Book Blogger Hop (and a Guilty Conscience)

Hosted by Jennifer from Crazy-for-Books, this Book Blogger Hop is a brilliant BOOK PARTY, and lasts from January 28 until January 31. It's a fun, friendly way for book bloggers to socialize, connect with other book lovers, and discover new book blogs. If you'd like me to visit your blog, please leave a comment and I'll be happy to hop by.






Each week, Jennifer chooses a question from those submitted by book bloggers for discussion. This week's question is from Aliyah from Des Absurdités: What book are you most looking forward to seeing published in 2011? Why are you anticipating that book?

This is another great question, although it makes me a bit nervous as well. Here's my story.

A couple of years ago, I started to read a series of books I'd heard about but had never read. I fell in love with this series, and want to read the entire series. I am looking forward to The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party: The New No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency Novel by Alexander McCall Smith, which is due out in March of this year. I adore this series, which features two clever, caring detectives in Botswana, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi. I was on a roll with these books and read each and every one of them in order. That is, until last year, when I fell behind in my reading of this series. I had read all of the books up until the one published last year, The Double Comfort Safari Club. I will read that book before I read the new one. I am feeling very guilty that I haven't read Double Comfort yet. But my guilty conscience doesn't end there. There are many other sequels and series books that I have not yet read, and I feel bad about this. Some of the books that I blogged about in earlier days now have sequels (by Michael J. Fox, Elizabeth Gilbert, and Nora Ephron, for example), and I feel bad that I haven't read them; and there are series books such as the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace, which are so beautifully written that I want to read more of them. Why haven't I finished reading the Millennium trilogy by Steig Larsson? I have all three books but have only read the first one, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I even have a "prequel", The Defector by Daniel Silva, the book that came out before The Rembrandt Affair, and provides the backstory--and I haven't read that one yet! Sometimes I feel as if I should stop getting any new books, until I read all of the books that I already have. Or maybe I should just try to spend more time reading! :)

Book Blogger Hop: A Challenge Taken to Heart

The Book Blogger Hop is a weekly event for bloggers and readers, a chance to socialize in a virtual way, to connect with other book lovers, make new friends and followers, and share an appreciation of books. Hosted by the brilliant Jennifer from Crazy-for-Books, this Hop lasts from November 12 until November 15, so there's still ample time to sign-up and enjoy the blogosphere's best BOOK PARTY! If you'd like me to visit your blog, please leave a comment.

Jennifer's Book Blogger Hop gets better each and every week! In addition to presenting a question-of-the-week, often submitted by other book bloggers, she posed a unique challenge last week. Admittedly, I was reluctant at first to take on her seemingly hefty challenge. To sum it up, Jennifer asked that we find a new blog and really get to know it throughout the week, to leave at least five comments on that blog, and then to post about the experience during the next Hop. Initially, I was not going to do this challenge, because I already have plenty to do, blogging-wise and other-wise. But I thought about it, and I realized that this was indeed the whole point of the Book Blogger Hop, to discover a new blog or two that you truly want to visit frequently. At that point, I decided to follow through wholeheartedly on Jennifer's challenge.

After some perusing, I decided to focus on Leslie's blog, Under My Apple Tree, which features mostly books, with a bit of nature, birds, flowers, food and photography, interconnected in an artistic fashion. These are some of my favorite things, so I thought this blog would be a good fit for me. I was undoubtedly also influenced by a book I recently finished reading, Heart With Joy. While I don't routinely read many young adult books, I thoroughly enjoyed this book, reviewed it, and even interviewed the gracious author, Steve Cushman. Anyway, in this book there's a wonderful character, "Old Lady Peters", who is an avid bird-watcher and teaches the main character in the story, Julian Hale, to also watch and care for our feathered friends.

To make things easy for myself, and to insure that I would, indeed, leave frequent comments, I added Under My Apple Tree to my blogroll (which allows me to know at a glance when a blog has published a new post). Throughout the past week, I visited this blog numerous times and left many comments. (Leslie may have wondered who I was and why I was suddenly leaving so many comments!) I will continue to follow this blog in an earnest fashion. Because really, as I've mentioned already, the point of blog hopping is precisely to discover sites that interest you in more than a superficial way.

