What I’m Reading: The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

I came across The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series when I was planning my first trip to Africa three years ago (I say my first trip as though there was a second, but not yet – one day though!). I like to read books set in the places I’m travelling to, and Botswana was on my itinerary.

That first book was an absolutely delightful read, and the quality has never wavered since. The series is like a delicious cake; there are lots of ingredients inside that come together beautifully to create something good and wholesome.

Before I get to the ingredients, here is the premise for the series. The protagonist, Precious Ramotswe, has started up her own detective agency using her inheritance from her late father. She is the first female private investigator in Botswana, and although she’s had no formal training, her knowledge of people and human nature see her succeed in solving mysteries – or rather, people’s problems. For there are no murders in these cases, but rather everyday troubles: women want to know if their husbands are cheating or if their suitors are worthy, people want to atone for old sins, or find out about loved ones who went missing long ago. 

Now for the ingredients – let’s start with the characters. Mma Ramotswe (Mma is a Botswana term of respect for women, while Rra is the term for men) is a sensible, shrewd woman, who often solves her clients’ cases with her own wisdom. She describes herself as ‘traditionally built’ and often reminisces about the old Botswana morality – which she still upholds herself – and challenges the gender norms of her society. Her logic is reflected in amusing passages such as the below from the third book in the series, Morality For Beautiful Girls: 

“She was a traditionally built lady, after all, and she did not have to worry about dress size, unlike those poor, neurotic people who were always looking in mirrors and thinking that they were too big. What was too big, anyway? Who was to tell another person what size they should be? It was a form of dictatorship, by the thin, and she was not having any of it. If these thin people became any more insistent, then the more generously sized people would just have to sit on them. Yes, that would teach them! Hah!”

She is assisted by Grace Makutsi, first her secretary then assistant detective, a clever and enthusiastic woman who constantly boasts of scoring 97% in the Botswana Secretarial College exams. They share their office with Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, the business of Mma Ramotswe’s fiancé, Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni. He is a kind, quiet man and a very good mechanic, with an appreciation of great craftmanship and the old Botswana morality, just like Mma Ramotswe. Along with Mma Ramotswe’s cases, the series follows the adventures and eccentricities of these characters as they navigate their work and personal lives.

There is one character I haven’t mentioned yet, and that is Botswana itself. The setting is so strong in these books, such a key ingredient, that it really feels like a character of its own. It’s described frequently by Mma Ramotswe, using beautiful, lyrical prose so the reader can clearly feel the emotional connection she has with her country. Take this paragraph in the opening of The Full Cupboard Of Life, the fifth book in the series:

“From where she sat she could gaze out of the window, out beyond the acacia trees, over the grass and scrub bush, to the hills in their blue haze of heat. It was such a noble country, and so wide, stretching for mile upon mile to brown horizons at the very edge of Africa.”

The author, Alexander McCall Smith, was born and raised in Southern Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe) before settling in his current home of Scotland, and is obviously familiar with Africa, as he evokes a sense of place so deftly.

And finally, there is an essence of nostalgia that permeates through the series. Mma Ramotswe often reflects on the old ways of Botswana, or the old Botswana morality; it’s a way of dignity, of respect, from how you greet your neighbours to how you help those in your life in need. This ethics or moral philosophy is a main theme running throughout the books, shown in this example from the third book in the series, Morality For Beautiful Girls:

“Africa was full of people in need of help and there had to be a limit. You simply could not help everybody; but you could at least help those who came into your life. That principle allowed you to deal with the suffering you saw. That was your suffering. Other people would have to deal with the suffering that they, in their turn, came across."

I’m happy to say that there are twenty-two books in this series – plenty to keep you going! Every time I read one of these books it’s like visiting old friends again, and I quickly immerse myself into their warmth and charm.