{"id":12860,"date":"2020-05-15T21:07:59","date_gmt":"2020-05-16T01:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=12860"},"modified":"2025-10-01T16:11:50","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T20:11:50","slug":"the-body-in-the-library-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12860","title":{"rendered":"The Body in the Library"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Body in the Library<\/a><\/em> (1942) Agatha Christie<\/a> (Miss Marple)<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>This was published in 1942, but does not really seem to actually be set during the war, although there are allusions to war.<\/p>\n

He did A.R.P. work, you know, when he was only eighteen.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I suppose that makes the story feel even more timeless, although most of her stories have a sense of timelessness, since they focus on people and behavior rather than science and technology.<\/p>\n

This is no fooling Miss Marple.<\/p>\n

\u2018You don\u2019t like him.\u2019 <\/p>\n

\u2018Yes, I do. Most women would. But he can\u2019t take me in.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I think one of the things I like best about this story is Mrs Bantry, who seems at first to be rather oblivious and silly, and then comes out with this:<\/p>\n

\u2018I\u2019m not altogether a fool. You may think, Jane, that I don\u2019t know what they\u2019re saying all over St Mary Mead \u2013 all over the county! They\u2019re saying, one and all, that there\u2019s no smoke without fire, that if the girl was found in Arthur\u2019s library, then Arthur must know something about it. They\u2019re saying that the girl was Arthur\u2019s mistress \u2013 that she was his illegitimate daughter \u2013 that she was blackmailing him. They\u2019re saying anything that comes into their damned heads! And it will go on like that! Arthur won\u2019t realize it at first \u2013 he won\u2019t know what\u2019s wrong. He\u2019s such a dear old stupid that he\u2019d never believe people would think things like that about him. He\u2019ll be cold-shouldered and looked at askance (whatever that means!) and it will dawn on him little by little and suddenly he\u2019ll be horrified and cut to the soul, and he\u2019ll fasten up like a clam and just endure, day after day, in misery.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That is probably a far better reason for wanting to solve a mystery than most amateur detectives come up with.<\/p>\n

And it is in the book we finally see Miss Marple asking questions (gently and not so gently) to ferret out the answers she seeks.<\/p>\n

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks
\nRating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) This was published in 1942, but does not really seem to actually be set during the war, although there are allusions to war. He did A.R.P. work, you know, when he was only eighteen. I suppose that makes the story feel even more timeless, although […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[12,30,668,190,48,33,8,41],"tags":[228,229,693,898],"class_list":["post-12860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-10","category-british","category-comfort-read","category-cozy","category-female","category-historical","category-mystery","category-reread","tag-agatha-christie","tag-miss-marple","tag-older-protagonist","tag-ww-ii"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-3lq","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":20897,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/20897","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":0},"title":"The Body in the Library","author":"Michelle","date":"April 29, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) The second Miss Marple book has both Miss Marple and Sir Henry Clithering. One of the things I always loved Agatha Christie books is how descriptive they can be. The gay, laughing expression on his face was wiped off as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Body in the Library","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/The-Body-in-the-Library.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3454,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/3454","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":1},"title":"The Body in the Library","author":"Michelle","date":"January 8, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie Colonel and Mrs. Bantry are quite shocked to discover a body in their library--a very young blonde body. The Colonel calls the police, but Mrs. Bantry knows better, and calls Miss Marple. Again, like Murder at the Vicarage, I noticed that much\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Body in the Library","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/01\/body-in-the-library.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24585,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24585","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":2},"title":"The Body in the Library","author":"Michelle","date":"May 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Body in the Library (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) Mrs Bantry reflected a minute and then applied an urgent conjugal elbow to her sleeping spouse. \u2018Arthur, Arthur, wake up.\u2019 Colonel Bantry grunted, muttered, and rolled over on his side. \u2018Wake up, Arthur. Did you hear what she said?\u2019 \u2018Very\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Body in the Library","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/The-Body-in-the-Library.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":12868,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/12868","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":3},"title":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories","author":"Michelle","date":"May 17, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) These stories were published between 1927 and 1957. \"(S)o many people seem to me not to be either bad or good, but simply, you know, very silly.\u201d The Thirteen Problems (previously published as The Tuesday Club Murders) (1932) The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Miss Marple The Complete Short Stories","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Miss-Marple-The-Complete-Short-Stories.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24591,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24591","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":4},"title":"The Moving Finger","author":"Michelle","date":"May 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The Moving Finger (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) \u2018I can see you are a very clever young man\u2014but not quite enough confidence in yourself. You ought to have!\u2019 Joanna gave a loud hoot. \u2018For goodness\u2019 sake don\u2019t encourage him to feel like that. He thinks quite enough of himself as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "8.5\/10"","block_context":{"text":"8.5\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/8-5-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Moving Finger","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/the-moving-finger.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":24633,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/24633","url_meta":{"origin":12860,"position":5},"title":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories","author":"Michelle","date":"June 3, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985) Agatha Christie The Thirteen Problems (1932) 1. The Tuesday Night Club (1927) 2. The Idol House of Astarte (1928) 3. Ingots of Gold (1928) 4. The Bloodstained Pavement (1928) 5. Motive v. Opportunity (1928) 6. The Thumbmark of St. Peter (1928) 7. The\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "10\/10"","block_context":{"text":"10\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/10-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Miss Marple The Complete Short Stories","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Miss-Marple-The-Complete-Short-Stories.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12860"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12860\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}