Thank you, Jennifer, for giving me the push I needed, and for helping me to discover a very lovely book blog!

Each week, Jennifer presents a question for participating book bloggers to answer. This week's question is from Christina from The Paperback Princesses: If you find a book that looks interesting but is part of a series, do you always start with the first title?

Another interesting question! As a general rule, I do try to start with the first book in a series. For example, I've read all of the books in The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith in order, although I have yet to read the last book in this series (it sits patiently in my TBR stack). However, there are definitely exceptions to the "rule". I read--and enjoyed--the well-crafted thriller, The Rembrandt Affair, which is a part of the Gabriel Allon series by Daniel Silva, without having read any of the preceding books. I should add that this book "stood alone" quite well.

Thanks for reading!

Mailbox Sunday

  Mailbox Monday, one of my favorite memes, just happens to be hosted in September by one of my favorite bloggers, Kathy from Bermudaonion's Weblog. Created by Marcia of The Printed Page, Mailbox Monday is currently on tour. During October, Avis from She Reads and Reads will be hosting this meme. This week, I'm following Kathy's lead and posting a day early. Pictured are the books that recently graced my mailbox.

13 rue Thérèse by Elena Mauli Shapiro arrived from Reagan Arthur books, gift wrapped and with a small tin of candy! This will be the first book I review for The Reagan Arthur Books Challenge.


Have you ever ordered used books from Amazon? I often do, and have been quite happy with my purchases. (I also sell a few used books on Amazon, as I've mentioned previously.) Three of the books in the photo are used books that I bought from Amazon. I'm planning on reading the millennium trilogy by Steig Larsson, and I've read the first book and a bit of the second, but I needed to get the third book, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, to complete the set. I'm also determined to read all of the books in The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith, so I ordered the latest book, The Double Comfort Safari Club. (I did not expect to love this series as much as I do. Take me to Botswana!) Lastly, I ordered Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan, a short story collection that sounds absolutely extraordinary.

What new (or used) books have you gotten recently in the mail or from elsewhere?

A Conversation with Enna Neru

I was thrilled to receive Enna Neru's book, An African Tale, which arrived all the way from Botswana!  Some readers of my blog already know that I am absolutely intrigued by this African country.

1) Welcome, Enna! Thank you so much for sending me your wonderful book, and for answering some questions.  Please tell us a bit about your background, and the inspiration behind An African Tale, which I've just read.

EN: I run a camp on the edge of the Okavango Delta. This camp started off very humbly about 17 years ago with just a camp site and outside ablutions, we didn't even have electricity or phones, (no cell phones in those days). Over the years it has grown into quite a substantial business.

Village close to Maun is a mix of traditional  thatched huts and modern brick buildings.

Along the way I have been doing a lot of work with the communities that live in the Delta, taking tourists out to do "mokoro" (dug out canoes) trips with them. The idea was also to try and slowly bring the rural communities into the modern world of business without handouts so that they would have something substantial to build on. Spending time out there in that changing but unchanged world, sometimes not very far from town, is probably where I started to dream up this story.

Mokoro rides in the Gotomi River.

2) Africa has a long tradition of folktales, populated by semi-gods and animals with human (speaking) and magical powers (flying, changing size), which you incorporate into your story.  I envision parents reading this book to children, a chapter or two each night before bed.  Were folktales recited to you as a child, did you read them in books, or both?

EN: I wanted to write a story for African children using the old and the new and trying to show them how a balance is needed between the two. A lot of times when kids leave their rural homes for school and the modern world they disregard what they have left behind describing it as backward. I grew up with a father who had many traditional tales in his head and it was always a nighttime treat, some of it passed down, a lot just made up on the spot. Some of what I have used is taken from traditional material but a lot is just fantasy.

3) Although An African Tale is a children's book, there are important messages in it about the conservation of natural resources.  How has the modernization of Botswana helped and hurt this African nation?

EN: Botswana started out life after independence in 1966 as one of the poorest nations in the world and is now thanks to the discovery of diamonds one of the wealthiest ones. It is a very peaceful and well run country and its people are prospering. The downside is that it is built on Kalahari sand and most of the country is semi-desert which means a lot of thought needs to be given to the environment. Overdevelopment is going to put a huge strain on this.

