Wednesday, September 02, 2009

Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann


Describing this book as a German mystery novel with a quirky sense of humor does not do it enough justice. Three Bags Full by Lenoie Swann follows a flock of sheep as they try to solve the murder of their beloved shepherd. This novel differs from other mysteries with animals acting as detectives in that the sheep act like sheep, and not miniature humans. They get distracted by the smell of sweet grass, their memories are short, and humans can be very confusing, especially the “God” human.
The shepherd had names for all nineteen sheep but there were some who stood out more than the others. Miss Maple is considered the smartest, Mopple The Whale is the one with the best memory, Sir Ritchfield is the lead ram, and his brother Melmoth who has recently reappeared after a mysterious disappearance. I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery which had me guessing until the very end. A funny, endearing read that amused me greatly – I highly recommend this book.

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