The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith
| The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith | |
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| Category: General Fiction | |
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Reviewer: Ruth Ng
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| Summary: In this the 12th book about Mma Ramotswe's detective agency we see her helping her assistant detective, Grace, who is preparing for her wedding. All the wonderfully slow delightfulness that you would expect from one of these books! | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 256 | Date: March 2012 |
| Publisher: Abacus | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-0349123134 | |
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Alexander McCall Smith makes it look so easy, churning out book after delightful book that continue to delight and amuse his loyal readers. His writing seems effortless, and in this story, once again, the characters remain the wonderful friends we have always known and expected them to be, as if they really are alive and living these stories somewhere and AMS is simply transcribing them for our pleasure.
So, here in this 12th outing we find that Grace Makutsi's wedding to Phuti Radiphuti is fast approaching and she is, of course, looking for the perfect pair of shoes to wear. In the office, Mma Ramotswe is dealing with a case concerning the brutal murder of a man's cow. During her investigations she discovers that things are not always as they appear to be, and sometimes reaching a conclusion just isn't possible. And back at the garage, Charlie is facing the prospect of being a father to twins...
I love how well we know these characters now, over this long series, and how it feels like sitting down amongst friends to find out how everyone is getting along. Everything seemed to go just as it should in this book, and although the detective work revolves around only one case there is plenty going on in the lives of the characters to keep the story moving along. I loved Mma Potokwani's intervention into Grace's wedding towards the end, and the mystery of Mma Ramotswe's 'ghost van' being seen around town! I know some readers would probably find everything far too slow-moving in these books, but if you're already a fan then you won't be disappointed.
Some of my favourite moments are when Mma Ramotswe takes a moment just to reflect. Here at the end of the book she stands for a while to think about marriage and thinks to herself: A wedding was a strange ceremony, she thought, with all those formal words, those solemn vows made by one to another; whereas the real question that should be put to the two people involved was a very simple one. Are you happy with each other? was the only question that should be asked; to which they both should reply, preferably in unison, Yes. Simple questions - and simple answers - were what we needed in life. That was what Mma Ramotswe believed. Yes. Take a seat with your cup of redbush tea, and soak up the moments of day to day life in Botswana.
If you've lost track of where you are in the series the previous book was The Double Comfort Safari Club, and the one following is The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection.
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You can read more book reviews or buy The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith at Amazon.com.
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