4) Because I'm not that familiar with African names, which are quite lovely and lyrical, your list of Setswana names for the creatures and characters in your story at the back of the book helped me to keep track of them and learn their meanings.  How important are names in Africa? Does Enna have a special meaning?

EN: Names are very important in Botswana and I would say generally in Africa. The more pleasant ones such as Lorato and Lesedi are used a lot. Enna is actually Anne backwards as you guessed!

5) As a tea drinker, I became interested in rooibos, or red tea, as a result of reading Alexander McCall Smith's The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series, where tea is a central part of daily life.  Do you drink tea, and if so, what kind?

EN: I drink Rooibos, love it. It comes from South Africa. Not everyone likes it here but they do like tea and it is normally drunk in a very large mug with plenty of sugar.
 
(I also enjoy red tea. There are so many varieties, such as Botswana Blossom and Good Hope Vanilla, that I'd like to try.)

6) What do you enjoy doing when you're not writing?  Do you have any interests you'd like to share?

EN: Well, I haven't done a lot of writing, this book took ages and then I had to build up the courage to let someone read it! I did write a play which got onto the BBC and helped build a bit of confidence. What I am doing at the moment is getting a project together to work with underprivileged kids in the art world, dance, music, etc.. There is enormous talent out there and the education here tends to concentrate more on the academic side of things.
 
(That sounds very worthwhile, Enna. Many of these children are probably quite gifted in the arts and need some opportunities.)

7) What, if anything, surprised you most after this book was published?  Is there another book in the works?

EN: It has all been rather exciting because people read it and come back with constructive feedback. I haven't actually finished this tale as Lesedi needs to go to the big city and work things out with Lotobo and we need to do something about that evil character in The Hills. So let's see!

Enna, I'm happy to hear that there may be a continuation to this story! Thank you so much for the interview and photos.  It's been a pleasure.

As always, reader comments are welcomed.

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built and the HBO series

Reading Tea Time for the Traditionally Built was like slipping into a pair of comfortable shoes, soft and worn in all the right places. Once again, I found myself quickly immersed in the world of red tea, dramatic African scenery, and a familiar cast of characters, made even more familiar by the HBO series I've been watching on TV since it started on Sunday, March 29. The series is quite charming and makes me appreciate the books even more.

"She finished her tea and began to walk back into the house. There is plenty of work for love to do. Yes. There was breakfast to be made, and letters to be answered, and the problems in clients' lives to be sorted out. There was quite enough to do without worrying about the sun consuming the earth. Yes, one should not worry too much, and then she looked at her van and thought: How long will I keep you going? One more day? One more week? And then how are we going to say goodbye, after so many years? It would be like losing a best friend, a faithful companion--it would be every bit as hard as that."
~Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, Alexander McCall Smith

In the newest book, "traditionally built" Mma Ramotswe is troubled by the fact that her beloved, tiny white van is on it's last legs, while Mma Makutsi, her assistant, is troubled by a glamorous rival from her days at the secretarial college, Violet Sepohotho, who seems to be trying to lure away her fiancé, Rra Phuti Radiphuti. The detectives also have their hands full with a seemingly impossible case to figure out for Mr. Molofololo: why can't the Kalahari Swoopers win any more football matches, and who is to blame for this? There's also the case of the woman with multiple husbands--what is the best way to deal with her?

Tea is, of course, an integral part of this book by Alexander McCall Smith, and the traditional way of life in Botswana. I've been partaking in this tradition and drinking my fair share of red tea while watching the show (which I look forward to all week) and during reading. I finished reading Tea Time for the Traditionally Built in about two days, with a hint of sadness to be done. However, I'm happy to hear that there will be more books in this series, and on Sunday night, I'll watch the next episode of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

Tonight's the Night

Tonight I'll be relaxing in Botswana with a cup of steaming rooibos. The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency movie series, based on the books by Alexander McCall Smith, debuts tonight in the U. S. on HBO at 8 PM PDT (please check your local listings as times may vary). I can't wait to see it at last! I expect it to be wonderful. For a peek at the show, you can watch The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency trailers.

