How many has it been? After devouring more than a dozen of Alexander McCall Smith’s stylish yet endearing No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novels, I just had to know. His latest, IN THE TIME OF FIVE PUMPKINS, is the 26th entry in a series that never seems to run out of compelling new twists and turns in the lives of seemingly ordinary people.

Self-taught detective Precious Ramotswe; her zealous assistant, Grace Makutsi; and their eccentric cluster of friends, spouses and relations living on the outskirts of Botswana’s capital of Gaborone may be fictional, but their character, context and cultural environment are all very real.

The landlocked southern African republic of Botswana (formerly Bechuanaland, until independence in 1966) may seem like an almost mythical country to those of us in the more privileged northern hemisphere. But Smith writes about it with empathy, authenticity and, above all, love, nurtured by actual lived experience. The gentle but concerning personal dilemmas that propel IN THE TIME OF FIVE PUMPKINS to a heartwarming conclusion continue in the same vein.

"It may be fiction, but like all of Smith’s novels, IN THE TIME OF FIVE PUMPKINS is steeped in a profound and informed optimism about the basic goodness of so-called average people.... Botswana could have no better informal 'ambassador' than Alexander McCall Smith."

Smith was born and raised in neighboring Zimbabwe before leaving to attend the University of Edinburgh in his parents’ homeland of Scotland. He returned to Africa to co-found the Botswana Law School in 1981 and stayed for a number of years as a university law professor.

Upon returning to Scotland to continue his career, Botswana inevitably came with him and emerged in THE NO. 1 LADIES’ DETECTIVE AGENCY in 1998, bearing a title that named the entire series --- 26 novels in 27 years, not to mention several other series based in Edinburgh, as well as a handful of captivating stand-alone books, all attesting to his vigorous and prolific imagination.

Without spoiling the clever wisdom that permeates every page of IN THE TIME OF FIVE PUMPKINS, the plot or seed of the story is rooted in a temporarily strained marriage. Both partners, unbeknownst to one another, seek help from Precious Ramotswe in finding out if their spouse is having an affair, plunging her into the moral dilemma of who needs help the most and how she can give it without committing a conflict of interest.

As always, Mma Ramotswe figures things out, not by exclusively imposing her own opinions and strategies on the case, but by listening, observing, feeling, and knowing when she needs some input from others. Those helpful suppliers of inspiration will be familiar to fans of Smith and his indomitable lady detective --- her soft-spoken but brave husband, always known as Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni; good friend and orphanage matron Mma Potokwane; Charlie, the brash youth who offsets his mediocre auto-mechanical skills with a sharp eye and ear; and, of course, the ambitious assistant, Grace Makutsi.

The story is framed by the suspenseful ripening of Mma Potokwane’s five prized pumpkins, which are destined for competition at the local fair. (Do they win? Read to find out.) The pumpkins are left to do their thing in the background, waiting for the fall rain like everything else, while the rather confusing suspected infidelity case gradually unfolds in a series of misunderstandings and nearly dangerous accidents.

Stepping briefly into the spotlight, J.L.B. Matekoni manages to save the life of a slightly suspect new friend not just once, but twice. Only his wife seems unsurprised by his sudden courage. Loves knows all.

It may be fiction, but like all of Smith’s novels, IN THE TIME OF FIVE PUMPKINS is steeped in a profound and informed optimism about the basic goodness of so-called average people. Here, they live out their lives in a little-known African country that pulled itself together during a turbulent modern history to create a stable economy and democracy on a land mass about the size of France, with 75% desert and just 2.5 million people.

Botswana could have no better informal “ambassador” than Alexander McCall Smith.