Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 37
 Botswana way of thinking August 30, 2010
Mauro Gotti (Italy)
This work is another fine story that highlights the true African way of thinking.
Amazing!
Another great book in the fantastic No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series August 14, 2010
I. Holder (Sydney, Australia)
Another great book in the fantastic No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. While I did not enjoy this as much as some of the previous ones [higher expectations perhaps with each one?], it is a wonderful read. I particularly enjoyed the safari expedition and the deeper look into Mma Grace Makutsi's life [sad as the struggles were; hurrah for Mma Potokwane!] and, dare I say it and show my schadenfreude?, another triumph of the ladies against Violet Sephotho.
To me these books are no ...more Another great book in the fantastic No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. While I did not enjoy this as much as some of the previous ones [higher expectations perhaps with each one?:], it is a wonderful read. I particularly enjoyed the safari expedition and the deeper look into Mma Grace Makutsi's life [sad as the struggles were; hurrah for Mma Potokwane!] and, dare I say it and show my schadenfreude?, another triumph of the ladies against Violet Sephotho.
To me these books are not only a delight to read, with such vivid descriptions and real characters with flaws and peculiarities, but it is wonderful to be taken away on a journey with these wonderful ladies through their lives in Botswana. On every reading I want more and more to visit this most wonderful land of Mma Precious Ramotswe: Alexander McCall Smith truly brings out its delights and history to those ignorant of it like myself.
 Another enjoyable episode with Precious August 11, 2010
Ms. M. A. Sheldon
Thank you for this new book in the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency saga. I have read all the books in this series and feel that Mma Ramotse and the others are my neighbours. This story like the others has delightful underlying humour laced with good moral principles which expresses life for many Africans in Southern Africa. I read it slowly so I dont finish it too soon although I dont want to put it down.
Thanks for delivering it so quickly and at such a good price.
The Double Comfort Safari Club (No 1 Ladies Detective Agency)
Exactly what you would expect, and no worse for that July 23, 2010
Mrs. K. A. Wheatley (Leicester, UK)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is the eleventh book in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency novels featuring Precious Ramotswe, and it is exactly like the previous ten. This is no criticism. McCall Smith has found a formula that works, sympathetic characters and a niche market for detective novels which aren't really detective novels, but rather a gentle amble through the foibles of the human spirit in the company of some likeable people.
Unlike other crime series where the novelist has found a winning formula and made it stale (I am thinking of Janet Evanovich here), because the characters do not progress at all, McCall Smith keeps things fresh by allowing his characters to develop in their lives and personalities. Here Mma Makutsi, Mma Ramotswe's secretary and assistant detective, takes centre stage as we are swept up in the continuing drama of her relationship with her fiance Phuti Radiphuti and the fate of her evil nemesis Violet Sephotho.
In the background Mma Ramotswe carefully clears up the mystery of the legacy to a tour guide in the Okavango Delta, an unhappy marriage problem and saves a young man whose hopes of a happy future are about to be dashed by Violet. As always she manages it with maximum grace, minimum fuss and industrial quantities of red bush tea. Very satisfactory.
The Sweetness of Life June 6, 2010
Professor Donald Mitchell (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 97,000 Helpful Votes Globally)
"Pleasant words are like a honeycomb,
Sweetness to the soul and health to the bones." -- Proverbs 16:24 (NKJV)
The Double Comfort Safari Club ranks among the finest books in this superb series, evoking memories of an earlier Botswana when people cared about one another, the land, and their cattle. Alexander McCall Smith provides a loving microcosm of what humanity has lost around the world, portrayed with gentle humor. Mma Precious Ramotswe once again represents the values of the older traditions as she seeks not so much to solve crimes as to seek gentle harmony. Mma Makutsi symbolizes the ambitious strivers who want to get ahead but whose hearts are still mostly pure. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni is a man who cares about his work and his family . . . and is content, a model of what happiness should be.
The book presents Precious with a series of challenges, all of which seem quite difficult to surmount at some point . . . until the inner harmony of natural living emerges. A husband and wife suspect each other of infidelity. A man has lost his inheritance in a swindle. A grateful tourist leaves a legacy to someone who needs to be tracked down. Phuti Radiphuti's aunt tries to freeze out Mma Makutsi.
The humor in the book is mostly provided by Mma Makutsi's love of shoes. As the two detectives prepare to search for a missing heir, Alexander McCall Smith has written one of his finest sequences about what a business trip can be like.
The book begins with a beautiful sequence where Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni tries to think like his wife. It's precious!
Come prepared with love in your heart, a smile on your face, and good will towards all.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 37
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