Book Corner

The first suggestion comes from Margaret Mountain who comments on The No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith.

‘I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish; the writing style of the author making the story easy to follow and a really entertaining read. It is an easy book to pick up and put down and I was easily able to read it whilst travelling back from work on the train.

‘The story follows the heroine, Precious Ramotswe as she sets up her own Detective Agency, in fact the first female detective agency in Botswana. The first part of the book follows the life of her father and her own life in flashback. It shows how she develops her role as a detective by sheer common sense and intuition. Altogether she is an endearing and likeable character and you are left wanting to know more about her as her life develops. Moreover the writer writes with a great deal of humour, despite there being some sad situations in the book.

‘After reading this first book in the series, I was eager to read the next!’

My suggestion this month comes from Gosport Author, Yong Pease, entitled Brown Jade.

Avid readers will understand about experiencing ‘good vibes’ from a book on its opening pages. This book is exceptionally well written, warm, flowing and hard to put down. It centres around 13 year old Lau Li Jen in 1950’s Malaya. Life is hard for her. Her mother is very ill and there are three younger siblings to look out for. Would she have to give up her education to support her family? Jen is a young but courageous heroine, facing challenges together with the pain of growing up. The timely arrival of a stranger in the midst of difficulties changes Jen and her family’s world forever.

Lynn Winter