Rating: 
Summary: I LOVE THE CHARACTERS IN THIS BOOK!
Review: "I must remember, thought Mma. Ramotswe, how fortunate I am in this life; at every moment, but especially now, sitting on the verandah of my house in Zebra Drive, and looking up at the high sky of Botswana, so empty that the blue is almost white. Here she was then, Precious Ramotswe, owner of Botswana's only detective agency, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency-an agency which by and large had lived up to its initial promise to provide satisfaction for its clients, although some of them, it must be said, could never be satisfied. And here she was too, somewhere in her late thirties, which as far as she was concerned was the very finest age to be; here she was with the house in Zebra Drive and two orphan children, a boy and a girl, bringing life and chatter into the home. These were blessings with which anybody should be content. With these things in one's life, one might well say that nothing more was needed." (Page 1)So begins Alexander McCall Smith's latest book, THE KALAHARI TYPING SCHOOL FOR MEN. He has a wonderful African storytelling voice. Parts of the book are funny, sad, educational, and touching. Mma. Ramotswe deals with real and moral problems. Although the troubles take place in Africa, they are universal and range from searching for people from the past, cheating spouses, looking for love, raising children, trying to improve one's financial status, trying to right a wrong, to dealing with competition, and more. I enjoy the way Mma. Ramotswe solves her clients' problems as well as her own. There are no guns or high-speed chases. There is no fighting, cursing, or the likes. An element of danger and adventure exists in Mma. Ramotswe's work but the detective uses her wits and manners when dealing with others. The plot is always refreshing. I love the way THE KALAHARI TYPING SCHOOL FOR MEN transports me to Mma. Ramotswe's world. I feel like I'm a part of the detective agency. I feel like I'm riding with Mma. Ramotswe in her little white van along the Botswana plains. I feel like I'm sharing a cup of red bush tea with her and Mma. Makutsi. I feel like I've tasted a slice of the cake that Mma. Potokwani always serves Mma. Ramotswe at the orphanage. I feel like I know the kind and gentle Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni. I feel like I'm in the same room with his funny mechanic apprentices. Another good read. Fafa Demasio
Rating: 
Summary: I liked it.
Review: "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" belongs to the category of feel-good, heartwarming, inspirational and life-affirming fiction. Reading it reminds me of books of similar genre such as "The Alchemist". But what sets it apart from the rest are its simple yet powerful writing, unique suburban setting in Botswana Africa and captivating detective storyline charted forward by Precious Ramotswe. The characterization of Precious Romatswe is so effectively done that the reader genuinely feels for her, thinks like her and connects with her. Plot aside, what I find so refreshing in this book is the nostalgic feel for the old simple way of life in Botswana when foreign influences were kept to a minimal and people upheld morals and traditional values.
The novel sends an upliftingly positive message to the readers and incorporates various insights on life, that are universally true and equally relevant, be it in Africa, the West, Japan, China or Southeast Asia. One such insight that remains etched in my mind is, "... it is possible to change the world, if one is determined enough, and if one sees with sufficient clarity just what it is that has to be changed". In a nutshell, this book successfully integrates humour with solemnness. You will undoubtedly crave for more in this series of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.
Rating:
Summary: Old and New Affairs
Review: "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" is Alexander McCall Smith's fourth novel in the detective series that began with "The Ladies' Number 1 Detective Agency." In this new installment, the detective cases are not so much crime stories as social and personal situations for private investigator Precious Ramotswe to resolve with her psychological insight and bold maneuvering. The plot component that gives the novel its name concerns the effort of Mma Makutsi, the Agency's skillful office assistant, to found her own business, with unexpected personal consequences. Another new entrepreneur is not so welcome by the ladies - a flashy and contemptuous outsider who sets up a competing detective agency in Gaborone. In the novel's most serious subplot, an important client hires Mma Ramotswe to help him redress some wrongs in his past. The resolution of that case depends upon Mma Ramotswe's wise sense of justice and compassion. In author Smith's charming series, the environment and culture of Botswana, as embodied in Mma Ramotswe and her friends and associates, is as compelling as the mystery. That is especially true of this volume. I like these books as much for their portrayal of Mma Ramotswe, for their evocation of Botswana and Africa, for their moral authority and psychological delicacy, for their depictions of community (with its strengths and weaknesses), for their generous humanity and genuine convictions, as for their detection. These books have heart. I especially like the narrative voice and prose style, deceptively simple in service of portraying its subjects, and often imbued with poetic lyricism about the landscapes of Africa.