I've read all of the books in this series, with, of course, the exception of the new one, Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, which is due out next month, and which I look greatly forward to reading.

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built

I can't believe what I stumbled upon tonight on Amazon! Tea Time for the Traditionally Built (No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Book 10) by Alexander McCall Smith will be released on April 21, 2009. I didn't know there was another book in the works. This is great news for fans of this series, such as myself. It's time to pour a cup of tea and celebrate!

But there's more terrific news! The two-hour pilot of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, directed by Anthony Minghella, will premier in the United States on HBO on March 29, 2009, and six additional weekly episodes will follow on Sunday nights. This series stars actress and singer Jill Scott as Mma Precious Ramotswe, Anika Noni Rose as Mma Grace Makutsi, Mma Ramotswe’s quirky secretary, and Lucien Msamati as Mr J.L.B. Matikone, Mma Ramotswe's love interest. It's the first movie series filmed in Botswana, and I'm really looking forward to watching it.

The Miracle at Speedy Motors: Tea and Rain

"Oh, the thinks you can think!"
~Dr. Seuss (Theodor Seuss Geisel, 1904-1991)

I wonder if Dr. Seuss was referring to one of the benefits of drinking tea? There's nothing quite like a pot of tea to set your thoughts in order, to help discover new ways of thinking about things and solutions to troubling matters. In The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books, tea helps the detectives and other Batswana think things through and come up with the best solutions to perplexing cases and problems; perhaps that is why they partake in this tradition so frequently, "to think better thinks".

Tea cup and tissues by my side, I've just finished reading the ninth and last book in this series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. I 'm sad to depart from Botswana but am very satisfied with the ending of the book and series, which leaves readers hopeful and optimistic, as does the miracle of rain in this sun-parched nation:

"Two days passed--two days in which more rain fell, great cloudbursts of rain, drenching the length and breadth of Botswana. People held their breath in gratitude, hardly daring to speak of the deluge lest it should suddenly stop and the dryness return. The rivers, for long months little more than dusty beds of rust-colored sand, appeared again, filled to overflowing in some cases, twisting snakes of mud-brown water moving across the plains. . . . The bush, a dessicated brown before the storms, turned green overnight, as the shoots of dormant plants thrust their way through the soil. Flowers followed, tiny yellow flowers, spreading like a dusting of gold across the land. Ground vines sent out tendrils, melons would grow in abundance later on, as an offering, an expiation for the barrenness of the dry months that had gone before."
~The Miracle at Speedy Motors, Alexander McCall Smith

The tea cup is half-full.

Botswana Day is celebrated on September 30th, the day that this nation, which has achieved great economic growth within the past forty years, became independent from the British.

The Miracle at Speedy Motors: More Tea Talk

I don't want my African adventures to end. I may try and make this one last, the final book in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors by Alexander McCall Smith. On the other hand, I may just have to read this book at my normal speed, because it's so absorbing. In this book, there are many things to be pondered. At the detective agency we meet Mma Sebina, who wants to find out who her family is, no easy feat. Associate detective Mma Makutsi, who scored a 97 percent at the Botswana Secretarial College, gets a fancy new bed, but is not getting any sleep. There's also the matter of a miracle cure for Motholeli, who uses a wheelchair--is it too good to be true? And how many cattle constitute a fair dowry or bogadi? (Even Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, who hold traditional Botswana values, think it would be better if a man did not have to pay for his wife, because a wife is not a thing to be bought or possessed.) I'm not quite half-way through The Miracle at Speedy Motors, and am once again enjoying the company of Mma Ramotswe and her entourage. With each book, the characters become more real, more fleshed out, showing their various human strengths and shortcomings. It must have been rather challenging for the author to write a series of nine books without boring the reader--just from blogging about them I face a similar challenge to a much lesser degree--but these books remain intriguing because the characters are more fully developed, and you really care about them. You also care about something important to them which they drink quite frequently, tea:

"Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni smiled. They were always having tea, as far as he could work out. There was the first cup, served shortly after they arrived in the office in the morning, and then there was the ten o'clock cup, which was sometimes taken at nine thirty in the hot weather. That was followed by the tea which was brewed at eleven thirty (the mid-morning tea), and of course there was tea immediately after lunch and again at three in the afternoon. He thought it was a good thing that the red bush tea contained no caffeine, or Mma Ramotswe would surely find it difficult to get to sleep at night, with all that caffeine in her system. Yet Mma Makutsi drank ordinary tea, which had ample quantities of caffeine in it, he believed; indeed he thought that this might explain why she was sometimes so tetchy with the apprentices, especially with Charlie. Mind you, anybody might be forgiven for being irritated by Charlie, with his constant boasting and that endless silly chatter about girls; even one with no caffeine at all in his system could find himself snapping at such a young man."
~The Miracle at Speedy Motors, Alexander McCall Smith

Just as a good TV series eventually must end at the right time, so must this series of books, I suppose, although I certainly wouldn't object to a tenth book. I will greatly miss this fine cast of characters, beautiful Botswana, and all the references to tea. Even when they sit around drinking tea, or perhaps especially when they sit around drinking tea, their world is warm and inviting.

The Good Husband of Zebra Drive

I never regret time spent in Botswana, in the serene world of Mma Ramotswe, a place of hope and good values, even as this African nation copes with modernization. In the eighth book of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, The Good Husband of Zebra Driveby Alexander McCall Smith, the agency investigates an errant husband, three mysterious deaths at the Mochudi hospital, as well as a case of suspected employee theft at a printing company. Three main characters, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, Mma Makutsi, and the older apprentice, Charlie, become restless and yearn for "greener pastures"; each seeks work outside of their chosen professions. Of course, the head detective remains calm and thoughtful, and while the others are like characters in the Wizard of Oz, seeking their fortunes on new paths, Mma Ramotswe grants them this freedom to explore--like a good mother. Will they return "home" ("there's no place like home"), which in this case is The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency in Gaborone, Botswana? I'll not reveal what happens here!

I read this book quickly, enjoyed it thoroughly, and even started the last book in the series, The Miracle at Speedy Motors last night. I'll be sad when I'm finished with the series, but know that I can always reread these beautiful books. I'm also trying to get the series on DVD; if anyone knows how I can do that please contact me. After I finish reading the ninth book, I may have a party to watch the show with friends and family, where I'll serve red tea and cake, and perhaps some African appetizers.

Blue Shoes and Happiness: Don't Read this Post

I've been reading this book quickly, eager to learn the significance of the title, Blue Shoes and Happiness. In chapter thirteen, the mystery is over. PLEASE STOP READING NOW if you want to be surprised by what happens; read an older post, navigate away from this site, shut down your computer, get back to work, grab a snack--do whatever you must to stay uninformed.

Are you still reading? Okay, but don't blame me for revealing too much. If you've read some of these books you may have surmised that Mma Makutsi, with her penchant for shoes (she already has a pair of green shoes with sky-blue linings), will be involved. She cannot resist a fashionable blue pair "with delicate high heels and toes which came to a point" while out shopping with Mma Ramotswe. In fact, Mma Makutsi is positively smitten by them, decides she must have them, and purchases them. Unfortunately, she tries wearing them, intent on "breaking them in", but they are not suited for her "traditionally built" feet, and cause her pain. She cannot walk in them, and later confesses to her understanding friend and employer, Mma Ramotswe:

"They are a bit small for me, Mma," she confessed. "I think you were right. But I felt great happiness when I wore them, and I shall always remember that. They are such beautiful shoes."
Mma Ramotswe laughed. "Well, that's the important thing, isn't it, Mma? To feel happiness, and then to remember it."
"I think that you're right," said Mma Makutsi. Happiness was an elusive thing. It had something to do with having beautiful shoes, sometimes, but it was about so much else. About a country. About a people. About having friends like this.
~Blue Shoes and Happiness, Alexander McCall Smith

Blue Shoes and Happiness: In the Company of Snakes and Feminists

Imagine a cobra coiled up at your feet--would you panic? I don't know much about surviving an encounter with a venomous snake, other than to limit sudden movements which could provoke a snake to strike. Blue Shoes and Happiness takes place in Africa--as do all the books in the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series--where snakes are a real danger. In the second chapter of Blue Shoes and Happiness, a snake is discovered in the detective agency office, and while the chapter is humorous it's no laughing matter to deal with this formidable creature:

