Happy Birthday John Mortimer, 1923, London. This barrister was the creator of the beloved Rumpole of the Bailey - Rumpole was based on Mortimer's father, Clifford. There are 22 novels in the series, and it was also a TV show. His daughter is the actor Emily Mortimer.
“My customary exercise consists of a short stroll from the Temple tube to Equity Court, and rising to object to impertinent questions put by prosecuting counsel.”
― John Mortimer, Rumpole à la Carte
Avon 1961.
auntagathas.com/aa/sarah-gra... What's not to like about chocolate? Out next week. Review by Carla Schantz.
"The west had traded patience for progress." -- THE LAST MANDARIN, Louise Penny & Mellissa Fung
Happy Birthday Gladys Mitchell, 1901, Oxford. Her main character, Beatrice Adela Lestrange Bradley, was a polymathic psychoanalyst and author who was featured in a further 65 novels. Mitchell worked as a teacher for her entire writing life. She was an early member of the Detection Club.
GREAT DESCRIPTION DEPT: "Peter Everett Sergeant III reminded me of a grouchy squirrel. With his hands positioned as though he were cradling a precious nut, he canted his head three different ways in the space of two seconds. Alert, wary, eager."-- STATE OF THE ONION, Julie Hyzy
Jamie at the store taking down the Batman clock for a battery change.
auntagathas.com/aa/lynn-caho... Lynn Cahoon's second in this terrific series is out April 28. Review by Carla Schantz.
Cover contrast dept. Original pub date 1965.
auntagathas.com/aa/colleen-c... Next book in this fun series is out April 28. If you are a fan of Julia Child or Paris (or both!) don't miss this one. Review by Vicki Kondelik.
"That broad has enough venom in her to make a snake jealous." -- PENNE DREADFUL, Catherine Bruns (2019)
Signet, 1979. Another cover by artist Allan Kass.
"The unread story is not a story; it is little black marks on wood pulp. The reader, reading it, makes it live: a live thing, a story." -- Ursula K. LeGuin
We can all dream I guess
That time in 2007 when Louise Penny had dinner with the book club and signed copies of A FATAL GRACE (one of my very favorite Three Pines books).
auntagathas.com/aa/ellery-qu... Spectacularly interesting essay by our reviewer Cathy Akers-Jordan who is an Ellery Queen expert. Pictured are the two men behind "Ellery Queen."
Signet, 1975. Cover art by Allan Kass.
auntagathas.com/aa/kang-jiyo... Margaret Agnew's take on this unusual mystery. Out next week.
"I heard somebody define heaven once," she said, looking at Pearl, "as a place where, when you get there, all the dogs you ever loved run to greet you." -- Robert B. Parker
(Artist: Bob Kuhn, 1949)
Afternoon truth dept.
"That's a trick answer. Chinese people don't believe in souls, right?"
"We believe in many things, Vandyne. But eating good food is at the top, not this afterlife nonsense." -- ONE RED BASTARD, Ed Lin
That seems like a terrible idea. Hodder, 1956.
"Astonished, Mrs. Pollifax wondered if possibly these people were going to help them. She turned to Farrell and saw the same look reflected in his face: the confusion of a suspicious and desperate man confronted by hope." -- THE UNEXPECTED MRS. POLLIFAX, Dorothy Gilman
Cover contrast dept. Original pub date 1935.
GREAT DESCRIPTION DEPT: "Bentley's relief skipper was Phil Cotterel, a big man in his forties, with a plain, pleasant face that always made Slider think of a good loaf of bread. Not that he was doughy, but he gave you the same feeling of home-cooked comfort." -DEADLY FORCE, Cynthia Harrod-Eagles
Love this cover! 1944, Crestwood Publishing.
"Tea! Bless ordinary everyday afternoon tea!" -- Agatha Christie
Cover contrast dept. Original pub date 1931.
auntagathas.com/aa/ashley-ru... Out April 21, this charming first mystery from Ashley-Ruth Bernier is set in the Virgin Islands. Lovely read.