The Miracle at Speedy Motors (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series)

I am a huge fan of McCall Smith's work, and buy his new books as soon as they come out. The Mma Ramotswe ones are by far my favorite, and I loved this so much that I had to slow myself down so I wouldn't finish listening in one day and then be sad that it was over. Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are back, solving some new problems for clients, but the investigations don't all go quite as planned. There are small issues and hitches along the way that add philosophical interest as to what the right thing to do could possibly be. Against the backdrop of detective work, Mma Ramotswe is worrying about Mr JLB Matekoni's meetings with a doctor who says he can help Motoleli learn to walk, even though earlier doctors have said there is absolutely no hope. Is this medical approach sound or is it just raising false hopes? Then, Mma Makutsi is the lucky recipient of a new bed from her fiance, Puti Radiputi. This bed is a thing of wonder, with its red velvet heart-shaped headboard, and Mma Makutsi treasures it. But this simple pleasure becomes complicated, and Mma Makutsi soon has to explain something unfortunate to her fiance. The simple and charming writing and events that happen in this book make it a true pleasure to read. I love listening to the audio version because Lisette Lecat does such a great job of everyone's voices, and has through the entire series. I can tell from her voice who is talking, even when it is a side character, and the storytelling, voices, and accents are never overdone. She always hits just the right balance, and I forget that I am not right there with the characters. Fans of the series will love this latest.

These books will make you smile. They are entertaining and very easy to read. I have enjoyed each more than the last.

This installment in the "Ladies No. 1 Detective Series" continues to develop the familiar characters of the Agency and the Mechanic Garage where Mma Ramotse's husband, Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni works. There is a primary new case that the agency works, a case of a missing family. In addition, there is an attempt to restore the legs of Mma R and J. L. B. Matekoni's foster children who is confined to a wheelchair. Interwoven in the story seems to be the issue of trust. It is a story about those who can be trusted and those who cannot be. A story about information that can be trusted, and information that is somewhat less worthy of immediate acceptance. It is a story about how people can change and how people don't change. These elements play the principle roles in this segment of the long saga of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. Smith notes that people can be on both sides of the trust line and sometimes, what seems to be untrustworthy behavior is anything but that. The good helper, Mr. Polopetsi, who contributes to the garage and the detective agency in his efforts is called into question. The trustworthiness of clients and informants is contemplated and sorted out. And the trust in doctors and the inexactness of science and medicine are illustrated. Yet at its culmination, even with this equivocating nature of trust, there are miracles that are performed or come to pass. While not all miracles are huge miracles, they are miracles nonetheless. People need to understand that we should come to appreciate what we have, and always look to improve ourselves and our situation, without injury or malice to others. These are the basic tenets of McCall Smith's most recent book. These are the things of which life is made. These are the things that we encounter each and every day, yet only a discerning eye and an empathetic understanding will help guide us through the maze of signs and occurrences that life brings to us. The book is one more fine addition to a long and interesting story which deals very specifically with the ethics of life and the morality of human interaction. It is as all of the books in the series highly recommended to all readers who have an interest in understanding the actions of people in society and how people interact with others to make a world that is at best, unpredictable, but also can be greatly satisfying when people respect other people. It is very much worth the time to read this quickly moving story as an addition to the wonderful adventures of the Ladies No. 1 Detective Agency.

The latest installment in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency Series brings us back together with the unforgettable characters of Precious Ramotswe (owner of said detective agency), her capable assistant Mma Makutsi, her calm and understated husband Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, and of course those irrepressible garage apprentices. Most everyone tends to think of a miracle as something grand and extraordinary. The people who work at or near Speedy Motors are surely due for something grand to happen in their lives and we are not disappointed. The first miracle we encounter is the start of the rainy season bringing with it a downpour of biblical proportions. Within a day the parched and thirsty countryside is turned from brown to a lush green and gives the promise that the crops will produce abundantly. Mma Makutsi and her fiance find a wonderful piece of furniture in their newly bought marriage bed which becomes destroyed when Mma Makutsi has the deliverymen leave it outside her home because it won't fit through her doors. Of course it was the life-giving rain that destroyed the beautiful red brocade heart-shaped headboard. How will she ever tell her fiance what she has done? Mma Ramotswe has undertaken to find the family of a woman who became orphaned while trying to ascertain the author or nasty letters that arrive at the agency. Could it be that Precious Ramotswe has somehow offended a former client and how can she make things right? This situation is resolved by Charlie the garage apprentice who spots the culprit and a chaplinesque chase through the grocery store ensues. Thanks to the rain, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has been summoned to help start the car of a doctor who believes that there is hope for the wheelchair-bound adopted daughter of the garage owner. Mr. Matekoni finds himself applying for a mortgage on the garage to take the child to Johannesburg and to a clinic there where it is hoped they can help her walk again. Indeed, I found myself hoping wholeheartedly that this would be the miracle promised by the title.Alas, Mr. Matekoni and his daughter return home with her still bound to her wheelchair. Mma Makutsi learns that her fiance is a forgiving man when she tells him of the destroyed bed. And Mma Ramotswe's client, who at first learns that she has a brother, is quite happy with the turn of events at learning that our intrepid lady detective was the recipient of incorrect information. It seems that along with everyone in Gaborone, and especially at Speedy Motors, we are reminded to look for the miracles in our everyday lives: seeing the sun upon awakening, hearing the call of a bird in the tree, having a roof over our heads and someone with which to share a cup of bush tea. I highly recommend all of the books in this series and look forward to the next one.

