"If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales." Albert Einstein

09 April 2010

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency


Smith, Alexander. The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. New York: Anchor Books, 1998.

As I have been packing my possessions in preparation for a cross-oceanic voyage, I have found myself, sadly, in want of books to read. Having nearly exhausted our library's selection, I have chosen another route: borrowing books from my friends. This means that I sometimes read books that are not within my normal range of genres, but it also guarantees that I can get an in-person review of the book before I read it.

This book is not one that I would have picked up off the shelves myself, but I decided to try it anyway, and I did enjoy it. The story is not a fast-paced thriller like those so popular these days, but the pace of the story does fit the pace of the African culture described. I will admit that I also don't always understand multicultural humor, so I probably missed some very funny things at points in this story. But it was a good read, and well worth the time.

My one caveat is this: abuse survivors may want to skip chapter 2. This chapter describes the protagonist's background, and while not entirely graphic, can still be a trigger point. I was unpleasantly surprised when I hit that chapter, but the rest of the story can be read and understood without it.

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