The Good Husband of Zebra Drive
No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Mystery # 8

by Alexander McCall Smith

No year is complete these days without another installment in the enthralling tales from the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency. In this novel, Mr J L B Maketoni decides to have a go at being a detective himself, and Grace Makutsi is keen on promotion – or does she just want to leave? Charlie wants to start his own taxi service, and the agency gets to grips with some new cases. Why does a hospital bed seem to be cursed? What can the owner of a printing company do about a light-fingered member of staff?

You will have to search for a long time to find books more full of human interest and humanity. Common sense and cool thinking solve the cases, which, as ever, have something of the flavor of the judgment of Solomon, or a folk tale told around a fire. As much as this, these are books celebrating the small but good things about daily life: a cup of bush tea shared with friends, the wide African skies, pleasant company, and an ordered life. The author manages to be comfortable rather than just cozy and always shows that all is not idyllic in Botswana. There is poverty, injustice and dishonesty aplenty, the lot of the human condition. These books probably ought to be available on prescription, and it is with a sense of loss that I closed the cover of this eighth book. Hugely enjoyable, my highest accolade.

Reviews of other titles in this series

Blue Shoes and Happiness, #7
The Good Husband of Zebra Drive, #8
The Miracle at Speedy Motors, #9
Tea Time For The Traditionally Built, #10
The Double Comfort Safari Club, #11
The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party, #12
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon #14
The Handsome Man’s DeLuxe Café #15
The Woman Who Walked In Sunshine #16
Precious and Grace #17
The House of Unexpected Sisters #18
The Colours of all the Cattle #19