The Miracle at Speedy Motors

Starred review from February 25, 2008
Precious Ramotswe, “Botswana's foremost solver of problems,” is used to handling mostly straightforward domestic cases, which makes a series of anonymous letters threatening her and her prickly assistant, Grace Makutsi, all the more disturbing in Smith's triumphant ninth No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency novel (after The Good Husband of Zebra Drive
). The search for whoever penned the letters coincides with a new commission: Manka Sebina, whose birth parents gave her up as a child, hires the agency to track down any living relatives. Both problems afford Mma Ramotswe ample opportunity to display her winning blend of insight into others' motivations and an endearingly naïve belief in the best in human nature. Significant, if incremental, developments in the lives of the community Smith has lovingly created over the course of the series will intrigue old fans. Immediately accessible to newcomers, this entry will prompt them to seek out the earlier books.

April 1, 2008
The title of this ninth novel in the popular "The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" series is somewhat misleading. As usual, not all that much happens in the lives of lady detective Precious Ramotswe, her assistant Grace Makutsi, or her husband Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, but with these gentle tales, it is all in the telling. Will Mma Ramotswe have to sell some of her prize cattle to cover unexpected expenses? Reading each new installment set in Botswana is like spending time with old friends. While these novels are becoming more predictable and sentimental, they still brim with warmth, charm, and wonderfully sly humor not found in McCall Smith's other series set in Scotland ("The Sunday Philosophy Club"). These stories are not for everyone, but the many addicted could probably read a new one every year until Mma Ramotswe's cows come home. For all popular fiction collections.Leslie Patterson, Brown Univ. Lib., Providence, RI

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 1, 2008
The ninth installment in McCall Smiths beloved No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series finds Botswanan Precious Ramotswe musing upon more mysteries of life. Theres the woman desperately searching for her family, with not a clue where to start. She claims that her late mother is not her birth mother, but Mma Ramotswe isnt so sure. Associate detective Grace Makutsi (whom readers will remember for her large spectacles and stellar 97 percent score on the Botswana Secretarial College exam) is restless over damage to a new bed purchased by her fianc', Phuti Radiphuti. (She and the well-mannered Mr. Radiphuti had been unable to resist that heart-shaped velvet headboard.) Mma Ramotswe also receives some threatening letters, which seem to have come from a most unlikely source. Finally, Mma Ramotswes husband, talented car mechanic and model citizen Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni, meets a doctor who just may have a cure for adopted daughter Motholelis spinal condition. (Other experts have told the young girl shed be wheelchair-bound for life.) While hope springs eternal, Mma Ramotswe doesnt share the unabashed optimism of her spouse. Scotsman McCall Smith, who also pens the Isabel Dalhousie, 44 Scotland Street, and Portuguese Irregular Verbs series, conveys his deep admiration for Botswana (where he once lived and helped establish a school of law at the university) on every page of this warm, wise, whimsical novel.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)

Starred review from May 26, 2008
Lisette Lecat is the ideal reader for Smith's No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. A native of South Africa (which borders Botswana and shares Setswana language roots), Lecat's perfect accents and delightful characterizations are charming and entirely believable. Smith's detective plots are always secondary to the common sense and often witty psychological and philosophical discussions and internal musings that constitute the better part of the book, but Lecat manages to keep listeners engaged and focused throughout, and to feel comfortable in the Botswanan landscape. Teaching law at Botswana University, Smith obviously developed great admiration and love for the nation and its people, and it is this that makes his detective ladies so popular. Lecat's reading will delight both veteran and new fans of the series. Simultaneous release with the Pantheon hardcover (Reviews, Feb. 25).