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Prolific author Alexander McCall Smith was born and raised in Zimbabwe, and his love of African culture glows from every page of his works. His word processor in Edinburgh must hum with activity as he pours out not only the culturally rich and amusingly satisfying cases confronting Mma Ramotswe, but also a syndicated column and another series that stars a formidable Scottish woman. Mma Ramotswe first took Britain by storm in 1998, and it wasn't until 2001 that her charming methods of mitigating legal entanglements in her small town crossed the pond to enchant millions of American readers. McCall Smith shares a neighborhood address with Harry Potter's creator, J.K. Rowling. One wag pondered if there was something in the water.
McCall Smith collected over three dozen short legends and folktales, passed from generation to generation in the African veldt. Many of them he heard himself, translated over the years by his Setswana-speaking friends in Botswana, and some were gathered from others, then compiled into this charming slim volume. Intended to convey moral lessons while they entertain their young listeners, nearly all involve dangers through mythical allegories about dangerous animals or people. A few are identifiable as variations of Aesop or Grimm's Fairy Tales, but many are uniquely African. A tale of a strong-willed girl who is in danger of becoming lunch for a cannibal can be analogous in American culture as a warning against child molesters. The dangers to African children are different yet alarmingly similar. In "The Girl Who Married a Lion" we are warned against the wolf in sheep's clothing, and you cannot fail to see the parallel of "Beware of Friends You Cannot Trust" and the old adage to not get your hand caught in the cookie jar. Others are ghostly tales of loss and remorse yet told with humor and irony.
It's good news that Alexander McCall Smith has taken a three-year leave of absence from his duties as a Professor of Medical Law in Edinburgh, Scotland to focus on his writing. We look forward to more adventures with Mma Ramotswe and will keep an eye on the BBC for a series based on her unique crime-solving methods that celebrate moral certainty, warmth and compassion.
THE GIRL WHO MARRIED A LION is the perfect bedside volume.
--- Reviewed by Roz Shea
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