The Kalahari Typing School for Men: More from the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (Platinum Series)

Recommended along with: The Usurper and other Stories, Graceland, Disciples of Fortune


Funny, light and "traditional"!   March 25, 2005
 14 out of 15 found this review helpful

I loved this, the fourth book in the series recording the life of Mma Ramotswe, the only lady private detective in Botswana.

I couldn't help smiling as I read the book, the use of language in the book is very engaging and I love the way AMS records the private thoughts of each character. One piece, which particularly tickled me, was a rambling digression of Mma Ramotswe herself: she was thinking (as is often the case) about the traditional ways of Botswana; she recalled that about half of the Botwanan people followed traditional ways and about half followed the church. Then she digressed into how, people in the church held that people went to heaven. Then she went on to think that there were probably cows in heaven too - and that if there were these cows would be very nice, good cows, with lovely brown eyes and white skin. Then she thought that of course if there were nice cows in heaven, they could give rides to the children - but of course that meant the children would be late and that was very sad.

The book is full of this kind of lovely rambling descriptive thinking weaved in amongst the stories about an errant husband, a man who wants to fix wrongs he committed as a youth, a competitor in the detective business and love for Mma Makutsi.

I loved the book, I thought it was probably better than Nos 2 & 3, very much of the standard of the first one - well worth a read.