One of the good things about being old is that you can reread old mystery books knowing full well that you have read them before but without the faintest clue as to who-done-it. A corollary to that is that you can stay up all night finishing the book and sleep in the next morning no matter what day of the week it happens to be. Old age and retirement have their good points.
I went back in time the other day to 1982 when Sue Grafton published her first of her alphabet series, “A is for Alibi”. Her powers of description and ability to create a mental image were astonishing even then. As I got deeper into the book, I had little flashes of memory, but never complete enough to prevent the ending from blowing me away. ( That’s a joke in case you haven’t read “A” in decades.) Now I have to get the latest. My first question will be, “Has Kinsey got herself a cell phone yet?”
I have read most of Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories several times and most of Tony Hillerman more than once. I think that Hillerman was the best craftsman, but he allowed himself the largest palette. I plan to continue reading mysteries over and over as long as I can. They seem to, like so many things, get better with age.
3 comments:
Thank you for introducing a new (for me) mystery writer for us! I shall look for Sue Grafton's novels in the local library. If hersn popular in the U.S. in the past, they might have her books here too.
Someone just told me that I would probably enjoy her books. I will have to start with A and work my way through. :)
Thanks to you I have started reading this series. As you said, she manages to create a really vivid picture of every scene - am enjoying it! A for Alibi seems to be perennially checked out in my library though :-(.
Post a Comment