The Kalahari Typing School for Men

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View books by Alexander McCall Smith.

Unsurprising - Rated
As usual, the homely wisdom of the old ways wins out, sins are expiated rather than necessarily exposed, and everyone is back in the right place at the end; but McCall Smith has brought some darker elements in here as well, including a child with AIDS. A decent quick read.

Precious Book - Rated
The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency Series has got to be the best series recently written. It's been a long time since such a number of books have been so devoured, enjoyed and smiled at. Mccall Smith has a genius touch managing to make simple lives seem so attractive, and the plainly described African landscape so enticing. The plot lines are typical of most we all come across in our daily lives - unwanted children, relationship breakdown, depression and economic hardship - yet the optimism and community spirit is almost palpable. Precious books.

Keep them coming - Rated
As someone who is not a great reader this series has caught my attention remarkably well. Now the fourth installment, which for the detractors will inevitably be earmarked as not as good as the rest. I disagree, character development is how the series is progressing and it still reads as well as ever. The scene in the visit to church in this book for me is the funniest episode yet, laugh out loud funny. Keep these books coming, my interest is a long way off waning.

A nice read - Rated
The Kalahari Typing School for Men is an extremely interesting story. McCall made a combination of a great concept and an outstanding execution to come up with a story like this which deserves all the applause that it has been given. I greatly enjoyed the book and recommend it to readers interested in McCall's stories or interesting books about Africa.

Recommended along with: The Usurper and other Stories, Graceland, Disciples of Fortune

Funny, light and "traditional"! - Rated
I loved this, the fourth book in the series recording the life of Mma Ramotswe, the only lady private detective in Botswana.

I couldn't help smiling as I read the book, the use of language in the book is very engaging and I love the way AMS records the private thoughts of each character. One piece, which particularly tickled me, was a rambling digression of Mma Ramotswe herself: she was thinking (as is often the case) about the traditional ways of Botswana; she recalled that about half of the Botwanan people followed traditional ways and about half followed the church. Then she digressed into how, people in the church held that people went to heaven. Then she went on to think that there were probably cows in heaven too - and that if there were these cows would be very nice, good cows, with lovely brown eyes and white skin. Then she thought that of course if there were nice cows in heaven, they could give rides to the children - but of course that meant the children would be late and that was very sad.

The book is full of this kind of lovely rambling descriptive thinking weaved in amongst the stories about an errant husband, a man who wants to fix wrongs he committed as a youth, a competitor in the detective business and love for Mma Makutsi.

I loved the book, I thought it was probably better than Nos 2 & 3, very much of the standard of the first one - well worth a read.