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[/amazon_link]Title : The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection
Author : Alexander McCall Smith
Genre : Contemporary
Publisher : Pantheon
Pages : 257
Source : Library
Rating : 4/5
The 13th book in the series, The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection has Mma Ramotswe caught up again in a bunch of mysteries. The first one involves Mma Potokwane who, after her opposition to some of the board’s decisions, has unceremoniously been removed as the head of the orphan farm. Meanwhile Mma Makutsi and her husband Phuti Radiphuti are building their new home. However their builder, who touts his building standards as being of the highest quality, is reluctant to have them come onsite to inspect the building work and rebuffs all Mma Makutsi’s overtures to find out about the construction. Mma Makutsi is sure that there is something fishy going on.Then there is the incident where Fanwell, the hard-working mechanic in Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni’s garage is arrested by the police for his connection to a stolen car.
All these chaotic happenings, one coming after the other leave the sleuths of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency quite spent. And to top it all, Mma Ramotswe has been having dreams of a tall, white stranger, who, amazingly, soon lands up at their doorstep. He is the famous Clovis Anderson, the author of Mma Ramotswe’s bible “Principles of Private Detection”. Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi are quite awestruck seeing the great detective in their midst; he has come all the way from Indiana, America to Africa. When Mma Ramotswe looks forward to his suggestions on her cases, he himself has some problems that she can help with.
Mma Ramotswe goes about resolving the mysteries with her equanimity and good sense. Her words, pertinent and sound reflect the values of her home country of Botswana, and the great love she (and others) feel for it. With Alexander McCall Smith’s No. 1 Detective series, one comes to expect a certain sort of a book. Interesting, questioning and beautiful. This one is no less.Highly recommended.
But they were all human, just as she was, and the real issue was whether they were doing their best. Mma Ramotswe felt that as long as you did your best, then it was not too important if you below the standards that others might expect of you. What mattered was doing your best and then, if your best turned out to be not very good, at least admitting it and trying a bit harder next time.