"And remember that they are as frightened of us as we are of them--possibly even more so." (Omed Ramotswe, Precious Ramotswe's late father) But no snake could have been as terrified as Mma Matkutsi when she saw the hood of the cobra at her feet sway from side to side. She knew she should avert her eyes, as such snakes can spit their venom into the eyes of their target with uncanny accuracy; she knew that, but still found her gaze fixed to the small black eyes of the snake, so tiny and so filled with menace.
~Blue Shoes and Happiness, Alexander McCall Smith

Needless to say, they survive this frightful snake encounter, and Alexander McCall Smith goes on to write the eighth book in this series. Another "frightening" subject in the book is feminism. What does it mean to women and men in Africa, and elsewhere? Is it something to be feared? When Mma Makutsi tells her fiancé, Phuti Radiphuti, that she's a feminist, after he asks her, she unwittingly scares him off, and soon regrets her "careless words". Phuti, who has not had much experience with women, fears that he'll be "swept aside" by this feminism--he even dreams of a giant broom--and be the target of future criticism and derision. Mma Makutsi's thoughts dwell on this matter and what feminism means to her:

"Of course she believed in those things which feminists stood up for--the right of women to have a good job and be paid the same amount as men doing the same work; the right of women to be free of bullying by their husbands. But that was all just good common sense, fairness really, and the fact that you supported these goals did not make you one of those feminists who said that men were finished. How could they say such a thing? We were all people--men and women--and you could never say that one group of people were less important than another. She would never say that, and yet Phuti Radiphuti now probably imagined that she would."
~Blue Shoes and Happiness, Alexander McCall Smith

A good way to think about feminism and sexism, in my opinion. Will Mma Makutsi and Phuti Radiphuti resolve their misunderstanding and head towards matrimony? My fingers are crossed.

In the Company of Cheerful Ladies: Wise Words

I really enjoy the little bits of wisdom in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books, and find myself subtly nodding in agreement.

"You are right, Mma, " said Mma Makutsi." We have never had so much happen all at the same time. It is better for things to happen separately. I have always said that." She paused to think for a moment before continuing. "At the Botswana Secretarial College they taught us to do one thing at a time. That is what they said we should do. One thing at a time."
~In the Company of Cheerful Ladies, Alexander McCall Smith

This may well be the age of multitasking: we text message, participate in computer chats, listen to music, work, do homework and chores, send and receive email, talk on the phone, and more--all at the same time! It's almost a luxury today to do one thing at a time. Do we feel inadequate unless we're doing several things simultaneously? Is there a shortage of time? Of course, sometimes we have no choice. In the case of The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi will not turn down business, and for all of us events in life occur randomly and inconveniently at times. As for me, I have three children, so my own life often feels like a three-ring circus. There's always a lot going on at once.

I'm finished reading In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith. The seventh book in the series is Blue Shoes and Happiness. I've been waiting to read this one. The title alone makes me smile.

In the Company of Cheerful Ladies: The Tea Cup is Half-Full

"It is a fine morning again," he said, as he walked up to her.
She turned to him and smiled. "I am always happiest in the early morning," she said. "Standing here in the garden watching the plants wake up. It is very good."
Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni agreed. He found it difficult to get out of bed as early as she did, but he knew that the first few hours of light was the best part of the day, a time of freshness and optimism.
~In the Company of Cheerful Ladies, Alexander McCall Smith

This passage from In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith captures the sense of optimism experienced by Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni in the early morning, before the intense heat and worries of the day set in. In the mornings, the tea cup is half-full; each new day holds promise and possibility, as well as peace and excitement for what's ahead. As the hours of the morning pass, we move into different states of mind. If the lesson of the morning would last for the day, then we'd effortlessly stay optimistic and positive throughout the day!

In The Company of Cheerful Ladies: A Mysterious Pumpkin, and Red Tea

The New York Times Book Review called this book, "A literary confection of . . .gossamer deliciousness. . . ." I've just started reading another very enjoyable tale set in Botswana, In the Company of Cheerful Ladies by Alexander McCall Smith. Super sleuth Mma Ramotswe has a mystery in her own life right now--who left the delectable pumpkin on her porch? (That shouldn't spoil too much of the story for you should you decide to read it!) As with all the books in this series, the beginning chapter summarizes events from the previous books, so readers don't need to read each one to know what's going on, although I've made the choice to read each book of the series, in order.

