The Mysterious Affair at Styles - Agatha Christie

When I was a kid 10000000 years ago, I loved the Hercule Poirot novels, but I never really read any of the other books by the same author, like the Miss Marple books, etc. It recently occurred to me that a fun project might be to read all of Agatha Christie's books in the order in which they were published, so on a recent trip to the library I grabbed this, the first book, first published back in 1920. 

Cue the flashback to this book. SIGH. 

Once again, I get it, the n-word was used a lot in those days, people (well, white people, of course) didn't think of it as particularly offensive, it's not used against someone but as a descriptor of a costume (which in some ways is way worse), but I just can't. I can't erase or change the past but it really sucks to be reading merrily along and get slapped in the face like this. I guess I might be able to overlook it if things today were very different but ..... I just can't. 

Overall, this was a good mystery, although to be honest I had trouble keeping track of the characters. It was fun to meet M. Poirot for the first time and try to puzzle out the solution to the mystery, which is clever. But I think I will work on other books. 

View from a Hill - Mark Burgess

Another favorite band is The Chameleons (sometimes called The Chameleons UK in the US). Weirdly enough, I don't remember where or how I first heard them, I just have this impression that I have always really liked them. This autobiography tells the story of the band from the perspective of one of the band's founding members/lead singer. When I was a lot younger I wanted to be in a band, and this book made me both wish I could have made it happen and also feel thankful that it never did. Wow, record companies are some of the shadiest "businesses" out there! However, being in a band seems to consist of like 75% getting drunk/taking drugs/fighting with bandmates, 20% fighting with record companies, and like 5% playing and writing music so who knows, maybe I got the better end of the deal after all. This book was very well written and was an enjoyable, illuminating read. 

The main takeaway: if you are ever wondering about what the lyrics to your favorite song mean, it's most likely something to do with alcohol/drugs. LOL

Don't worry, there are more Joy Division books coming soon too, ha ha!

Reading Behind Bars - Jill Grunenwald

The closest I have ever come to being in a prison is a visit to Folsom Prison, which has a cool museum for visitors who like the Johnny Cash song but have no other business being there. Having watched shows like Oz, Orange Is the New Black, and even Prison Break, I can honestly say I have no desire to ever get a closer view of what goes on behind the walls. Luckily people like the author have more courage than I do, and can provide first-hand accounts, in this case from the perspective of a prison librarian. This book covered the importance of libraries in general to society, and the importance of information access to everyone, including people who are incarcerated. I imagine having access to a library could really make a difference to someone who might be trying to get their life back on track. I do have a question for the author - did the young man she recommended The Great Gatsby to like it? A fascinating look at a world most of us will never see for ourselves.