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Title details for The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon by Alexander McCall Smith - Available

The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon

#14 in series

by Alexander McCall Smith
Lisette Lecat
Audiobook
2 of 2 copies available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
2 of 2 copies available
Modern ideas get tangled up with traditional ones in the latest intriguing installment in the beloved, best-selling No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. Precious Ramotswe has taken on two puzzling cases. First she is approached by the lawyer Mma Sheba, who is the executor of a deceased farmer's estate. Mma Sheba has a feeling that the young man who has stepped forward may be falsely impersonating the farmer's nephew in order to claim his inheritance. Mma Ramotswe agrees to visit the farm and find out what she can about the self-professed nephew. Then the proprietor of the Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon comes to Mma Ramotswe for advice. The opening of her new salon has been shadowed by misfortune. Not only has she received a bad omen in the mail, but rumors are swirling that the salon is using dangerous products that burn people's skin. Could someone be trying to put the salon out of business? Meanwhile, at the office, Mma Ramotswe has noticed something different about Grace Makutsi lately. Though Mma Makutsi has mentioned nothing, it has become clear that she is pregnant . . . But in Botswana - a land where family has always been held above all else-this may be cause for controversy as well as celebration. With genuine warmth, sympathy, and wit, Alexander McCall Smith explores some tough questions about married life, parenthood, grief, and the importance of the traditions that shape and guide our lives.

  • Creators

  • Series

    The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    November 5, 2013

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781470368906
      • File size: 278632 KB
      • Duration: 09:40:28

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Lisette Lecat reprises her well-loved role as Botswana's number one narrator as listeners are welcomed back to Gabarone and the investigations of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency. Setting the tempo with a distinctive accent, Lecat invites listeners to sit, perhaps with some tea, and enjoy Mma Ramotswe as she observes human nature. Two mysteries need solving--an impersonator stands to inherit a considerable farm, and a saboteur threatens to destroy a salon--and Mma Ramotswe is on her own. Mma Makutsi is on maternity leave, and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni is distracted by classes for "modern husbands." Whether its Mma Ramotswe's regular moments of self-reflection or the dialogue of so many memorable characters, Lecat excels at capturing inflection and emotion. Another charming, and addictive, performance. A.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
    • Library Journal

      March 1, 2014

      For a series now with 14 entries, McCall Smith's Botswana-set books starring Mma Precious Ramotswe have maintained a remarkably high standard. Every novel adds new depth to its beloved characters while spinning plot twists that are sufficiently intriguing to make each book work on its own as a satisfying detective story. This latest (after The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection) explores the effect of motherhood on Precious's recently married associate, Mma Makutsi. The latter's maternity-leave causes the unfailingly sensitive Mma Ramotswe to redefine her professional relationship with her assistant. Meanwhile, the agency confronts troubling cases of a possibly false heir to a farm and a beauty salon targeted by a vicious rumor campaign. Despite the country's many admirable qualities, all is not well in Botswana. Lisette Lecat's narration is, as always, pitch perfect. VERDICT Another excellent title from McCall Smith.--R. Kent Rasmussen, Thousand Oaks, CA

      Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Publisher's Weekly

      September 9, 2013
      The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency could be about to lose its #2 investigator in Smith’s endearing 14th installment of the bestselling Botswana-set series (after 2012’s The Limpopo Academy of Private Detection). One hardly needs the renowned deductive powers of agency head Mma Precious Ramotswe to notice the growing bulk beneath the increasingly voluminous garb of recently married second-in-command Mma Grace Makutsi. But the normally frighteningly efficient assistant stays mum as the pair try to establish whether the young “nephew” attempting to claim a dead man’s estate is in fact an imposter. Meanwhile, Mma Ramotswe allows herself to be snookered into figuring out who’s mounting a smear campaign against the titular beauty establishment. The two story lines work as serviceably as Mma Ramotswe’s doughty white van to propel the story forward, but the book’s appeal lies less in deduction than irrepressible characters, intriguing local lore, and bone-deep love of Africa. Agent: Robin Straus, Robin Straus Agency.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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