Rating:
Summary: I love these books: Great writing not bound by genre
Review: "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" continues the story of "lady detective" Precious Ramotswe, her fiance, Mr. J.L.B. Maketoni, and the assistant detective/secretary, Mma Makutsi. McCall Smith is an outstanding writer, not bound by genre. His descriptions of the Botswana countryside are as evocative as any "nature" writer's, and his ability to create interesting, entertaining, and complex characters is unparalleled. Precious, Mr. Maketoni, and Mma Makutsi are so clearly drawn that you would know them instantly if you met them on the street. In "Kalahari," we particularly get to know the plain, bespectacled, but utterly self-reliant Mma Makutsi better, when she starts her own typing school. My one caveat for series neophytes is that there is very little detecting going on in these books; in fact, McCall Smith appears to have given up clues, discovery, and the like entirely in favor of more character development. But he's so very very good at it, you mustn't miss it!
Rating:
Summary: Precious Ramotswe has a great deal on her mind.
Review: "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" is the fourth novel in Alexander McCall Smith's spectacularly successful series about a lady detective in Botswana. Precious Ramotswe is facing new challenges. A rival detective agency opens up nearby, and Mma. Ramotswe is worried about the competition. The two orphans whom she and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni adopted are having problems. In addition, Mma. Ramotswe is worried about her assistant, Mma. Makutsi, who cannot seem to find a husband. However, Mma. Ramotswe is an optimistic person by nature and she tries to set aside her worries. One way to forget her troubles is to take on new clients. Mma. Ramotswe accepts the case of a woman who suspects that her husband is being unfaithful. Another client is a wealthy man who wants Mma. Ramotswe to find two women whom he had wronged in the past. He wishes to apologize to them and make amends for his bad behavior. As in his earlier books, Smith's writing is sweet, funny, understated and touching. Mma. Ramotswe again displays her keen insight into human nature and her empathy for those who are in pain. "The Kalahari Typing School for Men" is written simply but it is never simplistic. This novel will delight Alexander McCall Smith's fans, and it will make readers of this series impatient for the next installment.
Rating:
Summary: Precious rules!!!
Review: In the latest book in THE NO. 1 LADIES' DETECTIVE AGENCY series, Precious Ramotswe, the first female private detective in Botswana, has issues: (1) a strutting, cocky new detective has opened shop in Gaborone and is threatening her business; (2) one of the children in her care has taken up a bad habit; (3) her secretary/assistant, Mma Makutsi is involved with a suspicious man; (4) Mma Makutsi has opened a sideline business, teaching men to type and (5) a client has given her an urgent, delicate assignment. Like Jan Karon's gentle fiction, I never tire of stories about Precious, her finance, her employee, and their lives in Africa. True, there is no thrilling action (unless you count the miracle in the garage....or the death of a water pump), but there is plenty of heart and some wonderful soul in Alexander McCall Smith's stories about the first female detective in Botswana. Read the books in order. THE NO. 1 LADIES' DETECTIVE AGENY. TEARS OF THE GIRAFFE. MORALITY LESSONS FOR BEAUTIFUL GIRLS. THE KALAHARI TYPING SCHOOL FOR MEN. Enjoy!!!
Rating:
Summary: Not really a mystery, but, excellent...
Review: A cute, sleepy private eye story told form the perspective of Precious Ramotswe, and narrated well by Lisette Lecat. In this episode, we find Precious investigating two cases: that of a philandering husband, and that of an older man who once committed a crime and wishes to make amends. What's good about this series is not the mystery. It's the characters and settings. I really got the flavor that I was in a small town in Botswana, and I enjoyed reading about Precious and her cohorts. If I have any criticism about this novel at all, there was a lack of suspense. The investigation was almost a non-event, and there was a bit too much dwelling in the past for my taste. Part of me wanted to tell the client: GET OVER IT ALREADY. The past is over and done with. Still, a cute story, sure to delight readers who want a slice of African life without too much gritty realism.
Rating:
Summary: Fortunately, NOT the Last in the Series! MORE! MORE!
