The Joy and Light Bus Company (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Book 22)

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As always, the setting of this latest in the #1 Ladies Detective series in Botswana is an escape for all non-Botswana readers. Seldom has an author made a foreign country and its people sound so attractive. Several recurring characters make an appearance in the book, one of them being beautiful, husband-stealer Violet Sephoto, who's always making trouble. McCall Smith is a master …. There’s beauty and revelation of one kind or another woven expertly into every line.” — The Christian Science Monitor In another plot line, their client, Mr. Baboloki Mophephu, has come to them because he is concerned that his very wealthy father, Mr. Fidelis Mophephu, has left his farm and farmhouse to his long-time nurse. The son suspects undue influence and wants the agency to investigate. But both Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are wary because of their instinctual dislike of their client. It's a lot of fun to follow their investigation and the creative solution that emerges. A new client wants Agency to investigate the nurse looking after his elderly father when it emerges that his father has willed her his farm, alleging that the woman has exercised undue influence on the old man. When Precious and Mma Potokwani visit the farm, they tend towards a different conclusion but, heeding Clovis Anderson’s best advice, they reserve judgement. A meeting with the daughters of the family reveals that things are not quite so straightforward.

As always, there is lots happening in the small community, but Mma Ramotswe can unfailingly be relied upon to be the voice of reason and patience in an increasingly chaotic world. I must say that I enjoy these characters immensely, and twenty-two books in they feel like old and treasured friends. These stories bring light and joy, and are simply a delightful escape that I will indulge in at any given opportunity. Finally, while visiting Mma Potokwame at the Orphan Farm, Mma Ramotswe hears about what amounts to domestic slavery. Can she help? they would just have to make the best of the situation. When there were things that you could not change, then there was a strong case for accepting things as they were and working from there.” The important thing is to carry on doing what you’re doing,’ she said. ‘And not to do what you think other people think you should do. You should do what you do as well as you possibly can.” She hoped that was the case, anyway, and that, she supposed, was the way it would always be. You hoped that what you did was for the overall good, but you could never be sure. Sometimes there were doubts, and those doubts could persist, but often you really had no choice. You had to feel your way through the complexities of this life and hope, just hope, that you got it right more often than you got it wrong. And sometimes, of course, you did not have to do anything at all.”I wish to express my sincere thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada. I was delighted to receive this ARC in return for an honest review. It is astounding that this is the 22nd book in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series, and they always remain fresh and enjoyable and provide food for thought. I enjoy this series and this particular volume provided a pleasant interlude at what can be a very hectic time of year. It was fun to dip into the lives of characters that I have grown fond of and I always enjoy the descriptions of teatime with cake. We shall change all that...because it is possible to change the world, if one is determined enough, and if one sees with sufficient clarity just what has to be changed. Precious seeks the wise counsel of her good friend Mma Potokwani at the Orphan Farm, reflecting that “Wise people had been replaced in the public estimation by that curious category of people – celebrities – who were, for the most part, shallow people not known for their wisdom.” Her sound advice is gratefully accepted, even if it does include a recommendation for yoga.

Also? There are a lot of us out here that are also “traditionally sized,” and we love seeing lovable, successful characters that look, to some extent, like ourselves. The detective agency gets a client called Mr. Baboloki Mophephu, who calls for an appointment. When Mr. Mophephu arrives for his consultation, he makes the mistake of calling Mma Makutski a secretary. attends a business seminar where he happens to meet an old acquaintance called Mr. T.K. Molefi. Mr. Matekoni and Mr. Molefi decide to start a bus company that would put Mr. Matekoni's mechanic skills to good use.

AMS, may God continue to bless your mind, your pen, your typewriter, laptop, tablet and any other devices you use to concoct these tales. The whole world loves you, and your wonderful stories. My great thanks go to Edelweiss and Penguin Random House for the review copy. This charming tale will be for sale November 16, 2021. As always, the ladies muse on many topics, including what is required to keep men happy, and Mma Makutsi coins an excellent term for those old-fashioned males who still indulge in sexual discrimination: Past Tense Men.

In Smith’s leisurely 21st No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novel (after 2019’s To the Land of Long Lost Friends), Blessing Mompati, a distant cousin of Precious Ramotse, the agency’s head, Continue reading » After the ladies converse over tea and fruit cake, Mma Ramotswe learns that a new orphan girl, who arrived with a broken wrist, was forced to work for a wealthy family without pay. In the end, Mma Ramotswe’s patience and common-sense will win out, and, without a doubt, all will be the better for it. and the vestiges of that early feeling were still there, as she could not bring herself to punish the snails or caterpillars for their depredations. They were her fellow creatures, after all. They had not asked to be snails or caterpillars, and they needed to eat, as we all did.”She had that greatest of all things, wisdom, and that was a very important thing to possess in a world that seemed to be losing the respect it had always had for wise people. Wise people had been replaced in the public estimation by that curious category of people—celebrities—who were, for the most part, shallow people not known for their wisdom. Where were the Nelson Mandelas of this world of celebrity? Where were the Gandhis” Sometimes there were doubts, and those doubts could persist, but often you really had no choice. You had to feel your way through the complexities of this life and hope, just hope, that you got it right more often than you got it wrong.” Their client is a wealthy man who has discovered that his elderly father has left his house in a will to a younger woman who has been his nurse for 10 years. He is dismayed that the evil woman has unduly influenced his father to do so and wants her investigated.