Who writes novels about Botswanan detective Precious Ramotswe?
"permanent and sometimes temporary settlement in Tlokweng because of its proximity to the capital city where most jobs are. Tlokweng is associated with a main character in ""The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency"" series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith. The protagonist, Mma Precious Ramotswe, marries Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, born and raised in Tlokweng. J.L.B. Matekoni is the proprietor of a garage in Gaborone named ""Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors"". Tlokweng Tlokweng is a village located directly adjacent to the capital of Botswana, Gaborone, in the South-East District. It can be considered part of the conurbation of Gaborone. Tlokweng stands on"
"English exceeded five million, and the series has been translated to other languages. Critical reception has matched the sales of the novels, generally positive, and considering the strength of the novels to be in the characters and Mma Ramotswe's wisdom rather than in the specific mysteries solved in each novel. The novels have been adapted for radio by the author and for television. Mma Precious Ramotswe is the main character in a series including 18 novels from 1998 to 2017. The country of Botswana is in a sense a character as well, as it is a crucial aspect of how"
"on the problems that vex her clients."" The novel explores Botswana with a deft touch as well as telling the detective stories, ""in a way that is both penetrating and light"". ""Kirkus Reviews"" is upbeat about the first novel, mentioning it with the next two in its review, and feels that the main character is ready for prime time. ""Precious Ramotswe . . . she's ready for prime time. The first American publication of this 1999 debut has been preceded by two special Booker citations and two sequels, ""Tears of the Giraffe"" (2000) and ""Morality for Beautiful Girls"" (2001), both"
"handbook on private detection, Clovis Andersen, visiting from America. The Limpopo River marks one border of Botswana and runs near Gaborone; Grace Makutsi suggests that as a name for an academy of private detection when Andersen is their guest for dinner. Reception was generally positive, focussing on the interplay between Mma Ramotswe and the American with his concise summaries of any situation, as well as the moral clarity of the world described by McCall Smith. It was on the ""New York Times"" fiction best seller list in 2012. Precious Ramotswe is pressed by troubles of two people close to her."
"Library award, both for the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. The novels have been adapted for radio by the author and for television. The BBC and American television network HBO filmed a series based on the books that stars Jill Scott as Mma Ramotswe and was shot on location in Botswana. The 109-minute pilot was written by Richard Curtis and Anthony Minghella, who also directed. The six 60-minute episodes were written and directed by others, as Mr Minghella died before the series was filmed. McCall Smith himself dramatised the series for BBC Radio 4. Thirty-three episodes have been broadcast,"
"but this novel adds the sly humour of the author. Simon considers the success of the series in bringing readers back for another novel rests on ""the warm humanity infused throughout"". 2003: Winner of the first ever Saga Award for Wit. There was an interesting pathway for knowledge and appreciation of the series by McCall Smith, a Scot, featuring Precious Ramotswe, the female detective in Botswana, to reach England. Marcel Berlins notes in his review of this novel that it is the fifth in a series, but the first to be readily available in England, via the success of the"
"for Beautiful Girls"" as ""thoroughly engaging and entertaining"". The detective, Mma Ramotswe is ""a remarkably original character"". McCall Smith's writing style is ""seemingly simple and direct, but this is a deception. Precious' progress is charted in passages that have the power to amuse or shock or touch the heart, sometimes all at once."" Sandy Bauers reviews the audio versions of the first four novels (""The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency"", ""Tears of the Giraffe"", ""Morality for Beautiful Girls"" and ""The Kalahari Typing School for Men""), which were released in 2003 in the US. The stories are ""gentle mysteries, and Precious"
"creatures to which they are home.” McCall Smith is a prolific author of fiction, with several series to his credit. He writes at a prodigious rate: ""Even when travelling, he never loses a day, turning out between 2,000 and 3,000 words [a day] – but more like 5,000 words when at home in Edinburgh. His usual rate is 1,000 words an hour."" He has gained the most fame for his ""No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency"" series, featuring Mma Precious Ramotswe and Gaborone, Botswana. The first novel was published in 1998. By 2009, the No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series had"