Review: Alexander McCall Smith has written over 50 books from specialized works as The Criminal Law of Botswana, Forensic
Aspects of Sleep to Children's books. He currently is a Professor of Medical Law at Edinburgh University The Kalahari Typing School For Men
Now that The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (UNTIL NOW, the only detective agency for ladies and others in Botswana) is established, its founder, Precious Ramotswe, can look upon her life with pride: she's reached her late thirties ("the finest age to be"), has a house, two children, a good fiancé -- Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni -- and many satisfied customers. But life is never without its problems. It turns out that her adopted son is responsible for the dead hoopoe bird in the garden; her assistant, Mma Makutsi, wants a husband and needs help with her idea to open the Kalahari Typing School for Men; yet Mma Ramotswe's sexist rival has no trouble opening his Satisfaction Guaranteed Detective Agency across town. Will Precious Ramotswe's delightfully cunning and profoundly moral methods save the day? Follow the continuing story of Botswana's first lady detective in the irresistible "Kalahari Typing School for Men".
Readers who haven't yet discovered Mma Ramotswe will enjoy discovering how her quiet humor, understated observations on life, and resolutely intuitive approach to detection promise to put Botswana on the sleuthing map for good.
IF there is a downside to this excellent series of enchanting mysteries, it is that it takes several years after a books initial release overseas to appear in US publication. Readers who are hooked on the lovable characters, beautiful setting and imaginative plots will be glad to know that The Full Cupboard of Life (the 5th in the series, is to be published by Polygon UK May 2003). And in a recent interview Alexander McCall Smith forsees even more books in the series! When will Mma Ramotswe and Mr J.L.B. Metekoni tie the knot (is that the correct phrase for getting married in Botswana?). What further adventures and Life's lessons will the group encounter and share with their readers? I for one CAN'T WAIT!!! The Full Cupboard of Life (the 5th in the series, is to be published by Polygon UK May 2003) I thoroughly enjoyed this book for it's unique and likable characters and exotic setting. The uniqueness of the mysteries
reflect a simpler lifestyle than many of us live and especially expect in a "mystery". TOTAL ENJOYMENT!
John Row
Rating:
Summary: More Botswanan Delight
Review: Another little burst of delightfulness from the world of Precious Ramotswe, her husband to be Mr J. L. B. Maketoni and their assistant Mma Makutsi. Here there are all sorts of new developments. J. L. B. is over his depression of the previous book but problems are arising with the behaviour of Puso, the younger of their adopted children, which is becoming stroppy and difficult. Then there is the nasty development of a rival in the detective business, flashy, male, ex-CID and publicly quite contemptuous of the female competition. J. L. B.'s difficult apprentices remain as oversexed as ever but one of them gets religion. It is he who proposes "Learn to Drive with Jesus" as a name for the new business venture Mma Makutsi proposes to embark on in a bid to save her floundering finances. In the end however she gives up on the driving school idea and proposes to address the worrying lack of typing skills among her male compatriots. Meanwhile Precious and J. L. B. are getting a bit concerned that their enterprising assistant may be lonely and thinking how good it would be if she could find herself a man... What with all this excitement there isn't much time for being a detective and indeed the whole detective business is somewhat sidelined here. Two cases nonetheless come Precious' way, the most substantial of which is no mystery but simply a commission to track down some people the client wronged many years in the past to whom he now wishes to apologize and make amends. This central story of a middle aged man, Mr Molefelo, and his search for personal redemption, needs a very sure literary touch to keep credible and interesting. But McCall Smith's touch is very sure indeed and it is entirely credible and rather moving. As is the whole of this supremely readable book.
Rating:
Summary: Another Wonderful Book in the Series
Review: Even though this book is the fourth in the series about the No. 1 Ladies' Detection Agency, it could easily be picked up and read, not having read the previous three books. The reason is that the author starts the book by giving a good summary, in several pages, of the most important points of the previous books. As good as each book in the series has been, it seems as if every new book is even better! This book imparts the wisdom of experience through the characters. I actually cried with the characters when they cried. This book finds Precious Ramotswe still unmarried, and Mma Makutsi starting a typing school, and with a boyfriend. The cases taken on are as interesting as always, and their resolutions impart wisdom to the reader. This book left me immediately eager to pick up the fifth book in the series.
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