The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon: No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency (14)

This is the 14th novel in the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series. Mma Precious Ramotswe finds a large vacancy in her daily life when her associate detective, Mma Grace Makutsi, takes maternity leave. The entire rhythm and flow of the office is disrupted by the absence: in particular, the intricacies of the Agency’s tea breaks. Should Mma Ramotswe hire and train a temporary clerical worker? But who could substitute for someone so sensitive to routine, so integral to the Agency’s operation?

Meanwhile, there are mysteries to solve. Is the young heir to a prosperous farm really the person he claims to be? Why does no one patronize the brand-new, beautifully appointed, well-stocked beauty salon when the proprietor does such good work? How best to help the new mother to escape the clutches of a mean-spirited relative with outdated methods of parenting?

As always, Smith has imbued the people and places of Botswana with beauty and dignity. He mingles the fast-lane, materialistic life-styles of the young with the diffident and stately habits of the elders, to the benefit of each group. The ownership and appreciation of cows continues to be a fundamental value and a signal to the world of the steady comfort of a household.

For those of us delighted by the world as portrayed by Smith, this novel is a bittersweet, satisfying installment.