Morality for Beautiful Girls (No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency)

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Alexander McCall Smith

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Pages: 227 (Paperback)

ISBN: 1400031362

Pub: Anchor Books

Pub date: 2002-11

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 391272

Reader Reviews:

Lightweight (2/2 people found this helpful)

I was pleased to see that the previous reviewer had not enjoyed this book as much as A.McCall Smith's previous 'No 1 Ladies detective Agency' novels. I wholeheartedly agree and was about to decide that I would read no further in this series. Perhaps I might now give the next a try at some time in the future.

This book concentrated on Precious Ramotswe, her assistant, Mma Makutsi, and to a lesser extent, her husband-to-be and manager of Tlokweng Speedy Road Motors, Mr J.L.B.Matekoni, who is sick through most of this book.
There are two main 'cases', the first is a suspected poisoning within the family of an influential government official and the second is the search for a suitable candidate to represent Botswana in a beauty pageant. neither have particularly exciting twists to them.
I would like to have read more about the orphans now living with Mma Ramotswe and the boy that intriguingly appeared out of the forest.

It seemed more a young adult book, a lightweight, easy read.

Not as satisfying as its predecessors (5/5 people found this helpful)

"Morality for Beautiful Girls" is somewhat disappointing in comparison to the previous Mma Ramotswe novels. This has several reasons: The beginning of the novel drags on and on, and it takes almost half of the book until the plot picks up speed and tension. Several subplots are not totally convincing, especially Mr J.L.B. Matekoni's clinical depression which is so out of character and seems contrived - as if the author had intended to give the character more depth, but in my view he failed thus making a highly convincing character rather implausible. Mma Ramotswe seems to have changed character as well in the first half; she comes across as almost meek and resigned while Mma Makutsi becomes a risk-taking, self-confident jack-of-all-trades. Also, the foster children have sadly little airtime, and for many chapters in the book, they seem to be non-existent, and Mma Makutsi's brother is forgotten. Instead, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi go on and on about the good old Botswana morality and the bad girls that erode it - quite repetitive, schematic and boring after a while. Only the last third of the book is as delightful, captivating and convincing as the previous novels. Therefore "Morality for Beautiful Girls" merits no more than 3 stars.

A nice read (7/9 people found this helpful)

This book goes to bolster my initial opinion that McCall Smith is a sensational writer to look out for. The book goes to make the series a worthy read. I am particularly drawn to the way the author wrote about the way of life this African country especially its remarkable values. What is more, the characters are real and warm-hearted , and they give the story the humor that is necessary for an interesting life.

Other fun books to read are: The usurper and Other stories, The Kalahari Typing School for Men, Disciples of Fortune

Hard to read without smiling! (6/7 people found this helpful)

This third book in the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency series continues the story of the fun characters created in the first two.

It is full of gentle stories of African life and peppered with simple sentences that I can't help smiling when reading. One conversation between a woman and the main character Precious Ramotswe has the woman observing: "You're very lucky to be marrying a man who can fix things, most husbands only break things".

If you're looking for something different from the first two, then don't buy this book. But if you enjoyed the first two and you'd like more of the same, gentle story telling setting in a very different setting to most novels, then this book is for you.

I'm off to read the next in the series!

True Beauty Can Be Seen Only When There Is Light From Within (13/14 people found this helpful)

The last time I saw Mma. Precious Ramotswe, at the conclusion of "Tears of the Giraffe," the entrepreneurial private eye was happily engaged to Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, they were both making plans for a life together and bonding with their two foster children, the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency was firmly established, as was Tlokweng Road Speedy Motors, Mr. Matekoni's business, and the horizon was filled with sunshine as far as the eye could see. How drastically things can change in just one book!

"Morality for Beautiful Girls" finds trouble on both personal and professional fronts. Mr. Matekoni is going through a bout of depression and is temporarily unable to run his business. The detective agency, while enjoying tremendous success with clients and developing a fine reputation, is not making money. The couple decide to merge and reorganize! Mma. Ramotswe closes her detective agency's offices and moves her business into a small building adjacent to Speedy Motors. Mma Makutsi, who had already been promoted to assistant detective, is now appointed acting manager of the mechanical garage AND she runs the detective business while the owner is in the field. Not surprisingly, the strong woman turns out to be an extremely efficient manager and a clever investigator. Mma. Makutsi is one of my favorite characters and the way she deals with the lazy, girl crazy mechanics is priceless. Meanwhile, Mr. Matekoni, who has been persuaded to see a doctor, is resting and working on getting his health back.

An important Government Man enlists Mma. Ramotswe's services when he becomes convinced his younger brother is being poisoned. While she is out in the countryside working the case, the director of the "Miss Beauty and Integrity of Botswana Contest" asks Mma. Makutsi to help him with background checks for the contestants. He wants a "good girl" to win, someone who will not bring shame to the pageant or to Botswana. The problem is that according to the country's norms and moral codes, "good girls," don't compete in beauty contests.

As always, the mysteries may appear small but they deal with issues important to people's lives, and some of them are extremely thought-provoking and emotional. And for all their apparent simplicity, I find these books highly sophisticated. I really appreciate the way the author handles the topic of depression, and how the need to become informed and get appropriate treatment is emphasized.

Mr. Smith also stresses the importance of empathy. When considering a friend who treats her maid badly, Mma Ramotswe thinks that "such behavior was no more than ignorance; an inability to understand the hopes and aspirations of others. That understanding . . . was the beginning of all morality. If you knew how a person was feeling, if you could imagine yourself in her position, then surely it would be impossible to inflict further pain. Inflicting pain in such circumstances would be like hurting oneself."

As always, Mma. Ramotswes spirit is luminescent. She loves her fellow man, but most of all, and most inspiring, is her deep and abiding love for Africa, and for Botswana and its people. "They are my people, my brothers and sisters. It is my duty to help them to solve the mysteries of their lives. That is what I am called to do."
JANA

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