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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
While the espionage elements are a bit over the top, the cleverly placed red herrings make the novel far more complex than it first appears. There's one mystery any Christie fan sniff out quickly, but she's way ahead of you - you're *meant* to know. Clever.
My goodness, I can’t remember when I last read an Agatha Christie - must be over 40 years anyway. It was interesting to read and compare her style with Margery Allingham’s, and I read one of her stories this week too. Cat Among the Pigeons starts out with an unseen observer during a revolution in a fictional middle eastern state. The mystery is focused on what they see and try to retrieve - the wealth of the current ruler in precious stones hidden in a tennis racket handle belonging to a British schoolgirl. The child and her possessions are swiftly evacuated, the eastern potentate is assassinated and soon after English school teachers start to be murdered. About two thirds of the way through the book, Hercule Poirot is sought out by one of the schoolgirl’s classmates (smart girl) to find the killer.
I should warn you the language in the book would not be used today, and is hard to see in print. The societal attitudes are also not what we would accept now either. That said Ms Christie’s work could be updated and dramatised. Her characters and plots are easy for readers to access and enjoy.
Avid fans of Poirot will be disappointed his appearance is much delayed, partly because a fourth schoolteacher dies and partly because he elevates the book.
I should warn you the language in the book would not be used today, and is hard to see in print. The societal attitudes are also not what we would accept now either. That said Ms Christie’s work could be updated and dramatised. Her characters and plots are easy for readers to access and enjoy.
Avid fans of Poirot will be disappointed his appearance is much delayed, partly because a fourth schoolteacher dies and partly because he elevates the book.
Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie
Black Dog & Leventhal, 1959
297 pages
Hercule Poirot Mystery
4/5 stars
Source: Bought (it was on sale)
Summary: Meadowbank School is an outstanding school for young girls which is suddenly rocked by the murder of the new games mistress. Was she too curious for her own good? Does it have some connection to the recent revolution in a Near East country? (Hint: yes) Never fear: Hercule Poirot and his little grey cells are on the case.
Thoughts: The book opens with a four page list of the characters, which I read hoping to get set for reading this. Instead it overwhelmed me and I had to just keep reading in order to be able to follow it. There are a lot of characters, mostly female because the actions takes place at a fine girls' school. The opening is very confusing as it shifts from Meadowbank to that Near East country to two females who connect both places. Headmistress Miss Bulstrode of course made me think of Millicent Bulstrode of Slytherin but luckily she's a much nicer person and Eileen Rich is consistently described as ugly although I cannot fathom why that's relevant to the story.
There seem to be long passages where nothing is really happening. I found it easy to read and I was motivated to finish it. Interestingly Poirot doesn't show up until basically two-thirds of the way through the book. Yet he solves it fairly easily by picking up on a few strands. I didn't solve the murder (er murders) but I don't mind. I should have noticed something was up about that person but I didn't connect it fast enough. I also thought there was going to be a romance (I like the little romances Christie throws in) but I was wrong.
Overall: A fine outing although somewhat confusing and less engaging than Christie's best. Do not begin your exploration of Christie with this.
Cover: Pretty pink although not as pretty as some covers. The rackets are also quite important.
Black Dog & Leventhal, 1959
297 pages
Hercule Poirot Mystery
4/5 stars
Source: Bought (it was on sale)
Summary: Meadowbank School is an outstanding school for young girls which is suddenly rocked by the murder of the new games mistress. Was she too curious for her own good? Does it have some connection to the recent revolution in a Near East country? (Hint: yes) Never fear: Hercule Poirot and his little grey cells are on the case.
Thoughts: The book opens with a four page list of the characters, which I read hoping to get set for reading this. Instead it overwhelmed me and I had to just keep reading in order to be able to follow it. There are a lot of characters, mostly female because the actions takes place at a fine girls' school. The opening is very confusing as it shifts from Meadowbank to that Near East country to two females who connect both places. Headmistress Miss Bulstrode of course made me think of Millicent Bulstrode of Slytherin but luckily she's a much nicer person and Eileen Rich is consistently described as ugly although I cannot fathom why that's relevant to the story.
There seem to be long passages where nothing is really happening. I found it easy to read and I was motivated to finish it. Interestingly Poirot doesn't show up until basically two-thirds of the way through the book. Yet he solves it fairly easily by picking up on a few strands. I didn't solve the murder (er murders) but I don't mind. I should have noticed something was up about that person but I didn't connect it fast enough. I also thought there was going to be a romance (I like the little romances Christie throws in) but I was wrong.
Overall: A fine outing although somewhat confusing and less engaging than Christie's best. Do not begin your exploration of Christie with this.
Cover: Pretty pink although not as pretty as some covers. The rackets are also quite important.
A fun, solid Christie novel. Some dated language throughout.
This one was kind of anti-climactic. I think I was expecting more of a twist? I'm not sure, I just wasn't wowed. The ending made sense and everything came together, but I'm used to being shocked from Poirot stories.
Another great Poirot novel (even though he only appears in the final part of the novel)
Again Christie masterfully plays with the format and lets the story start in a not specified arabic country on the verge of a civil war, where we follow the young prince regent and his english friend and pilot Bob, this first part is told primarilly by Bob and a 3. person narrator who set's the scene thoughout the novel by coming up with predictions and forewarnings, the narrative then shifts to England, where we learn about the fate of Bob and the Prince from the Foreign Service before we shift our attention to a girls school where the reamining action takes place.
The majority of the story is told by our narrator and a mixture of minor characters and girls at the school each one adding their own perspective and giving us clues (and misdirections), while the teachers is killed one after another, before Poirot enters the scene and quickly manages to cast some light on the muddy picture.
4/24 Well at least it's been seven years since I read/watched this, because I didn't remember much. For some reason I was thinking that I hadn't liked this one very much, but I did enjoy the Hugh Fraser audiobook, and I see that I did rather like it.
Typically entertaining, with more than one little twist. Poirot doesn't come in until very late, he seemed sort of forced in as an afterthought, this story could have easily been a stand-alone and done without him.
(just watched the TV version on Netflix. Mark Gatiss wrote the teleplay and he overcomes the problem of the missing Hercule by making him an old friend of the school headmistress and there to present a trophy. She asks him to stay on to observe the other teachers and help her choose her successor should she decide to retire. A bit flimsy, but something had to be done to get him there sooner)
Typically entertaining, with more than one little twist. Poirot doesn't come in until very late, he seemed sort of forced in as an afterthought, this story could have easily been a stand-alone and done without him.
(just watched the TV version on Netflix. Mark Gatiss wrote the teleplay and he overcomes the problem of the missing Hercule by making him an old friend of the school headmistress and there to present a trophy. She asks him to stay on to observe the other teachers and help her choose her successor should she decide to retire. A bit flimsy, but something had to be done to get him there sooner)
The book was definitely very intriguing and at the same time mysterious. I recommend it to anybody who is a fan of crime fiction.