86 of 91 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another great visit with Mma Ramotswe and her crew, March 25, 2007
Today's publishing world seems to be dominated by writers who produce violent crime/thrillers. These books are usually driven by bleak plotlines and blood spills off nearly every page. The crooks/evil ones are usually caught in the end, but there's nothing positive to take away from the experience.
While a good adrenaline rush gets the blood pumping, it's nice to slow down with sweet, uplifting fiction. With the release of his 8th book in the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency series, Alexander McCall Smith is establishing himself as one of the preeminent writers of sweet, gentle fiction.
As with previous books, "The Good Husband of Zebra Drive" gives the reader a glimpse into the life of Precious Ramotswe, proprietor of a detective agency in Gaborone, Botswana.
Mma Ramotswe's agency is located adjacent to Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, a garage owned by her husband, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni.
Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, the real husband of Zebra Drive, is about to investigate his first case, but is troubled about how to tell his wife about the assignment.
Mma Ramotswe's capable assistant, Grace Makutsi is troubled about several things, including a date for her wedding to Phuti Radiphuti, owner of the Double Comfort Furniture Store. Miss Makutsi is also concerned about her future. She's been working for Mma Ramotswe for sometime, without a promotion. She should be doing better. After all, she is a 97-percent graduate of the Botswana Secretarial College.
The agency investigates a wayward husband and three unexpected, mysterious deaths at a hospital. The puzzles are always solved in McCall Smith's books, but what keeps readers coming back for each book are the main characters and their rich, human relationships.
At the heart of soul of the stories is Mma Ramotswe, `a traditionally built' middle-aged woman who loves her family, her work and her country.
Supporting Mma Ramotswe is the solid, dependable Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. He's a good mechanic, a kind employer and a devoted husband.
Grace Makutsi, young and a bit vain, provides color in this volume. Grace provides drama in Mma Ramotswe's world, especially when she suddenly decides to leave the Number 1 Ladies Detective Agency one day, stunning everyone.
Providing comic relief this time around is Charlie, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni's oldest apprentice. The naïve Charlie is determined to set out on his own. His brief foray into the real world provides some funny and poignant moments.
Spending time with these gracious people is like finding a calming and soothing oasis after a parched trip through the barren desert. Time spent in Precious Ramotswe's world is never wasted. You'll leave feeling happy, contented and lucky.
Enjoy!
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54 of 63 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Darker Side of Botswana is Depicted, April 17, 2007
It has been some time since I read my last novel of the Number 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series, and I was originally displeased with this book. I thought about giving it 4 stars. Then I thought, I opened the book after dinner and finished it before bedtime: how bad can a book be if you don't put it down?
What I disliked was the reality of the characters, the reality of the issues, the reality that Botswana is modernizing. Mma Makutsi, like my teenager at home, too often chides other people, in a rude and in-your-face fashion. The new cases walking through their doors are not cow thieves or simple questions of trust. Clients seek to discover employees who steal - even though the employers are generous. Stock trading scandals are discovered. What next: pollution violations? Botswana now has modern day issues. Botswana is an uglier place.
McCall Smith seems less enchanted by the "Leave It To Beaver" simplicity of many of its gloriously gentle citizens. "There were all those unkindnesses, palpable, daily; so easily avoidable; but one could not think of those, thought Mma Ramotswe, or one would spend one's time in tears - and the unkindness would continue. So the small things came into their own: small acts of helping others, if one could; small ways of making one's own life better; acts of love, acts of tea, acts of laughter. Clever people might laugh at such simplicity, but, she asked herself, what was their solution?"
Botswana is changing, but it is not dead. McCall Smith reminds us, "That fine country, with its good people, was still there. . . "
Reading these books is like getting out of the rat race and flying off to where life is simpler, better. Social standards seem so good in Botswana. Maybe the "good old days" were better in Botswana than they are today; but, the present days still have a lot of good.
After engaging the characters in numerous "new vocations" whether from malaise or midlife crisis, the author has our beloved J.L.B. Matekoni return to his auto mechanic's life as Matekoni realizes that, "The things that we do best. . . are the things that we have always done best."
Among all of the series written by McCall Smith, this is his best. And we can only hope that he realizes this fact and continues to do his best by delivering more novels for this series.
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