Precious Ramotswe is owner and sole agent of the The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency in Gaborone. At the edge of the Kalahari Desert Mma Ramotswe lives in her home on Zebra Drive, cares for her garden intermittently, parks her tiny white van under the shady canopy of the Acacia Tree, and waters her wilting garden when time allows. Mma Ramotswe is a true woman of Botswana of the traditional kind, with the traditional build. Her life has seen much love and much suffering. Her wisdom, happy nature, and appreciation of all life makes her so perfectly suited to this venture into detection.

Precious Ramotswe starts her business with her inheritance from Obed Ramotswe, her beloved late father. Her plunge into detection is supported by the practical and philosophical advice of Clovis Andersen, author of The Principles of Private Detection. For her clients she is the safe, objective listener. And yes, with respect and high integrity she proposes solutions to very troubling situations.

Mma Ramotswe travels to her office in her tiny white van every morning after the necessary cup of red bush tea. She furnished this little office with a filing cabinet with an ill fitting drawer, three chairs -- one for herself, one for her prospective clients, and one for Mma Grace Makutsi her top of the class secretary graduating with a 97 percent final mark from the Botswana Secretarial College.

Bush tea taken at regular intervals with discussions on the problems that clients bring and the unorthodox but beautifully satisfactory resolutions which are achieved form the core of this charming, thought provoking first novel.

Botswana history, culture, people, climate, and the peaceful transition from colonial to self-government are the historically accurate background running through and with the life, people and events so delightfully, told by Alexander McCall Smith.

A pleasure to read, a pleasure to hear in the unabridged audio version from Recorded Books.

Visit the Precious Ramotswe Blog to find the first book of the series, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, in text AND audio versions.

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency movie is now available on DVD. It was released in 2008 and received very good reviews, even from fans delighted with the books. This is a REAL testimony!