"the stories flow and the problems which face her clients. Mma Ramotswe starts up her detective agency when she is 34 years old, using the inheritance from her father to move to the capital city Gaborone to buy a house for herself and find an office for her new business. She feels a detective needs to know about people more than anything, to solve problems for them. Her story is told in the first novel from birth to opening the detective agency. Mma Ramotswe is a Motswana woman who is the protagonist in the series and the main detective. ""Mma"""
"wouldn't leave my chair until the case got over."" The Dallas Public Library review says of Precious Ramotswe: ""Always optimistic and appreciative of her life in her beloved country, Mma has more than common insight into human foibles and is therefore able to tackle her cases not so much from evidence (of which there is some) but from the psychology of the people involved."" ""Publishers Weekly"" considers this a ""little gem of a book"" the pace desultory, which works well, as ""Mma Ramotswe's love of Africa, her wisdom and humor, shine through these pages as she shines her own light"
"solves them all cleverly and easily, mostly through a finely honed sense of human frailty and simple wisdom."" The key aspect of these mysteries is not in the crimes themselves, rather ""in the way she [Mma Ramotswe] does it, and the way the characters interact."" The reader for the audio versions is Lisette Lecat, who is familiar with Botswana's speech patterns in English. The reviewer feels that ""books that require accents from other countries"" are where the genre of audio books shines. This novel is the third in a series based on a set of characters residing in Botswana. The"
"of Cheerful Ladies"" was the first of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency novels to be printed in hardback, with a very large initial print run of 101,000 copies to meet the anticipated demand, as sales in English of the series to date, in 2004, exceeded five million. There was an interesting pathway for knowledge and appreciation of the series by McCall Smith, a Scot, featuring Precious Ramotswe, the female detective in Botswana, to reach England. In reviewing the fifth novel in the series, Marcel Berlins describes the pathway of the growing audience, requiring one to understand that although Scotland"
"referenced in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books by Alexander McCall Smith. Mma Ramotswe, the series' protagonist, greatly admires him, compares him with Nelson Mandela and very much regrets the fact of his not being so well known internationally. (The books themselves did a bit to correct that situation.) Seretse Khama Sir Seretse Goitsebeng Maphiri Khama, GCB, KBE (1 July 1921 – 13 July 1980) was the first President of Botswana, in office from 1966 to 1980. Born into one of the most powerful African royal families of what was then the British Protectorate of Bechuanaland, he was educated"
"for readers of this novel, as the accent on English from Botswana is unique. Mma Ramotswe's business, the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, has clients but needs to cut costs and increase revenue from fees. To reduce costs, she and her fiancé Mr JLB Matekoni decide to move the agency to the garage, which has plenty of office space. The original office will in turn be let, to add income. Mma Makutsi, secretary, is given the title of assistant detective, with a rise in pay. Mr JLB Matekoni is behind on his paperwork, which Mma Makutsi can organize. He has"
"production. The project is filmed in Botswana and the majority of the crew are locals. Grammy Award-winning American singer/actress Jill Scott stars as the titular detective Mma Ramotswe. Tony Award-winning American actress Anika Noni Rose plays assistant detective Mma Grace Makutsi. British-Tanzanian London theatre actor Lucian Msamati plays car mechanic Mr. JLB Matekoni. South African actor and comedian Desmond Dube plays BK, owner of the Last Chance Salon and friend to Mma Ramotswe. British actors Colin Salmon, Idris Elba, and David Oyelowo also feature in the pilot. Elba plays Charlie Gotso, an adversary to Mma Ramotswe. Salmon plays Mma Ramotswe's"
"(2000) and ""Morality for Beautiful Girls"" (2001), both forthcoming in the series."" In reviewing the fifth novel in the series, Marcel Berlins describes the pathway of the growing audience, requiring one to understand that although Scotland and England are part of the same nation, the residents are not reading the same books at the same time. There was an interesting pathway for knowledge and appreciation of the series by McCall Smith, a Scot, featuring Precious Ramotswe, the female detective in Botswana, to reach England. Marcel Berlins notes in his review of ""The Full Cupboard of Life"" that it is the"
