Mrs McGinty’s Dead by Agatha Christie – Book Review
This enjoyable Poirot novel is one of those Christie books that, despite having a good solid murder mystery at its core, is mostly enjoyable for the aspects other than the actual crime investigation. It’s unusually playful and self-referential at times, with Dame Agatha taking the opportunity to poke fun at her most popular creation.
Let Me In – Film Review
This remake of Let the Right One In, the Swedish film adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist’s haunting novel, doesn’t scale the heights of either but is a pretty good vampire movie in its own right.
Quote of the Day – Happiness
“I wish, as well as everybody else, to be perfectly happy; but like everybody else, it must be in my own way.”
Jane Austen
Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng – Book Review
I could describe this initially very promising book club read as, well, a fire: it starts off with an explosive bang, burns bright and strong for a while, before slowly dying out. It’s by no means a disaster and I enjoyed many aspects of the novel, but perhaps it simply spread itself too thin, with too many characters, perspectives and story threads competing for space.
Apollo 11 – Film Review
I feel very fortunate to have caught the special IMAX session of this extraordinary documentary, celebrating the landmark achievement of the Apollo 11 moon launch fifty years ago. There’s nothing like an immersive IMAX experience, watching it at home would never have had the same impact.
Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie – Book Review
During her prolific career, Agatha Christie penned a few spy thrillers, or at least novels with strong elements of international intrigue and espionage, which for me were never on the same level with her best work (I keep putting off re-reading any of the Tommy and Tuppence novels, easily my least favourite Christie series). This book is not a fully fledged espionage novel, more like a strange hybrid of spy thriller and boarding school murder mystery, with Hercule Poirot cameo thrown in the last third for reasons that, one suspects, have nothing to do with story needs. Though flawed and uneven, it’s still quite enjoyable.
My First Memory
I always found fascinating the way the first few years of your life seem to be covered by impenetrable mental fog. My niece is closing on two and it’s weird to think that she’s unlikely to remember anything from what’s happening now.
The Great Beauty – Film Review
This arty and frequently magnificent-looking Italian drama is a rich cinematic feast, if you’re prepared to sit back and go with the flow.
Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie – Book Review
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