Precious Ramotswe, Botswana's first female detective, whose story began in the adult mystery novel, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, here stars in her third juvenile adventure. Nine years old, the precocious Precious already has many of the skills of a detective, and when she heads to the Okavango Delta to visit her Aunt Bee, she has opportunity to use them. Delighted to participate in the shooting of a film, Precious and her new friend Khumo head out into the bush when the tame lion being used by the filmmakers goes missing. They find 'Teddy' soon enough, but how is he to be retrieved, when he has joined a pride of wild lions...?

The third of Alexander McCall Smith's four juvenile mysteries featuring Precious when she was a young girl, The Mystery of the Missing Lion (originally published in the UK as Precious and the Mystery of the Missing Lion), was an engaging book, one that features the same kind of goodhearted characters and storyline as the first two titles in this mini-series. That said, it didn't grab me quite like the first two, and I found myself struggling a bit with my suspension of disbelief, when it came to the Teddy storyline. I'm no expert, but I always understood that lion prides were composed of one of two males, who vigilantly policed their number, preventing other males from encroaching upon their territory. Given that this is so, how would the pride have accepted Teddy? I also wondered a bit at Precious' idea that Teddy should be freed. It sounds nice, but wouldn't a lion raised all his life in captivity, a lion who was so gentle, do poorly in the wild? Can such lions be taught the skills they need to survive? I'm honestly not sure. Although I still enjoyed the story, as well as Iain McIntosh's accompanying illustrations, these questions were distracting enough that I subtracted a star, from what would otherwise have been a four-star rating. Despite that fact, I would still recommend this one, to fans of Precious' girlhood adventures, and to beginning chapter-book readers who enjoy tales of mystery and adventure. ( )

African schoolgirl Precious goes to stay with her aunt, Bee, at a safari camp in northern Botswana. A film company has brought Teddy (a tame, trained lion) there to be part of a movie shoot, but he escapes, gravitating towards a wild pride. Precious employs her superior observational abilities to help locate him, but she ends up suggesting that re-capture is not the best future for Teddy.

The strength of this short children's novel is McCall Smith's voice and the information he provides about human and animal life in Botswana. The resolution of the story is unconvincing and pat (I don't know how accepting a pride would be of an interloper like Teddy, nor am I convinced that an animal who has spent so much time with humans could easily re-integrate), but I don't think I would've minded this much if I were a kid reader. ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Like the other two in the series, this book provides a positive message and an exciting mystery for middle readers. It details life in Africa as well as provides a perspective on a different culture.

I would include all three books in this series in a school curriculum. I would round out a unit about Africa and what its like to live there, with this book. ( )

This. Series of books was recommended because they were set in Botswana. It is a good very young adult book, however, I cannot see anymore on my reading radar. ( )

Great partner read for The One and Only Ivan along with Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla ( )