Last night I had to pick up a few groceries and found a container of rooibos, the ever-present tea in the No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, to enjoy at home. I was tempted to buy a red tea with the enticing name of "Botswana Blossom", but decided to get the plain red tea instead, as I'm a bit of a purist. Red tea is an indigenous herb of South Africa called rooibos (ROY-boss). It's supposed to be very healthy, loaded with polyphenols and flavonoids which help protect against the onset of aging and disease. Red tea apparently has all the benefits of green tea, without the caffeine.

I'm thrilled to report that I've been getting more international traffic to Suko's Notebook--from at least 16 countries--including numerous guests from Gaborone, Botswana, the setting for The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency books! Of course, I also greatly appreciate my visitors from the United States. As always, I welcome your comments, and pertinent questions may be emailed to me--I usually respond within 24 hours. One remarkable thing about the internet is that it brings people from all over the world closer together. As we conduct searches and research from our homes, offices, libraries, and schools--or anywhere else with an internet connection--we connect with people world-wide and learn about other cultures--and seem a bit closer to peace on earth.

On this seventh anniversary of the horrific events of Sept. 11th, please take at least a few moments to remember the victims, as well as the many heroes of that day.

More About The Full Cupboard of Life

As you can see, I've found an ideal basket for The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency Series of books. Having finished reading The Full Cupboard of Life today, I 'll soon start In The Company of Cheerful Ladies (perched on top of the other books).

In a previous post, The Power of Books, I spoke about Mma Potokwane's desire to write a book about running an orphan farm. Here are a few more words about the subject:

"You must write that book, Mma,"urged Mma Ramotswe. "I would read it, even if I was not planning to run an orphan farm."
"Thank you,' said Mma Potokwane. "Maybe I shall do that one day. But at the moment I am so busy looking after all these orphans and making tea and baking fruit cake and all those things. There seems very little time for writing books."
"That is a pity," said Mma Makutsi.
~The Full Cupboard of Life, Alexander McCall Smith

These ladies echo the sentiments of Virginia Woolf.

Mma Potokwane has become a more central character by the fifth book in the series, The Full Cupboard of Life. Like Mr J.L.B. Matekoni, we know that when Mma Potokwane serves him special cakes, as she frequently does, he should be on his guard because she'll inevitably ask a big "favor" of him. It's difficult--if not impossible--for this very kind man to turn this very strong woman down, and her requests are often quite large.

I'm looking forward to reading the sixth book in this series by Alexander McCall Smith, and expect to soon find myself in the company of cheerful ladies.

Beautiful Botswana

It's difficult to write about The Full Cupboard of Life, or any book for that matter, without revealing too much of the plot. It's much better to read the book for yourself and see how events unfold. So, I'll write a few words instead about the beautiful country that intrigues me, the African nation of Botswana, as depicted in The No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency series of books by Alexander McCall Smith. In The Full Cupboard of Life, the main character, the head detective herself, Mma Ramotswe, describes Botswana this way in her thoughts:

"There was a country so large that the land seemed to have no limits; there was a sky so wide and so free that the spirit could rise and soar and not feel in the least constrained; and there were the people, the quiet, patient people, who had survived in this land, and who loved it. Their tenacity was rewarded, because underneath the land there were diamonds, and the cattle prospered, and brick by brick the people built a country of which anybody could be proud. That was what Botswana had, and that's why it was a fortunate country."
~ The Full Cupboard of Life, Alexander McCall Smith

Mma Ramotswe's pride in her country is palpable and contagious; I picture the incredible expansiveness of both land and sky. I've included a map and flag of Botswana from (wonderful) Wikipedia; stunning photos of Botswana can be found on Technorati.

