detective novels: even the one case that appears as if it may involve a murder turns out to be less violent than feared. Otherwise she deals with a freeloading fraudster pretending to be a father: Mma Ramotswe’s scheme to expose him is one of the best examples in the book of her ingenuity. She follows a young Indian girl to see if she has a boyfriend: this case shows her humanity and sympathy. And she foils a man’s attempt to defraud the insurance company with a false injury claim, this time showing perseverance and thoroughness in her work. There is one case of a wildly inconsistent doctor which I guessed the solution to straight away, but apart from that the cases are satisfyingly puzzling without being too unlikely. And Precious herslef is utterly charming and likeable. If you’re looking for a pleasant easy read for the beach or the sunny spot in the garden, you could do a lot worse. And there are another nine in the series! It seemed to me to be perfect film material, and indeed I’m not the only one to think so: the BBC have’done‘ her too.
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