Alexander McCall Smith

Wayward daughters. Missing Husbands. Philandering partners. Curious conmen. If you''ve got a problem, and no one else can help you, then pay a visit to Precious Ramotswe, Botswana''s only - and finest - female private detective. Her methods may not be conventional, and her manner not exactly Miss Marple, but she''s got warmth, wit and canny intuition on her side, not to mention Mr J. L. B. Matekoni, the charming proprietor of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors. And Precious is going to need them all as she sets out on the trail of a missing child, a case that tumbles our heroine into a hotbed of strange situations and more than a little danger ...Delightfully different, THE NO.1 LADIES'' DETECTIVE AGENCY offers a captivating glimpse of an unusual world.

As summer blooms in Edinburgh's gardens and Bertie Pollock's birthday appears on the horizon, all at 44 Scotland Street is not cake and sunshine. Newlywed Angus Lordie has been booked by his bride into what he must not call the loony bin; Bruce's first encounter with hot wax brings more anguish than he bargained for; and Bertie's birthday dreams of scout camp and a penknife look set to be replaced by a game of Royal Weddings and a gender-neutral doll. But fate, an amorous Bedouin and the Dubai Tourist Authority conspire to transport Bertie's mother Irene to a warmer - if not a better - place, and once again in Scotland Street the triumph of human kindness over adversity gives cause for celebration.

Adventure stories full of the sights, sounds and smells of Africa from best-selling author Alexander McCall Smith. There''s a hungry lion stealing cattle, and Akimbo''s father has to catch it! But instead, he traps a cub. The cub won''t survive for long without its mother. Can Akimbo help save it? Alexander McCall Smith''s animal stories have earned their place as truly classic children''s stories.

The thirteenth novel in the wonderful No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, from master storyteller Alexander McCall Smith.

Even the arrival of her baby can't hold Mma Makutsi back from success in the workplace, and so no sooner than she becomes a full partner in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency (in spite of Mma Ramotswe's belated claims that she is only 'an assistant full partner'), she also launches a new enterprise of her own, the Handsome Man's De Luxe Cafe. Grace Makutsi is a lady with a business plan, but who could predict temperamental chefs, drunken waiters and more? Luckily, help is at hand, from the only person in Gaborone more gently determined than Mma Makutsi ...Mma Ramotswe, of course.

Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi have always relied on the advice of the classic guide to their trade, The Principles of Private Detection. But who is the eminent author, Mr Clovis Andersen, and what if he were to come to Botswana? That seems a very unlikely possibility, and yet ...When Mr Andersen visits Botswana on holiday, he is delighted and intrigued to stumble across a roadside sign that reveals...

En su segunda aventura, la detective Precious Ramotswe deberá poner a prueba toda su intuición y su sensibilidad para resolver su caso más complicado: la desaparición de un americano en los límites del Kalahari Pero, ademas, Precious debe atender a las preocupaciones, mas cercanas, de su propio hogar: la promocion de su secretaria Mma Makutsi a la mareante posicion de detective auxiliar, su inminente boda con el maravilloso J.L.B. Matekoni, el problema causado por la falta de escrupulos de su criada y la llegada inesperada no de una sino de dos adiciones a la familia MatekoniUna trama original para una novela diferente, que nos muestra un continente africano alejado de los cliches.

Long-suffering child genius Bertie Pollock has much to contend with in the latest instalment of life at 44 Scotland Street, not least the birth of his brother Ulysses. Bertie had hoped that caring for a new baby would command all of his mother?s attention, but he quickly sees that his dream of being left to his own devices is not destined to come true. Overprotective Irene bans Bertie from the playground, but then forgets little Ulysses outside the delicatessen, and suffers a deeply embarrassing moment when she unwittingly retrieves the wrong baby. Meanwhile, for the other residents of Scotland Street, all?s fair in love and friendship. Big Lou finds a new man, Matthew and Pat edge their relationship towards something more permanent - although this development is not without complications, when a glimpse of someone who just might be her handsome, caddish ex-flatmate Bruce sets Pat?s pulse racing - and Domenica?s friendship with Antonia is tested to the limit when an assortment of her belongings mysteriously appear in Antonia's new flat.

It has never occurred to Precious Ramotswe that there might be disadvantages to being the best-known lady detective in Botswana. But when she receives a threatening anonymous letter, she is compelled to reconsider her unconquerable belief in a kind world and good neighbours. While she ponders the identity of the letter-writer Mma Ramotswe has a further set of problems to solve, both professional and personal. There is an adopted child's poignant search for her true family, and Mr J. L. B. Matekoni's pursuit of an expensive miracle for their own foster daughter Motholeli. With these latest developments on Tlokweng Road, Alexander McCall Smith reveals with all his brilliant storytelling skill that there are very few troubles that cannot be solved with kindness, and very few dry seasons that do not end with welcome rain.

THE NO.1 LADIES'' DETECTIVE AGENCY introduced the world to the one and only Precious Ramotswe - the engaging and sassy owner of Botswana''s only detective agency. TEARS OF THE GIRAFFE, McCall Smith''s second book, takes us further into this world as we follow Mama Ramotswe into more daring situations ...Among her cases this time are wayward wives, unscrupulous maids, and the challenge to resolve a mother''s pain for her son who is long lost on the African plains. Indeed, Mma Ramotswe''s own impending marriage to the most gentlemanly of men, Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, the promotion of Mma''s secretary to the dizzy heights of Assistant Detective, and the arrival of new members to the Matekoni family, all brew up the most humorous and charmingly entertaining of tales. * TEARS OF THE GIRAFFE was selected as one of the GUARDIAN''s top ten ''Fiction Paperbacks of the Year, 2000

Includes brilliant baboon facts! Akimbo loves his life in Africa and the animals that live there. In this newest Akimbo story, a lady comes to study the baboons in the game reserve where Akimbo''s father is the head ranger. Akimbo is keen to help and find out all he can about baboons - and in so doing comes closer to a much more dangerous animal

In the latest installment of this infinitely enjoyable and best-selling series, Precious Ramotswe is doing what she does best--helping people with their problems and enjoying the simple pleasures of life. Mma Ramotswe is busy investigating her latest case: a woman who is looking for her family. The problem is, the woman doesn''t know her real name of whether any members of her family are now living. Meanwhile, Phuti Radiphuti has bought Mma Makutsi a glorious new bed. Unfortunately, it will inadvertently cause her several sleepless nights. And life is no less complicated at Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, where Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni--Mma Ramotswe''s estimable husband--has fallen under the sway of a doctor who has promised a miracle cure for his daughter''s medical condition, which Mma Ramotswe finds hard to believe. But Precious Ramotswe deals with these difficulties with her usual grace and good humor, and in the end discovers that the biggest miracles in life are often the small ones.

Precious Ramotswe, traditionally built proprietor of the famous No. 1 Ladies'' Detective Agency, is finally married to Mr J. L. B. Matekoni of Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, the agency is busy and life couldn''t be better. Or could it ...? With mishaps on the road and personality clashes at work, it seems Mma Ramotswe still has her work cut out.

Adjoa Andoh is the reader for all five Mma Ramotswe audiobooks.