IT'S time that David Nobbs was acknowledged as a great national treasure. His 13th novel is one of his finest.

Going Gently tells the story of Kate Thomas who, a few days short of her 100th birthday, recalls a remarkable life including six marriages. Nobbs introduces a cast of memorable characters to rival those in his Henry Pratt novels and the beautiful, hedonistic and impossibly witty Kate is a splendid creation.

The story is also a search for the truth as the dying Kate tries to establish who murdered her fifth husband. This is a mildly entertaining diversion, the equivalent of a bonus track on a CD; Kate's life, set against the background of an entire century, provides riches enough.

Nobbs once again offers an apparently effortless combination of comedy, pathos and tragedy, and there's more wit and wisdom here than in any number of novels shortlisted for major literary awards.