"the second and third installments of his dignified, humorous Botswanan series. In ""Tears of the Giraffe"", PI Precious Ramotswe tracks a missing American man whose widowed mother appeals to Ramotswe; meanwhile, the imperturbable detective is endangered at home by her fiancé's resentful maid."" In a review of a later book in the series, Janet Malcolm mentions an aspect of the author's writing that shows best in this second novel of the series: ""McCall Smith follows the satiric literary tradition in which a ""primitive"" culture is held up to show the laughable backwardness of Western society. . . . To illustrate"
"reviewers. One felt this novel to be a bit repetious. Others found the ""outpouring of mercy"" to shed a new light on the characters, ""tidbits of quiet wisdom sprinkled throughout"" the novel are a major part of the novel's appeal, and that this novel, like the earlier ones, ""resonate[s] with poignancy, wisdom, and wit"". The novel entered the US best-seller list, from ""Publishers Weekly"". Mma Ramotswe meets her second cousin, who comes to the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency for help. Tati Monyena works for the hospital in Mochudi, where a series of three deaths in the same bed in"
"ways a currency in the local economy. Part of the novel's plot is based on the murder of Segametsi Mogomotsi in 1994, a ritual killing in Mochudi. The novel gives a happier ending to the story, as the kidnapped child is not murdered, and Mma Ramotswe rescues him. This novel gained more reviews when the second and third novels were published in the US in 2002. A reviewer in 2014 in ""The Guardian"" says ""I really enjoyed this book, I found it thoroughly entertaining. Sometimes, while reading, I'd get so involved with the case Mma Ramotswe was solving that I"
"to sit in one session of a class at the university, and Mma Ramotswe's musings on the status of her business, not losing money but not making a profit, as showing her wisdom. The author ""takes his time with the plot, sprinkling in plenty of musings about what makes a good detective and what really constitutes “profit.”"" In a thoughtful review, Clea Simon suggests that this novel shows the reason for the ""longevity"" of ""The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency"" series: ""Forgiveness and generosity, she [Mma Ramotswe] ultimately concludes, are the answer to most of life’s ills."" Though many think"
"assigns the series a rating of 80%, its critical consensus stating: ""The Botswana terrain makes for a beautiful backdrop in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, a faithful adaptation of the book that is leisurely paced, but well-structured, boasting a stellar performance by Jill Scott."" ""The List"" said that Jill Scott's performance ""effortlessly captures the blend of wisdom, compassion and understated humour that has made Precious Ramotswe such a popular creation."" Some mainstream press reviewers were less impressed. ""The Guardian""<nowiki>'</nowiki>s reviewer summed it up as """"Heartbeat"", basically, relocated to Botswana, a beautiful African country where smiley happy people, cardboard cut-out"
"are Buchi Emecheta and Helen Ovbiagele. NB. † No longer exists * Out of print Pacesetter Novels Pacesetter Novels are a collection of 130 works of popular fiction written by notable African authors, published by Macmillan. The series was started in 1977, with the first book being ""Director!"" by Agbo Areo. The Pacesetters series was characterised by adventures of falling in love, ethno-religious conflicts, tragic tales of woe, cautionary tales, and ""rags to riches"" (and sometimes back to rags!) tales. The book covers usually featured very garish pictures that served to illustrate the main theme of that particular novel. The"
"out to be a kind and gentle man and a romance begins. She removes some of Mma Ramotswe's burden of worry by solving an important fraud investigation on her own, and manoeuvring Charlie back to work. Mr Radiphuti's father knows Precious Ramotswe from the time when her father was still alive. He enlists the help of Mma Ramotswe to put a proposal of marriage from his shy son to Grace Makutsi, and the two become engaged. The critical reception of this novel was mixed. ""The Scotsman"" stated that ""McCall Smith’s beautiful evocation of life in Botswana offers sagacity, charm and"
"is a Setswana term of respect for a woman; the equivalent term for a man is ""Rra"". Mma Precious Ramotswe solves cases for wives whose husbands have gone missing, for a school teacher whose son has disappeared by finding the kidnappers, for a wealthy father whose 16-year-old daughter is frustrating him by going out on her own. She helps a man atone for sins of his youth by finding the people he hurt decades earlier. She uncovers a scheme by twin brothers to use one medical degree and certificate between the two of them. She solves a case for herself,"
"Micki Pistorius Micki Pistorius (born 19 March 1961 in Pretoria) is a South African forensic or investigative psychologist and author. She was the first woman in her profession and the first profiler in South Africa. She says she has ""cryptesthesia"", an extra-sensory perception for killers. Pistorius grew up in Pretoria with several brothers and sisters. She worked as a journalist for eight years, before deciding to study psychology at the University of Pretoria, where she received a Masters in the subject, and also became a lecturer with a reputation for eccentricity. While doing her doctoral thesis on serial killers, the"
