1. Precious Ramotswe, the star of the series, is a mostly traditional Motswana lady with a clever mind and a heart of gold. From the clients of her detective agency to her friends and family, everyone comes to her to solve their problems. When she goes into business in "The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency," however, she has a problem herself. How does she raise the money to start her business and buy her house? She sells the cattle she has inherited from her father. Her first husband's family, sympathetic about the breakup of the marriage, gives her a large gift. She obtains a bank loan, using family land as collateral. She receives prize money after winning a international essay contest on the subject of African values.

2. Throughout the series, Mma Ramotswe's love for her late father, Obed Ramotswe, is clear and shining. She thinks often of what a good man he was, how much he loved Botswana and the land, and what he might think of the people she is meeting and the problems she is solving. Yet Rra Ramotswe spent the early part of his adulthood far from the country and the land he loved, saving money so that he could raise a family. Where did he work as an expatriate? In the factories of Mozambique On ships sailing the South Atlantic In the mines of South Africa As a mercenary in Zimbabwe

3. Mma Ramotswe's secretary at the detective agency, Grace Makutsi, is an intelligent woman and hard worker who sees herself as drab and provincial. As the series unfolds, Mma Makutsi begins to blossom; by the fourth novel, "The Kalahari Typing School for Men," she is making enough money that she can finally afford to indulge in a personal luxury. What is Mma Makutsi's greatest temptation? Jewelry Shoes Cars Cake

4. Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, a gentle, kind auto mechanic who begins the series as Mma Ramotswe's friend and who eventually becomes her husband, is a steady and reliable man -- one of the traits that so appeals to her. However, in the third book ("Morality for Beautiful Girls") he begins to suffer from an insidious illness that makes him behave quite out of character. What afflicts him so? Malaria Schizophrenia Depression Tuberculosis

5. Silvia Potokwane, a close friend of both Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, lives outside of Gaborone where she runs a large orphan farm. Her bossy (but generous) personality is vital to her work: most of the orphans' support, from their food to their clothing to the pump that provides their water, comes from the kindness of volunteers. When Mma Potokwane is trying to persuade a person to do some favor for her, what is her secret weapon? The orphan farm's children's choir Fruitcake Photographs of smiling children with the prospective benefactor Tax breaks for charitable work

6. In "The Tears of the Giraffe," the second book in the series, Mma Potokwane changes our heroes' lives forever. She persuades Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni to take in two orphaned children: Motholeli, a girl with a mechanic's soul, and her younger brother Puso. The children's story is a brave and tragic one: when Puso was only an infant, his sister saved him from almost certain death. Why was Puso in mortal danger? He had been kidnapped. He had crawled too near a snake. He had been buried alive. He had been left alone inside a house that caught fire.

7. At Tlokweng Speedy Motors, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni has far too much business for only one man. Luckily, he has two apprentices to share the work; unluckily, his apprentices are much more interested in girls than in hard and careful labor. They do have their uses, though: in "The Full Cupboard of Life," the apprentice Charlie takes over for Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni in a sponsored charity event. What is it? A ten-mile swim for the benefit of the hospital A parachute jump for the benefit of the orphan farm A motorcycle race for the benefit of the nature preserve A dancing contest for the benefit of a local primary school

8. Mr. Polopetsi, a late addition to the garage and detective business, arrives in "In the Company of Cheerful Ladies" when Mma Ramotswe's van accidentally runs his bicycle off the road. His employment with our heroes marks the end of a long period of job hunting. Why has he found it so difficult to find work? His only skill is typing, and few employers are willing to believe that a man can type. His old workplace burned to the ground under suspicious circumstances. He was in prison for two years. He is rumored to suffer from a dangerous illness.

9. "In the Company of Cheerful Ladies" sees Mma Makutsi become remarkably more cheerful, and it's no mystery why: she gets engaged to Phuti Radiphuti, a furniture store manager who charms her despite his stutter and his clumsiness. Where do the two lovebirds meet? At the wedding of Mma Ramotswe and Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni During an investigation At a dance class At a Botswana Secretarial College social

10. After all these precious people, we've got room for a not-so-precious one: Note Mokoti, whom Mma Ramotswe married when she was very young and unwise in the ways of the world. Which of these things was NOT a reason Mma Ramotswe was unhappy in their life together? Note beat her. Note stole from her father. Note trivialized the death of their child. Note was habitually unfaithful.