The Full Cupboard of Life: The Power of Books

I'm still enjoying The Full Cupboard of Life by Alexander McCall Smith, slowly but surely. For some reason, the book, which I ordered from an amazon marketplace seller, has the faint smell of garlic, as if it had been stored in a cupboard which housed some pungent bulbs. It doesn't really matter, and the book, a hardcover, is in beautiful condition. In The Full Cupboard of Life, Mma Potokane, the strong and clever manager of the "the orphan farm", has some positive thoughts about books:

"At the end of each term, those who had done well would receive a prize for their efforts; an atlas perhaps, or a Setswana Bible, or some other book which would be useful at school. Although she was not a great reader, Mma Potokwane was a firm believer in the power of books. The more books Botswana had, in her view, the better. It would be on books that the future would be based; books and the people who knew how to use them."
~The Full Cupboard of Life, Alexander McCall Smith

Fiction aside, there's a real problem with orphans in Africa, because of diseases, famine, and other problems, which leave children without parents to raise them. Mma Potokwane thinks that if she were to write a book, it would be an instructional manual on how to run an orphan farm, with practical advice about management, fund-raising, and child psychology. She's not sure that she's up to the task of writing a book, but if she did, she'd express "the old Botswana morality" by writing something that would help others.

Interestingly, I had a reader from Gaborone, Botswana--the setting for The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books--visit this blog a few days ago. This person was researching the importance of books!

The Botswana Book Project, established in 1998 by Pam Shelton, is helping to build libraries in beautiful Botswana.

Accuracy

It's unanimous. Respondent to the latest poll all cast the same vote: they regard some blogs as accurate sources of information. Blogs are obviously not as "objective" as journalistic articles (though they, too, may be biased). As for this blog, I try to present accurate information regarding books and authors, and do research as needed. I revise and edit information that needs to be updated or corrected, because I care that the facts presented in this blog, which also contains my own stories and commentary, are as accurate as possible.

Some words of wisdom from Mma. Makutsi about accuracy from chapter eight of the book I'm nearly done reading, The Kalahari Typing School for Men:

"Do you see that?" she said to the elder apprentice, whom Mr. J. L. B. Matekoni had instructed to help her in the task of fetching the typewriters. "That motto on the notice board up there? Be accurate. That's the motto of the college."
"Yes," said the apprentice. "That's a good motto. You don't want to be inaccurate if you are a typist. Otherwise you have to do everything twice. That would be no good."
Mma. Makutsi looked at him sideways. "A good motto for every walk of life, would you not think?"
~The Kalahari Typing School for Men, Alexander McCall Smith

More about Writing and Reading

Pen on Fire: A Busy Woman's Guide to Igniting the Writer Within by Barbara DeMarco-Barrett arrived very quickly in the mail, and I've already picked up a few good ideas to put into practice. DeMarco-Barrett acknowledges all the demands on our time and says that even a mere 15 minutes of writing a day can change the daydream of being a writer into reality, slowly but surely. The author of this inspiring book offers a lot of encouraging words, tips, and sage advice for those who want to build a writing career, one word at a time. I read a few chapters last night before returning to the fiction I'm currently reading, The Kalahari Typing School for Men by Alexander McCall Smith. I don't want to reveal too much about The Kalahari Typing School for Men (although the title obviously says a lot) but will say that it's a book filled with beauty and humor. One of things I most enjoy about reading this book (and the others in the series) is that Alexander McCall Smith shows his respect and admiration for women, while at the same time poking fun at his own sex. I'd guess that most of his fans are female, although I could be wrong. He also cares very much about the way people treat each other, about the old Botswana values where people care about the happiness of others. I find this passage particularly beautiful; it describes Mma Ramotswe's reflections after a phone call to the prison office:

"They said farewell, and Mma. Ramotswe put down the telephone with a smile. In spite of everything, in spite of all the change, with all the confusion and uncertainty which it brought; in spite of the casual disregard with which people were increasingly treating one another these days, there were still people who spoke to others with the proper courtesy, who treated others whom they did not know, in the way which was proper according to the standards of the old Botswana morality. And whenever that happened, whenever one encountered such behaviour, one was reminded that all was by no means lost."
~ The Kalahari Typing School for Men, Alexander McCall Smith

I'm nearing the end of this book, but will not mourn as I look forward to the continuation of the adventures of Mma Ramotswe and the rest of the cast of characters in the next book in the series, The Full Cupboard of Life.