Books 2012: the little old spy

[hawkwing_lb]

Books 2012: 224-229


224-228. Dorothy Gilman, The Elusive Mrs. Pollifax, A Palm for Mrs. Pollifax, Mrs. Pollifax On Safari, Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station and Mrs. Pollifax and the Hong Kong Buddha. Fawcett, 1970s-1985.

Novels about the elderly Mrs. Pollifax (I say elderly, but she's only a few years older than my mum, how attitudes to age have changed) who's taken up a late career as a spy. These are slightly delightful, slightly faily books - but the sense of humour works perfectly for me most of the time.


229. John Marsden, Tomorrow, When The War Began. Ebook.

Not particularly good YA. But it seems like it would be like crack to its intended audience.

Comments

[rcloenen-ruiz.livejournal.com]

I remember reading Mrs. Pollifax from those Readers's Digest companion library things. I can see how problematic they were (now that I look back), but when you are a gradeschool kid who will read anything it was loads of fun.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

I can handwave most of the problematic stuff as being understandably Mrs. Pollifax's viewpoint... but reading about elderly women who can still kick ass and take names? This is worth some problems, because I have yet to read any non-cosy-mysteries that do the same thing. (Apart from Pratchett's witches.)

[rcloenen-ruiz.livejournal.com]

I remember someone asking on Twitter if there were women detectives/spies (don't remember exactly how the question was phrased or who asked it. Was it you?). Last time I read Mrs. Pollifax, I was in highschool. Reader's Digest always had these very colorful illustrations which is probably one reason why those companion library stories just stuck with me.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

I don't think that was me. Although I'm a sucker for spy stories.

[rcloenen-ruiz.livejournal.com]

I remember discovering Agatha Christie in Highschool. For some weird reason I keep mixing up Poirot and Agatha Christie. When that question came up on twitter, my kneejerk response was: this person doesn't know Agatha Christie...and then I remembered that Agatha was the writer and Poirot was the character. Yep. Weird. I know.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

Heh.

[ellettra.livejournal.com]

I love the Mrs, Pollifax books.

[hawkwing-lb.livejournal.com]

They're pretty cool.