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what a caper!

major_pallgrave 05 Dec 08 at 1:39 a.m. GMT

I've just finished re-reading "Why Didn't They Ask Evans" many years after reading it for the first time. I had completely forgotten the plot of thebookwhich i took to probably be an indication that it wasn't one of my more enjoyable Christie reads. Well it was enjoyable as a yarn but was more of a caper than a whodunnit. It is easy for a Christie reader to spot the culprit but it reminded me of the Tommy and Tuppence adventures and The Seven Dials mystery from the 1920's in that it was very reminiscent of that writing style( chapters of which there are many are very short, the story rushes along, the clues lack subtlety and there is non stop action from the word go right through to the last page) in recounting the exploits of a couple of young happy-go-lucky amateur adventurers. Quite surprising to think it was written in 1934 the same year she wrote Murder On the Orient Express, one year after Lord Edgware Dies and a full eight years after The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. I wonder if it was a story she had formulated many years earlier but had not set to paper.  What does anyone else think of it?

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hobbit 05 Dec 08 at 3:45 p.m. GMT

I personally did not like this book. I felt it was one of Christie's, shall we say, 'less successful' attempts at a mystery (though in fairness she did set the bar pretty high for herself) in so much as it was pretty predictable. I guessed the murderer/s about half-way through. You're right, major, in what you say about its content - very action-orientated with not nearly enough ingenuity in terms of actual plot-devices.

However, it must be said, I do rather like the title. As AC titles go I actually think it's one of her best. That might sound like a trivial point, but titles are, I believe, a very important element of novels. It's the rare book, in fact, which has both an interesting title AND is a spell-binding read.

I think, though, the title was somewhat wasted on the novel. 'Why didn't they ask Evans?' is such a brooding, mysterious title for a book (particularly in the context in which it is said) but the pay-off as to its actual meaning was a bit disappointing I felt.

Not a nomination then, for the best book AC ever wrote (least not from me) - but neither totally without merit!

Hobbit

major_pallgrave 06 Dec 08 at 1:49 a.m. GMT

I completely agree with you about both this particular title and the importance of an interesting or eye-catching title in the general sense.It was the title which convinced me to buy it first time round. (Re-reads i buy strictly second hand with a very few exceptions)Good titles and great reads i think include Mrs.McGinty's Dead, Ordeal By Innocence, A Pocketful of Rye and The Pale Horse. Also agree with you Hobbit about the disappointing nature of the actual meaning of the very intriguing question of the title in "Evans". The charachters are possibly some of the sketchiest to be found in any of her works though i have a sneaking suspicion that Passenger to Frankfurt , had i actually soldiered on and finished reading it would havegiven it a run for its money. Anyway these are the very rare exceptions so i wont complain. We all have off-days right?

evie_beth 23 Dec 08 at 6:56 p.m. GMT

I know what you mean about it being a "caper"! But I love it for its fun action, pacey dialogue and carefree feel. I'm a real fan of the "adventure" AC books that she wrote as a breezy antidote to the more tortuous (to write!) whodunnits. As you say, the 1920's Tommy and Tuppence, and the Seven Dials Mystery, and to a certain extent The Secret of Chimneys all have similarities to the later "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?" I take on board all the reasons why people may not think it is up there as a great AC, but to me, it's truly one of the greats - just a great adventure/mystery, rather than whodunnit.

major_pallgrave 24 Dec 08 at 1:26 a.m. GMT

Yes Evie i see exactly what you mean. The really enjoyable aspect of these kind of adventures is that they are just that. The charachters have a wonderful ability to, at the merest hint of a mystery,drop every thing they were hitherto doing and boldly go off on the scent of the trail, fearlessly following where ever it may lead them.It provides for a wonderful sense of escapism for the reader. Can there be one among us who on a dreary monday morning did not at one time or another (or several times!) long to be somewhere else doing something exciting instead of being tied to our dull routine. Of course the search for adventure has that inherentadded bonus of the possibility of romance lying in wonderful wait all tied up in the intrigue.If it gets you away from the office for a week or two it can't be bad. Be honest you were wasted in that job anyway!

Tommy_A_Jones 27 Dec 08 at 1:28 p.m. GMT

In agree with you so much major pallgrave and evie my only dissapointment is that there aren't more books that feature either Bundle Brent or Bobby Jones and Lady Derwent I would include The Man In The Brown Suit as another caper book, I love Ann Beddingfield and the others I even like the baddie (Sorry I don't know how else to describe the person without giving it away).

hobbit 07 Feb 09 at 9:02 a.m. GMT

When you think of how action-orientated the book is, it does make one wonder how Miss Marple is going to slide into it. I don't suppose anyone has seen it yet, but I can't see that it will be an easy fit (unlike say 'Murder Is Easy', which I think most would agree could easily have been a Miss Marple novel). It will be interesting viewing just to see how they manage (or indeed fail!) to weave Miss Marple seamlessly into the plot.