I am a fan of Agatha Christie's books and this book is an interesting and informative insight into Dame Agatha's life. There is a chapter about the famous 'disappearance' which feels psychologically sound, but, because Agatha Christie refused to discuss this incident, no matter how much Laura Thompson tries to illustrate her theory by using possible hints from the books, this is interesting speculation. What I really enjoyed about this book is the fascinating analysis of both the detective novels and the novels written under the pseudonym, Mary Westmacott, which forms part of Laura Thompson's argument that Christie's writing is, on the whole, of literary merit and value. She also, very fairly in my opinion, criticises some of the latest adaptations for their tinkering with the plots, ITV take note. I am now planning and scheduling a major re-read of of all the detective novels as this book has whetted my appetite.
Sunday, 13 January 2008
Agatha Christie
I am a fan of Agatha Christie's books and this book is an interesting and informative insight into Dame Agatha's life. There is a chapter about the famous 'disappearance' which feels psychologically sound, but, because Agatha Christie refused to discuss this incident, no matter how much Laura Thompson tries to illustrate her theory by using possible hints from the books, this is interesting speculation. What I really enjoyed about this book is the fascinating analysis of both the detective novels and the novels written under the pseudonym, Mary Westmacott, which forms part of Laura Thompson's argument that Christie's writing is, on the whole, of literary merit and value. She also, very fairly in my opinion, criticises some of the latest adaptations for their tinkering with the plots, ITV take note. I am now planning and scheduling a major re-read of of all the detective novels as this book has whetted my appetite.
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4 comments:
What a wonderful idea. Will you read them chronologically or just see what fancy takes you?
I quite fancy the idea of reading them chronologically, especially as Laura Thompson believes that she had a 'golden' period of writing around WWII. Unfortunately my old paperbacks are falling apart, but I have found some beautiful, and expensive, hardbacks on Amazon so this will have to wait until my bank balance can stand it (and I've reduced the numbers of books to be read piled in my hall).
Oh delight! Many moons ago, I discovered a box of ACs in the attic. There were Miss Marples, Poirot and the other guy... what was his name... Peter Parker?
I spent that 13-14 year old's summer devouring them...and you know, I was just thinking about AC very recently!
Well, on your prompt, I shall have to go and dig some new ones out! The Body in the Library - that's the first one I ever read!
Do you like Raymond Chandler? I keep meaning to reread them, I used to love them. But I never got into Christie
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