AUGUST 2018 BOOK OF THE MONTH– APPOINTMENT WITH DEATH

GKCfan

Appointment With Death is the book of the month for August 2018!  Let's hear what you all think about it!

https://www.agathachristie.com/news/2018/book-of-the-month-appointment-with-death

taliavishay-arbel

I loved the psychological presentation of how children who were brought up in an atmosphere of oppression are captive and can't shake loose. I've known two people who resemble Mrs. Boynton... And their children payed the price.

tudes

taliavishay-arbel said:

I loved the psychological presentation of how children who were brought up in an atmosphere of oppression are captive and can't shake loose. I've known two people who resemble Mrs. Boynton... And their children payed the price.

Yes, the presentation is very well-done. You can feel all the sadness and anguish of their children. Besides, Mrs Boynton is a very strong character and very well written.
And it's a excellent book. The ending is quite a surprise.

taliavishay-arbel

In a way, the ending is a "Deus ex Machina" SPOILER - the children are released, the killer is an outsider whom we don't really like. However, at least both Raymond and Lennox had made up their mind to break free before they knew about their stepmother's death, so in that sense it is psychologically satisfying.

One thing I never figured out about the book, and maybe someone here can help me: The epilogue is supposed to take place 5 years after the denouement  - at which time Nadine certainly wasn't pregnant. So during the epilogue, Nadine and Lennox's children can be 4 years old at the most. Now Jinny is playing Ophelia in Hamlet, they have just seen the play, and Nadine suggests taking the children to the Matinee (I understand that refers to an afternoon performance), saying they are old enough. 4 years old, old enough for "Hamlet"?

GKCfan

taliavishay-arbel, I thought the same thing.  Then I came across the book Roller Skates, a children's book from 1937, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_Skates) which talks about kids younger then 10 studying Shakespeare.  Looking into it, the "reading level" for Shakespeare was a lot younger in the 1930's (and standards for  a lot of stuff were different, too)!  From the dialogue, though, maybe Nadine and Lennox don't expect the kids to understand the play, they just really want to see Aunt Ginny perform.  And for all we know, it may not be the full four-hour Hamlet.  It was common for many productions to just put on crucial scenes and soliloquies at some performances.  It's possible that the kids might be seeing a Matinee consisting of half an hour to an hour of "highlights from Hamlet."

taliavishay-arbel

GKCfan said:

taliavishay-arbel, I thought the same thing.  Then I came across the book Roller Skates, a children's book from 1937, (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roller_Skates) which talks about kids younger then 10 studying Shakespeare.  Looking into it, the "reading level" for Shakespeare was a lot younger in the 1930's (and standards for  a lot of stuff were different, too)!  From the dialogue, though, maybe Nadine and Lennox don't expect the kids to understand the play, they just really want to see Aunt Ginny perform.  And for all we know, it may not be the full four-hour Hamlet.  It was common for many productions to just put on crucial scenes and soliloquies at some performances.  It's possible that the kids might be seeing a Matinee consisting of half an hour to an hour of "highlights from Hamlet."

That makes sense! Thanks!

GKCfan

You're welcome!

Mohan

This was the first book that I finished in one sitting as a teenager!  I remember tremendously enjoying it, being COMPLETELY surprised by the denouement and like most of Agatha Christie's novels, have thoroughly enjoyed it on subsequent readings!

ccchristie

I'm new to this group and just posted a random question, but I'll repost it here.  Is there an annual calendar listing the "Book of the Month"?  Thanks in advance.

taliavishay-arbel

ccchristie said:

I'm new to this group and just posted a random question, but I'll repost it here.  Is there an annual calendar listing the "Book of the Month"?  Thanks in advance.

As far as I know there isn't, but the book of the month is announced in the "News" section.

GKCfan

There's no official calendar: I think the decision is made each month.  September's book is Towards Zero.