"in Botswana."" Mochudi was the home of Mma Ramotswe, the heroine of the ""No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency"" series of books. Michelle Obama visited the village during U.S. President Obama's African tour in 2011. Mochudi has several public Junior Secondary Schools and one public high school, Molefi Senior Secondary School. Several junior schools are Linchwe II JSS, Kgamanyane JSS, Radikolo JSS, Bakgatle JSS, Sedibelo JSS, and Ithuteng JSS. There is also Podulogong Rehabilitation Centre that offers hands on training courses to blind or vision impaired individuals. Mochudi is home to Botswana Premier League soccer club Mochudi Centre Chiefs. Mochudi Rugby"
"Ramotswe’s doughty white van to propel the story forward”, but the strength of the novel is in the “characters, intriguing local lore, and bone-deep love of Africa.” ""Kirkus Reviews"" considers this novel to move more slowly than the prior 13 novels in this series, but does not consider that a drawback when the strength is the wisdom of Mma Ramotswe. It considers there are two and a half new cases for Mma Ramotswe, the half case being the changes brought to her detective agency by the arrival of Mma Makutsi’s new baby boy. The review sums up this novel by"
"welcome new light on Smith’s beloved Botswana, where everyone is honest and polite, except for the ones who aren’t."" Mma Ramotswe's husband, Mr JLB Matekoni, a first-class mechanic by profession, takes on one case, and shows ""some deductions worthy of Sherlock Holmes in support of his status"" as a first-time detective. A review by Barnes & Noble offers a similar positive view of this novel: ""Part of the widespread appeal of this series lies in the tidbits of quiet wisdom sprinkled throughout each delightfully meandering narrative. ""The Good Husband of Zebra Drive"", for example, explores the importance of not only"
"crime against Mma Ramotswe does not come off, leading the culprit, maid to her fiancé, to prison instead. One reviewer finds the writing both dignified and humorous, and describes the protagonist as imperturbable. Another quotes a dialogue in this novel as an excellent example how the author ""plays the two cultures against each other"" evenhandedly, the two cultures being the West and the ""primitive"" country of Botswana. The satire in the conversation is remarked as worthy of Mark Twain. Newly engaged Mma Ramotswe is not impressed with Mr JLB Matekoni's maid, Florence Pena. Unknown to him, she has been sleeping"
"solves three cases, and meets important new people, her secretary Grace Makutsi and good friend, the excellent mechanic, Mr JLB Matekoni. The novel was first published in Scotland, where it gained a following. After two more novels in the series were published, all three were published in the US to much acclaim; in 2002, for example, Publishers' Weekly called it a ""little gem of a book"". The series did not catch on in England, despite being so close to Scotland, until the fifth novel in the series. Mma Ramotswe sits in her office, the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency. She"
"the UK. ""Publishers Weekly"" finds this novel ""delightful"". Mma Ramotswe always solves her cases, but not in haste, and following a code of behavior and decency. They credit the author for his ""always engaging"" way of portraying the code that guides his protagonists. ""Kirkus Reviews"" calls this a ""charmingly gossamer mystery"" in this ""enchanting series"" of mystery novels. There is a focus on marriage in this novel, including her own, after such a long engagement. They describe the strength of the protagonist, Mma Ramotswe, who ""provides less detection than advice, and wise advice it turns out to be, even when"
"group in Lilongwe. Kamthunzi became well known for his radio series ""Tinkanena"" ('We Told You So'), a series of plays on the theme of Aids about a young man called Same. Among the short novels written by Kamthunzi were the following: Whyghtone Kamthunzi Whyghtone Kamthunzi (31 July 1956 - 18 May 2000) was a leading writer in the Chichewa language of Malawi in the 1980s and 1990s. Kamthunzi was born in the village of Njolomole in Ntcheu district in Malawi. His father was a school teacher. After attending Ntcheu Secondary School from 1972 to 1976 he trained as a teacher"
"is getting better. All of the first three books in this series are reviewed in one article by Alida Becker. Regarding the main character with her ""appealing personality,"" she says, ""As she pursues her investigations . . . Mma Ramotswe acts as much like Miss Manners as Miss Marple."" Once the reader has read the first two novels and is ""in the third, ""Morality for Beautiful Girls"", you've realized that all this activity is much less about whodunit than why."" The novels are also ""about the variety and resilience of a nation to which Smith seems utterly devoted."" The writing"