Book Review

The ABC Murders, Agatha Christie

*Kind of a big spoiler warning. I try to avoid them but I couldn't this time. *
I really loved this little mystery. The classics are still the best for mystery. I haven't read a lot of Poirot yet. In fact the only other one I have read was Orient Express in which he was traveling alone. So I didn't realize the similarities it shared with the Sherlock Holmes formula. He had his own "Watson" in the form of Captain Hastings and a relationship with local law enforcement like the the great Holmes. But these Poirot novels are unique and and different enough that they aren't really a rip off of Doyle. This one even takes a friendly jab at the Holmesian style of crime solving. It smirks at the standard clue hunting and takes a more psychological approach.
The perpetrator in this book, as indicated in the title, commits his murders alphabetically, not just by name but by town as well. Obviously. And a really creepy guy with a name to match the crimes is likely responsible. So obvious. Too obvious. And I fell for it hook, line, and sinker. I'm usually better at solving the mystery than that.  In fact, a remark made by Hastings at a pivotal part of the story that touched off Poirot's final deduction was my first thought as well, so my instincts were correct. But then it took a twist I never suspected. I think now that I should have expected it considering the unconventional ending of Orient Express. Being longer than most Holmes mysteries the pace can be slower and the misdirection can come from every character. Not everything Poirot notes is necessarily significant. It's a good trick.
And I'll keep it in mind because I do believe I'm hooked on the Poirot specific novels. I'll be checking more out and if anyone who has read more of them has any suggestions, I can't wait to hear them. 

Book Review

 

The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams

This one was a reading assignment in high school that I naturally ditched and completely ignored. But I've been on a mission since leaving high school to give some of these books a second chance. Books? Yeah, I thought this was a book. I was genuinely surprised to learn that this was a play and that Williams wasn't even a novelist but a playwright. Man, I really didn't pay attention in school...

But no worries. Like Eden, I was happily surprised that I liked this, making my adventures with American authors this year two for two. It's an extremely short, one-act play, which is why I've finished it within a few days of the last book so I decided to give my opinion of both today.

Another tragedy, I'm starting to notice a pattern among American classics. They're given to much metaphor. I noticed it when reading Bradbury a few years ago too. This seems like the simple story of an overbearing mother who is somewhat detached from reality and her two grown, miserable children as she tries to steer their lives in ideal directions and fails. But, again, the characters are caricatures of broader personalities, in this case because there is no time for development. The overarching themes are what a reader is meant to take in and process. Tom's frustration over an incomplete and unsatisfying lifestyle. Laura's fragility from crippling insecurities. Amanda's general fear of a lack of security. All appear to speak towards a fear of living life. Of course, because I'm me, I usually notice different aspects than most people do and I wonder if anyone else notices that the advice given by Jim, the gentleman caller, is actually sound in spite of the fact that he's kind of a cad in his behavior towards delicate Laura. All of them could've benefited from what he was saying if they'd tried it instead of being slaves to their emotions. But I suspect that this has become as popular as it has because of the feels and the bemoaning of Laura's broken heart. It's actually a lot deeper and more interesting than that. There's a lot of discussion material in there. I sincerely enjoyed the way it motivates a person to think, if it does. Another five stars for sure.

Book Review

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

I'd been feeling a little guilty because my classic literary interests usually lean towards European authors, so I decided to give the American authors another chance this last Christmas. I put this at the top of my to-read pile because I expected to like it the least. But I was happily wrong. It reminds me of why I decided to start reading classics to begin with.

It has a great hook - two families in California play out the stories of the Fall of Man and Cain and Abel. I'm still not sure how the fall of man works into this unless you're of the belief that it had something to do with sex. But the drama and dynamic of Cain and Abel was picked apart twice over the course of a couple of generations of characters. I really enjoyed watching the soap opera unfold throughout the lives of Charles and Adam, and Adam's sons, Caleb and Aron. Steinbeck's writing style is very absorbing. His descriptions of Salinas Valley at the turn of the 20th century are fascinating and he chose to make it partially autobiographical so he could speak to the reader as if telling them the story from personal acquaintance with the events. He is a close descendant of the Hamilton family whose patriarch is the grounding element of the story. Sam Hamilton and Adam's servant Lee provide the analysis and wisdom concerning the events of Adam's life.

I'm a little surprised that it was okay to publish it in 1952 since it tends toward the vulgar when discussing sexuality so openly and coarsely. And it appears to be a little uneven at times. I'm not certain why the devilish element of Cathy Ames Trask was followed so closely throughout the narrative. But I also don't really care because the psychology of the characters what really interested me the most. Most of them I would say are spot on. They're also extreme to the point of caricature since each character seems to be representative of a larger group of people altogether. They provide a setting for reflection and contemplation of your own personality and those of the people you know. So watching Cathy's growth, or lack thereof, was just as captivating as the close examination of the lives of the men. And it was ultimately necessary to keep her in the background as Caleb and Aron's mother and as the catalyst of so much tragedy.

It is a tragedy, seeming to build up from one sad event to another; one death to another. But it's a well written tragedy with touching moments of light and joy and humor thrown in to help balance it out. At first I thought that two suicides of characters was a little bit of an overkill but after having a week to ponder it, I've noticed that each death was a different vehicle for probing the psychological makeup of the characters and a commentary on how the death of certain types of people affect us.

Anyway I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to those seeking classic fiction to read.