Africa had a way of coming back and simply covering everything up again.
Absurdly, irrationally, she believed that music could make a difference to the temper of the world.She did not investigate this belief, test it to see whether it made sense;she simply believed it, and...
A woman sees more than a man sees. That is well-known.
A photograph may speak to the photographer's envy or disappointment just as much as it may reveal his anger or disapproval. And even if a photograph records a joyous occasion, behind it there may stil...
A nudist? In Edinburgh? Does he realise what parallel we’re on?
A marriage, she had learned, is seldom what it seems to be on the surface; what appears to be the most equable, well settled of arrangements might be a seething mass of discontent and resentment under...
A change of oil…yes, that was what we all needed from time to time, whether we were an engine or a person. And there were other similarities to be explored. Engines had to be handled gently, as did pe...
That is how marriages take place. If you left it up to men, they would never get there. Nobody would be married. You have to remind men to get married.
A prison of put-downs and belittlements.
She was, in fact, often wrong--and knew it. Life became difficult when those who were often wrong did know it.
. . there was something that Isabel had said that always stuck in his mind. Remember what you have and the other person doesn't. It was simple--almost too simple--advice and yet, like all such home ad...
A drive in the country, an expedition to a shoe shop a quiet cup of tea under a cloudless sky; each of us had something that made it easier to continue in a world that sometimes, just sometimes, was n...
Mma Ramotswe thinking about what her father taught her…)Having the right approach to life was a great gift in this life….Do not complain about your life. Do not blame others for things that you have b...
Those who crept about at night risked stepping on a snake if they were not careful, as snakes move out of our way only if they feel vibrations in the ground. A light person—a person of non-traditional...
That weddings are far more than marriage ceremonies; we know that they are occasions for family stock-taking and catharsis; that
[Spoiler Alert (!)] There were times when you simply had to speak, or you would have your lifetime ahead to regret not speaking. But every time [Mr J.L.B. Matekoni] had tried to speak to [Mma Ramotswe...
You know something? he said to Jamie. I’ve never believed in God, but I do believe in his love.
You do not have to read a book to understand how the world works. You just have to keep your eyes open.
You can only wear one pair of shoes at a time, she said. Rich people are like the rest of us—two feet, ten toes. We are all the same that way.
Writers just play out their fantasies in their books. They are often very unstable, tricky people, Bertie. Writers are usually very bad at real life and feel that they have to create imaginary lives t...