I have read the entire series of No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency novels. My only complaint is that each of these is TOO SHORT. I like to spend a long time with a good novel, but reading one of these is extremely enjoyable but soon over...kind of like eating a tasty snack--addictive, but fleeting. I love these books mainly because of their heroine, Precious Ramotswe--a common sense, "traditionally built" woman in modern Africa. She and her quirky assistant solve simple mysteries but explore more universal truths about human nature. Smith has an engaging style that makes the narrative delightful. Hard to describe...you just have to read the books to understand. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

I have listened to every episode of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency Series and loved each one more than the one before. as soon as hear Lisette Lecat's voice, I start to smile. I am visiting once again with my dear old friends Mma Ramotswe, Mma Makutsi, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, Charlie and the younger apprentice. I love the pace with the constant references to the "tiny white van, 97%, the old Botswana ways. I love the descriptions of Botswana both as a geographic region and as a lovely, gentle, moral culture that is changing, but really not too much. I love the fact that Precious Ramotswe can deal with any problem by applying a generous dose of love and understanding. This book has a theme of making mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, even Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. Even the tiny white van is having its problems, but, of course, the problems that result, while anxiety producing at first, are smoothed over and lives go on. I can't wait for the next episode to come out. My one worry is that some day Lisette Lecat won't be able to narrate. Her performance really brings the characters and the setting to life. I have taken an unexpected interest in all things Botswana since I started listening to these books. I also can't wait to see the movie. I hope we will be able to see it here in the States soon!

The ninth book in the series brings both woes and wisdom for the ladies of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. This time there are only two clients with cases to solve, but the domestic affairs of Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi take centre stage. Mma Makutsi and her splendidly named fiancé Phuti Radiphuti are closer than ever to setting a date for the wedding, but when she picks out a snazzy new bed with red hearts on the headboard, she gets more heartache than she bargained for. Mma Ramotswe is concerned over the growing outspokenness and self-confidence of Mma Makutsi, who after all, is soon to be married to the owner of a thriving furniture store, but she can't stop to dwell on the situation, because her own husband Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has been talked into spending a fortune on a miracle cure for their daughter. As far as the cases go, Mma Ramotswe has to find the family of a client who doesn't know her own real name, her birthday, or even if she has any family at all. Mma Makutsi's case is to find out whether a tenant is pulling a fast one on his landlord. At the same time, both ladies are trying to solve the mystery of the menacing letters. After lots of awkward moments due to wrong conclusions, mistaken beliefs, incorrect information and erroneous assumptions, the ladies realize that the best road to happiness is to be true to yourself, honest to others, and to recognize the everyday miracles that we often take for granted. For those now starting the series, the titles so far are: The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency Tears of the Giraffe Morality for Beautiful Girls The Kalahari Typing School for Men The Full Cupboard of Life In the Company of Cheerful Ladies Blue Shoes and Happiness The Good Husband of Zebra Drive The Miracle at Speedy Motors Easy to read, and overflowing with the gracious charm of its traditionally built central character, this series is ideal for people on the go who need a couple of hours to get away from it all. Chatty, relaxing and familiar, make sure you save some time to kick back with a cup of tea and the ladies of the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. Amanda Richards, May 3, 2008

I discovered this series only recently and I can understand why, as I found out, it is such a world-wide success and why Mma Ramotswe has become such an icon. It is not great, ponderous literature -- it is much more than that! The plots are simple but well done; the writing very pleasant. However, in my opinion neither plot nor style, perfectly unobjectionable as they are, are these books' main attraction. The characters are, and their interaction. The people come to life all the time: wise, funny, loyal, weak -- completely human. There are great life lessons to be learned in these apparently simple books, from love for humanity, to the need for forgiveness and respect. Objects, and the land, also play an important and unforgettable role. I barely knew where to find Botswana on the world map before, and now it is so vivid in my mind as if I lived there for ever. One warmly given suggestion: read these books chronologically. You will enjoy them even if your read them in an hapazard order, but if you read them as they were written you will be drawn even more into this jewel of a world.

The Miracle at Speedy Motors ist eine weitere wunderbar unterhaltsame Ansammlung vieler kleiner Geschichten rund um Precious Ramotswe, der Inhaberin des No.1 Ladies Detective Agency in Gabarone, Botswana. Wie gewohnt, sind alle Charaktäre liebevoll und detailreich gezeichnet. Auch wenn das Botswana, das hier beschrieben wird, vielleicht nicht ganz der Realität entspricht, ich liebe die Bücher und hoffe, das noch ein paar Geschichten vom Zebra-Drive erscheinen. Ich kann die No.1 Ladies Detective Agengy-Krimis jedem ans Herz legen, der etwas andere Kiminalromane sucht und verspreche jedem Leser, dass er dieselbe Freude wie ich empfinden wird, wenn Ma Ramotswe mit viel Herz und Hausverstand ihren Klienten bei der Lösung ihrer kleinen und großen alltäglichen Tragödien hilft.

For a book club; however I fell in love with McCall Smith's writing and this particular book is warm, witty and very compassionate with a terrific ensemble of characters and vivid descriptions of part of Botswana.

Me encanta esta serie facil de leer..mantiene la atención y con muchos phrasal verbs

Exactement comme décrit et en temps et heure, rien de négatif à signaler, contenu très intéressant pour qui aime Alexander Mc Call Smith, belle philosophie et connaissance de l'Afrique

Matekoniは車いす生活のMotholeliを不憫に思っています ヨハネスブルグの病院で治療を行うことを決めます ラモツェは反対します Motholeliの足が治らないことは周知の事実だからです Matekoniは奇跡が起こることを期待しますが・・・ 最後のMotholeliの言葉が素敵です このシリーズの最高傑作と思います