Book Review: Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith

Blue Shoes and Happiness (No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency #7). Alexander McCall Smith. Anchor Publishing (2007). 227 pages. Genre: Cozy Mystery.

First Line: "When you are just the right age, as Mma Romotswe was, and when you have seen a bit of life, as Mma Romotswe certainly had, then there are some things that you just know."

Summary:  Precious Romotswe is settling in to married life on Zebra Drive.  Her assistant, Grace Makutsi, has a newly acquired fiance.  Life is good.  However, there are still some things that need to be addressed.  For example, something is not right in Mokolodi.  People are acting strangely and Mma Romotswe thinks it might have something to do with superstitions.  Then there is the case of the nurse and the changing blood pressure numbers.  To top it off, Mma Romotswe is beginning to think that being traditionally built is not ideal.  Just when things feel like they are becoming too much, Mma Romotswe and Mma Makutsi take some time to do some window shopping and drink some tea.

My thoughts:  These books always remind me to slow down.  When I am feeling overwhelmed, it is always a good idea to sit and think for a while.  Or maybe have a cup of tea (or coffee).  Even, do a little shopping.  

I found the cases and problems Mma Romotswe and Mma Makutsi were working on this time very interesting.  Dealing with superstition and a situation based more on feeling than fact made for fun detective work.  

Most of all I love the characters, especially Mma Romotswe and her ability to understand the right ways to act, even if she can't always carry them out.  I enjoy entering into her thoughts while she sits and thinks.  I also enjoy hearing her thought process when she is tempted to say one thing, but doesn't because that would not be "the Botswana way".  And I enjoy getting a glimpse into a place I will probably never visit in person.  

This was an entertaining, relaxing and comfort read. 

Quotes:

"None of us knows how we will cope with snakes until the moment arises, and then most of us find out that we do not do it very well.  Snakes were one of the tests which life sent for us, and there was no telling how we might respond until the moment arrived."

"Mma Romotswe was not a prude.  She knew what went on between people, but she believed that there was a part of life that should be private.  She believed that what one felt about another was largely a personal matter, and that one should not talk about the mysteries of the soul."

"Everybody, she felt, could do evil, so easily; could be weak, so easily; could be selfish, so easily."