A Brief Book Roundup

Here is a brief roundup of what I have been reading.

My current read

The Second Rule of Ten by Gay Hendricks and Tinker Lindsay
     I was just recently introduced to private detective Tenzing Norbu. In this second mystery (I wrote about the first one here), Ten investigates the death of a controversial Hollywood producer - because, of course, this is California. I like Ten and his efforts to balance his profession with his upbringing in a Tibetan monastery.

My last read

Murder is Bad Manners by Robin Stevens
     The action in this young adult mystery takes place at a British boarding school in 1934. The two protagonists, Daisy Wells from England and Hazel Wong from Hong Kong, form a detective agency and collect clues and sort through motives after the death of a teacher in the school. Nothing here to make one cringe - except for the discovery of the dead body, of course. A fun read.

A quick one in between

The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories by P.D. James
     Short stories of murder and mayhem from a favorite author. Two of them feature a young Adam Dalgleish and all are elegantly written. My only regret is that there were only four in this collection.

The one before that

Knots and Crosses by Ian Rankin

     This is the introduction to Inspector John Rebus, Edinburgh's (literally) tortured detective. He is on the hunt for a killer who leaves clues that John can't quite understand. But when he catches on, there is hell to pay. Not sure I want to be John's friend, but may try book number two in this popular series. 

Latest purchase

Fierce Pajamas: An Anthology of Humor Writing from The New Yorker
     In a continued effort to keep my spirits up, I couldn't resist this find at a local used book store. One glance at the table of contents and I spotted the names E.B. White, James Thurber, Robert Benchley, and Dorothy Parker. Oh, and Groucho Marx. Groucho Marx?!

Had to have it. A volume to dip into when spirits dip.

What books are in your round up?

St. Augustine, Florida - October 22, 2013

Second Read Books
St. Augustine, Florida

If I had a dollar for every time the name of Flagler is mentioned in St. Augustine, I would be a wealthy woman. Henry Flagler (1830-1913) put the city on the map in 1888 by building an elegant winter resort for the rich and bringing the railroad to the town so they could get here. He wanted his hotel to rival any of New York City's poshest hotels. He had the money to do it.

Today, this Spanish-Moorish building formerly known as the Ponce de Leon Hotel with its courtyard fountain and gardens, is Flagler College, a private, four-year liberal arts school. It opened in 1968. Twenty-five hundred students are enrolled.

The one-hour tour was led by Dan, a student of the college. We saw a lot of mosiac tiles in the entrance rotunda; painted ceilings and Tiffany stained-glass windows in the formal dining room (which is now the student dining hall); and velvet covered furniture, paintings, fireplaces, and eleven crystal chandeliers in the formal parlor where the ladies of that day gathered to chat in their bustles and feathered hats.

The day was very hot and humid. After walking around a bit, we found two bookstores and made our purchases. We were melting. We headed back to the B&B for a siesta.

I am happy with my purchases:

Second Read Books:
Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James, a Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice mystery.

Cross Creek by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings about her experiences in the Florida hamlet of Cross Creek, where she lived for thirteen years. I was very happy and surprised to find this one especially after discovering Ms. Rawlings' connection with St. Augustine yesterday.

Anastasia Books:
Jeeves and the Tie That Binds by P.G. Wodehouse, always a delight.

As We Were by E.F. Benson, a memoir of Victorian and Edwardian England. Mr. Benson is the author of the humorous Mapp and Lucia books.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery, a lovely edition published by the Everyman's Library Children's Classics. It has color illustrations by Sibyl Tawse.

Tomorrow we leave Mr. Flagler's town and move up the coast to Savannah and more literary exploits.

Where Do You Like to Read?

Woman Seated in an Armchair
by
Henri Matisse

A regular feature of the Huffington Post is to ask authors their favorite places to curl up with a book. When asked - Where do you like to read? - mystery writer P.D. James replied:

I am an obsessive reader and am rarely without a book which I read whenever I have the opportunity.

My eyes are always drawn to the written word, even an official notice. I am particularly fond of re-reading old favourites and discovering in them new pleasures and greater understanding.

I always read at night before sleeping, but have not yet discovered the most comfortable way of doing this. When I have time I mostly enjoy reading in my drawing room where there is a good light and a comfortable armchair, and often do this until I fall asleep and wake to find it is early morning.

First of all, I love that she has a drawing room (so Downton Abbey) and I want one. I suppose I could rename my living room but I am not sure that it would be the same thing. A drawing room is a place to entertain visitors and I find that I use my living room to entertain myself more than visitors.

But moving ahead, I have two places to read in my newly christened drawing room. One is an armchair with an ottoman for my feet and a very good light. The other is my chaise lounge. It alternates between being a reading spot and a napping spot.

I too read at night before sleeping and, like Ms. James, I have not been able to find a comfortable position that lasts for very long. No matter how many pillows I prop myself up with eventually my neck is bent over so far that my chin rests on my chest which is definitely painful. Then if I shift my position and slide down to lie flatter, I just seem to doze off much too quickly. 

I know there are special reading-in-bed pillows but they look quite cumbersome and really, what does one do with it during the day? 

If anyone has a suggestion on how to read comfortably in bed, Ms. James and I would appreciate your guidance. 

The Private Patient

I woke up this morning determined to read the last 50 or so pages of The Private Patient by P.D. James. It has been my nighttime read for about a week and I turned out the light last night just as the case was coming to an end. It was either that or try to stay awake another hour or so to finish it.

