George, the shepherd, was dead. The flock found him in the pasture with a spade shoved into his belly, so he clearly didn’t die of natural causes. But who killed him? At the instigation of Miss Maple, the (unofficial) smartest sheep in Glenkill, the flock decided they’d have to investigate George’s death themselves. This may sound like the set-up for a cozy mystery, but Three Bags Full is a witty philosophical tale that just so happens to be from the perspective of sheep. As they investigate the murder of their beloved shepherd they have to address other mysteries as well – the mysterious ghost wolf that a lamb saw appear over George’s body, the master hunter who watches George’s caravan at night, and why all the humans are so concerned about grass, and George keeping some in the caravan.
It took me a little bit to get into Three Bags Full. I love the concept, but Swann commits so thoroughly to a sheep’s mindset that it’s actually kind of hard to follow along at times. There’s lots of thoughts about the different types of grasses, and what smells mean, and what sheep find frightening. They also go into wild speculation about the murder and you’re not sure whether you’re supposed to be paying attention to their theories or laughing at them. But about halfway through I became really invested in the flock, and in George, and wanted to find the murderer just as badly as they did.
Three Bags Full is thoughtful, and sad, and laugh-out-loud funny. There is a scene in a church that had me literally cackling with laughter. But there’s also a scene at the end that had me teary-eyed over poor George. It’s not the type of mystery novel that lends itself to quickly solving the murder. Swann does sprinkle clues throughout, but they’re far more obvious once you’ve read the big reveal. Like, maybe a few things will make you say “Huh” as you read them, but no-one in my book club was able to solve the mystery before the book told us what happened. But it remains a fun mystery, and an especially fun concept. If you need some impetus to read it, the movie version is coming out early next year with Hugh Jackman starring as George the shepherd. Just saying!