Reviews and ramblings....

Oh my word, I'm so far behind.

Far behind on laundry, thank you notes, housecleaning, potty training Violet, and all that lifey stuff that gets thrown to the wayside when there's a newborn in the house. Although, I'm not sure if Faith is a newborn anymore--she turned 6 weeks old this week! It's a milestone I really enjoyed with Violet, because it seemed mark the transition from newborn to baby. (This time, I hope I will be awake enough to appreciate it.)

So in addition to all the other things I'm backlogged in, I'm also quite behind in blogging. As I very gradually figure out how to be a mommy to two little girls, I hope to catch up with all the books I've read these last few months. I'll start with a double review of two mysteries I recently finished.

Arson Plus, by Dashiell Hammett
I enjoyed reading a few Dashiell Hammett novels in high school. I hoped that this short story would be a fail-safe good read, but was disappointed. The characters, especially the hardboiled detective who solves the case, have nothing compelling about them and the story it ended up having the emotional impact of a newspaper. It could be from my sleep-deprived state, but I had to go back and read the first part of the book again after I finished it, because I had no idea who the bad guy was. That should only happen in Russian epics or Dickens' novels .

Whose Body? by Dorothy Sayers
Why isn't Dorothy Sayers more renowned? She was brilliant and surprisingly well-rounded. Her friends and peers seem to have stolen some of her thunder, but her crime novels are on par with Agatha Christie, her love of medievel times was as reverential as CS Lewis', and her essays are just as obtuse as GK Chesterton's.

This mystery was a great counterpoint to Dashiell Hammett's, especially how the story revealed the characters' humanity--both good and bad. It played by the classic rules of mystery novels: the baffling crime, the interesting setting, the crime-solver and his sidekick, and the objective truth, deduced by both logic and awareness of man's capacity to do evil.

If the story has any faults, it's that it is dated. Here's an example of some dialogue:

"Bunter," said Lord Peter, "I beg that in the future you will restrain me from starting two hares at once. These cases are gettin' to be a strain on my constitution. One hare has nowhere to run from, and the other has nowhere to run to. It's a kind of mental D.T., Bunter. When this is over I shall turn pussyfoot, sorswear the police news, and take to an emollient diet of the works of the late Charles Garvice."

What? Nevertheless, it's a good story.

The Red House Mystery

The Red House Mystery, by A.A. Milne


Yes, by that A. A. Milne, the author of the Winnie the Pooh stories. He was quite an accomplished author and playwrite when he decided to try his hand at a detective novel. Apparently his agent told him not to bother: it would never sell, and England had too many mystery authors as it was. Milne ignored him, wrote the pitch-perfect "The Red House Mystery", received much acclaim, and then never wrote another detective story. He ignored his agent's and publisher's pleas for another one and decided to write for children next, and the rest is history.

I bought this book probably six or seven years ago, but I didn't get into it and put it away. A few nights ago, my cold kept me awake and so I looked for something to read until my coughing subsided. At times like that, I wish we had a TV. I ended up really getting into it, though. It's written in the tone of a light comedy, with the main character and his sidekick making ironic references to Sherlock and Watson. It follows the formula of the great mysteries: a dead body suddenly appearing, great English eccentrics wandering around a manor house, police officers and inquests, long-buried family secrets, and the clever civilian who solves the mystery. Except for the dead guy, everyone thoroughly enjoys himself.

Mrs. Polifax Unveiled

Mrs. Polifax Unveiled, by Dorothy Gilman

My mother-in-law loaned me this book, and I read it while on a road trip. It was a good book for the car--it went quickly, and I was able to block out my honey's random radio-channel surfing.

Mrs. Polifax is a retired woman who is a secret CIA operative. Of course, she's been on adventures all over the world. This series has a different flavor than other CIA mysteries, like The Bourne Identity. There was no swearing, the US government doesn't have a malevolent omnipresence, and there was speculation of a wedding at the end. I liked reading it, but I don't think I'll pick up another one.

I was feeling a little bad that I didn't love it, but the book I recommended to my mother-in-law in return wasn't a hit either. So, I guess we're even!