Three Bags Full, by Leonie Swann. Pub 2005. Translation by Anthea Bell. Pub 2006
Meet Miss Mapple, Othello, Zora, and Mopple the Whale, all members of the flock of sheep of one George Glenn, very recently deceased. Putting their sheepy brains together, these remarkable ovines detect and deduce their way to solving the mystery of George’s death, while learning even more about humans and life. The people of the village Glennkill have met their match once these wooly detectives are on the case. All is revealed and the sheep live happily ever after. Part Agatha Christie, part Walt Disney, this is a very clever and enjoyable mystery.
Even more remarkable is that this is Swann’s first novel and, despite being originally in German language, is set very authentically on the West coast of Ireland, complete with the hedgerows and stone walls that line the pastures, the village pub and church, and the small town intrigues and dramas. I’m sure the smoothness of this is due in equal measure to the author herself and the eminent translator of the work, as the story feels entirely genuine. The sheep characters are well created and supported throughout; the anthropomophizing could have been cutesy or cloying, but it is not – you can hear their individual voices and immerse yourself in their lives and characters. Appropriately for the focus of the story, the human characters are less well formed and/or more one-dimensional. The exception is George, who we only get to meet through the memories and stories of the sheep, and who, while flawed as a human, seems to have been the ideal shepherd.
There’s a moment of coincidence for me as the reader, as the sheep are being coached by one of their own in the ways of trying-not-to-try. Melmoth, a sheep who has wandered from the flock and recently returned as a kind of sage with lessons from the larger world, is teaching the sheep about paying attention and being brave, and not getting lost in their wooly thoughts:
“‘You won’t be able to herd anyone until you can herd yourself’, said Melmoth. ‘And you’re dangerous already – a danger to yourself. Once you’ve learned not to be a danger to yourself, you’ll be a danger to everyone else. Simple, isn’t it?’…The sheep learned faster than they understood. They realized that if they watched everything with the amount of attention required by Melmoth, they had very little time to feel afraid…’look at Melmoth who has travelled the world in search of the knack of paying attention, and believe him when he tells you there hasn’t been a day in his life when he didn’t learn something…'”
Fate: little book library.
1 – a book with a murder
7 – author’s debut
8 – female author
13 – set somewhere I’ve never been (Ireland)
15 – a number in the title
21 – a translation (from German)
25 – a new author to me
36 – part of a series
rclr 