The difference between Agatha Christie in the 1920’s and the 1930’s was, in every way, startling. Although she was thirty when she published her first novel, there was something of the gawky girl in Christie’s writing and the tragic romantic in her personal life. Of the nine novels she published between 1920 and 1929, five … Continue reading THE BRIDGE TWIXT GAD AND MODERNITY: Christie’s The Body in the Library
Agatha Christie
GOING OCD ON MY GAD
Recently, I had the pleasure of listening to three blogger pals discuss John Dickson Carr on the podcast that two of them host on a bimonthly basis. Dan, of The Reader Is Warned, is an artist, and JJ, of The Invisible Event, is a mathematician, so between them they brought a lively blend of stats … Continue reading GOING OCD ON MY GAD
A GREAT CONVERGENCE: Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero
“I like a good detective story . . . But, you know, they begin in the wrong place! They begin with the murder. But the murder is the end. The story begins long before that – years before sometimes – with all the causes and events that bring certain people to a certain place at … Continue reading A GREAT CONVERGENCE: Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero
A MOTIVE FOR LOVING CHRISTIE
Every so often, a confluence of events brings about enlightenment. It’s how we got penicillin and harnessed electricity and learned how to fly. In the art world, it happens when paints mix together fortuitously or musical notes embrace in harmony or Warner Brothers produces The Maltese Falcon three times before they get it right. As an … Continue reading A MOTIVE FOR LOVING CHRISTIE
I SECOND THAT EMOTION: Mysteries That Make You Feel
Dale Carnegie said: “When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures of emotion.” Try applying this truism to the classic mystery, and you can perhaps see why some people turn away from the tendency of these stories to shortchange the emotional aspects of murder, while others are … Continue reading I SECOND THAT EMOTION: Mysteries That Make You Feel
PONDERING THE IMPOSSIBLE, CHRISTIE-STYLE
I’VE never hung out so much with other guys until I started blogging about death. Seriously, if you knew me, it makes total sense that this GAD commentator would associate with the elegant Moira, the scrappy Kate, and the sagacious Bev. To my surprise and delight, however, I find myself welcomed into the company of … Continue reading PONDERING THE IMPOSSIBLE, CHRISTIE-STYLE
THE GREATEST DETECTIVE OF THEM ALL
First the good news: The Tuesday Night Bloggers are back, and we’re bigger than ever! And we have a month of posts planned for you that focus on the greatest detectives that ever lived . . . in the pages of literature. We do this in honor of a new book, edited by Eric Sandberg, … Continue reading THE GREATEST DETECTIVE OF THEM ALL
#ME TOO MISS MARPLE: An Aged Feminist for Our Age
I’m not sleeping well. My heart is heavy. I blame the President. I know, I promised not to get political here. I’ll get to the books shortly. But the past year has been rough. I didn’t sign up to be a citizen under these conditions. If the current administration is making America greater, it’s also … Continue reading #ME TOO MISS MARPLE: An Aged Feminist for Our Age
FIGHTING THE FIFTH COLUMN, GAD STYLE – PART ONE: Christie’s N or M
Last year, moviegoers and Netflix subscribers (I count myself as both) were inundated with mid-20th century British history. Beginning with Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, followed by The Darkest Hour, which covered the same events from Churchill’s point of view (and assured its star, Gary Oldman, of an Oscar), continuing on to Season 2 of The Crown, … Continue reading FIGHTING THE FIFTH COLUMN, GAD STYLE – PART ONE: Christie’s N or M
ON MY THIRD READ OF CHRISTIE, THE BOOK I BOUGHT FOR ME: Three Blind Mice
When I began my Adventures with Agatha at the tender age of eleven and a half, I was pretty much flying blind. I had been led to And Then There Were None by the machinations of a brilliant babysitter, but after that I was on my own. There was no internet to look Christie up … Continue reading ON MY THIRD READ OF CHRISTIE, THE BOOK I BOUGHT FOR ME: Three Blind Mice
Ah Sweet Mystery! 