This mystery is the latest and perhaps last of the Adam Dalgleish series. It was published in 2008 and since Ms. James is now 92, I wonder if there will be another with detective and poet Commander Dalgleish.

Basically the story is of the murder of an investigative reporter who has gone to a private clinic/manor house outside of London to have a facial scar removed by a well-known and successful plastic surgeon. The wound was inflicted some 40 years ago by the woman's father when she was a child. He was a drunkard and slashed her cheek with a broken bottle.  She tells the surgeon that "she has no use for the scar any longer." (Neither he nor I could ever figure out what she meant.)

Ms. James, as usual, delves quite deeply into her characters and there are plenty of them here to deal with. And the rooms. Ms. James loves to describe rooms - bedrooms, libraries, kitchens. I used to hurry through those details - let's get on with the plot, thank you very much - but have taken to slowing down and appreciating the way she uses her imagination to create the scene for the reader. 

I am not sure the ending - there are really two - is very clear, but getting there was surely entertaining. And, with not as much philosophizing as in the recently read The Murder Room.

So long, Adam Dalgleish.

Three new/old books

Jean Hersey
The Shape of a Year

Lucky me! I scored three new/old books today and that always makes for a good day.

Read This! Handpicked Favorites from Indie Bookstores:

This little red book is, according to its back cover, "a reference for those who can never have enough to read. It offers booklovers an insider's guide to the treasured titles that have flown under the radar, but off of bookstore shelves."

In it 25 independent booksellers offer their picks of 50 books they love and love to pass on to readers. Michael Bogg's, co-owner of Carmichael's Bookstore in my hometown, has a list included here. Of his 50, I have read eight. I guess I have a lot of catching up to do. 

I hope to interview Mr. Boggs for Belle, Book, and Candle and will keep you posted on that project.

The Private Patient by P.D. James:
I picked this paperback copy off the Books for Sale table at the library. I just finished James's The Murder Room published in 2003. This is her latest (and last?) Adam Dalgliesh mystery published in 2008. 

The Shape of a Year by Jean Hersey:
This is a lovely prize also found on the library's sale table. According to the flyleaf, "it is a month-by-month chronicle of events in one woman's life, in her Connecticut house set in a meadow bounded by a rushing brook and hills covered with maples and hemlocks." 

It was published in 1967 and has chapter illustrations by John Pimlott.

I do so love a journal written by a woman that features the turning of the seasons and comments on daily life. It is in excellent condition for a hardcover book that is 45 years old. Not a tear or a bent page.

Here is her opening entry for November:

November is chill, frosted mornings with a silver sun rising behind the trees, red cardinals at the feeders, and squirrels running scallops along the tops of the gray stone walls.

Ahhh. A treasure indeed.

Murder Will Out

P.D. James
author of fourteen
Adam Dagliesh mysteries

The Murder Room took its time getting to the solution of the crime or I should say crimes. But then getting to the denouement
with author P.D. James is a nice way to spend a couple of evenings. 

Ms. James likes to give detailed backstories to her characters and she does a bit of social philosophizing now and again. Well, all that takes time. 

Briefly, this murder mystery concerns the death by fire of psychiatrist Dr. Neville Dupayne. He and his brother and sister are the owners of a London museum dedicated to the decades between WWI and WWII. The museum was founded by their father and left in trust to them upon his (natural) death. Now, the lease is up on the building which houses memorabilia, paintings, and books from that period. There is also The Murder Room where weapons and photos and newspaper clippings of famous murders during that time are displayed. Dr. Dupayne doesn't want to renew the lease but his siblings do and it takes all three to agree in order for the museum to continue to remain open.

Enter murder, another murder, and then a third. Commander Adam Dalgliesh and his crew plod along interviewing suspects, discussing the case, and following false leads. It appears that the killer has been inspired by the real-life crimes from the museum's Murder Room. 

To complicate things even more, AD (as he is referred to by his team) is a bit distracted during the investigation of the case by his feelings for Emma, a professor at Cambridge. Emma is someone he met in Death in Holy Orders.

The police and even a few of the suspects figured out who the murderer was way before I did. Murder will out and, apparently for AD, so will love.

The Murder Room by P.D. James

I have tried three mysteries from the library - new authors all - and have returned them unread. Well, maybe I read three to five pages of each. Too many words, too many uninteresting words, too many words taking too long to get to the point. I was bored before I had barely begun.

The premise of one that I downloaded to my Nook had promise. It was about a librarian in a small Midwestern town. But her policeman boyfriend kept calling her "Babe" which irritated me (I don't think he ever called her by her actual name). To make matters worse, this librarian was "traditionally built" as Mma Ramatswe would say, so every time he called out "Yes, Babe" I pictured Babe the Pig.

In circumstances such as this, it is best to turn to the professionals. I turned to P.D. James. I have been remiss in recent years in keeping up with her Scotland Yard Inspector Adam Dalgliesh so was excited to see that his 12th adventure, The Murder Room, was available as an e-book from the library.

The book has to do with a private museum in London dedicated to the time between the wars. The three children and trustees of the museum's founder are at odds with one another over signing the lease which would extend the life of the museum. (Imagine siblings not agreeing.) One wants to close the place and the other two are determined to keep it open. I suspect the dissenting voter will soon become the victim.

The museum has a tidy collection of first editions and art from the 1920s and '30s. And, one of the rooms of the museum just happens to be dedicated to murderers and their victims from that time in history.  

I haven't seen a body yet, so I don't know any more than that, but with Ms. James I know the puzzle is in capable hands.