{"id":21504,"date":"2023-02-12T11:32:25","date_gmt":"2023-02-12T16:32:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/?p=21504"},"modified":"2025-10-01T16:11:47","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T20:11:47","slug":"n-or-m","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21504","title":{"rendered":"N or M?"},"content":{"rendered":"

N or M?<\/a><\/em> (1941) Agatha Christie<\/a> (Tommy & Tuppence)<\/p>\n

\"N<\/a>It’s 1940 and both Tommy & Tuppence feel useless.<\/p>\n

“Well, come on, out with it. Nothing doing?\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cNothing doing. They don\u2019t want me in any capacity. I tell you, Tuppence, it\u2019s pretty thick when a man of forty-six is made to feel like a doddering grandfather. Army, Navy, Air Force, Foreign Office, one and all say the same thing\u2014 I\u2019m too old. I may be required later.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I had to exert will to keep myself from looking up when various ages were called up for services in the second world war.<\/p>\n

“And now I\u2019m a poor, pushing, tiresome, middle-aged woman who won\u2019t sit at home quietly and knit as she ought to do.\u201d <\/p>\n

Tommy said gloomily: \u201cThis war is hell.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s bad enough having a war,\u201d said Tuppence, \u201cbut not being allowed to do anything in it just puts the lid on.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I really enjoyed this glimpse of England towards the start of WW II. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re saying,\u201d said Miss Minton, \u201cthat it will all be over by the autumn.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cNonsense,\u201d said Mr. Cayley. \u201cThis war is going to last at least six years.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

You take my word for it, this refugee business is dangerous. If I had my way I\u2019d intern the lot of them. Safety first.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Mrs. Sprot had just said in her thin fluting voice: <\/p>\n

\u201cWhere I do think the Germans made such a mistake in the last war was to shoot Nurse Cavell. It turned everybody against them.\u201d
\n…
\n\u201cBefore she died. Don\u2019t you know what she said?\u201d <\/p>\n

He repeated the words: <\/p>\n

\u201cPatriotism is not enough . . . I must have no hatred in my heart.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

He aims at creating a new Britain\u2014 a Britain strong in its own power\u2014 ruled over, not<\/em> by Germans, but by Englishmen. And the best type<\/em> of Englishmen\u2014 Englishmen with brains and breeding and courage. A brave new world<\/em>, as Shakespeare puts it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks<\/p>\n

Rating: 8\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

N or M? (1941) Agatha Christie (Tommy & Tuppence) It’s 1940 and both Tommy & Tuppence feel useless. “Well, come on, out with it. Nothing doing?\u201d \u201cNothing doing. They don\u2019t want me in any capacity. I tell you, Tuppence, it\u2019s pretty thick when a man of forty-six is made to feel like a doddering grandfather. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","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":[12,30,190,292,33,8,41],"tags":[228,662,898],"class_list":["post-21504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-8-10","category-british","category-cozy","category-ebook","category-historical","category-mystery","category-reread","tag-agatha-christie","tag-tommy-tuppence","tag-ww-ii"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/piQkW-5AQ","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":21527,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21527","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":0},"title":"By the Pricking of My Thumbs","author":"Michelle","date":"February 24, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"By the Pricking of My Thumbs (1968) Agatha Christie (Tommy & Tuppence) We first met Tommy & Tuppence at the end of the Great War. Mr. Beresford had once had red hair. There were traces of the red still, but most of it had gone that sandy-cum-grey colour that red-headed\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "7\/10"","block_context":{"text":"7\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/7-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"By the Pricking of My Thumbs","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/By-the-Pricking-of-My-Thumbs.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/By-the-Pricking-of-My-Thumbs.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/By-the-Pricking-of-My-Thumbs.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":21495,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21495","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":1},"title":"Partners in Crime","author":"Michelle","date":"January 30, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Partners in Crime (1929) Agatha Christie (Tommy & Tuppence) A set of intertwined Tommy & Tuppence short stories. A Fairy in the Flat A Pot of Tea The Affair of the Pink Pearl The Adventure of the Sinister Stranger Finessing the King The Case of the Missing Lady Blindman\u2019s Buff\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "7\/10"","block_context":{"text":"7\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/7-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Partners in Crime","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/Partners-in-Crime.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":21473,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21473","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":2},"title":"The Secret Adversary","author":"Michelle","date":"January 24, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The Secret Adversary (1922) Agatha Christie (Tommy & Tuppence) The Great War is over, but things aren't easy for those who served. I went out to France again, as you know. Then they sent me to Mesopotamia, and I got wounded for the second time, and went into hospital out\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "British"","block_context":{"text":"British","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/british"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Secret Adversary","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/The-Secret-Adversary.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":21396,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/21396","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":3},"title":"The Secret of Chimneys","author":"Michelle","date":"December 20, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The Secret of Chimneys (1925) Agatha Christie (Superintendent Battle) Honestly, I have absolutely no memory of this book. I read only a handful of the Poirot books, and I remember some of the Tommy & Tuppence books, but this? And Superintendent Battle? The only thing that was familiar was the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "British"","block_context":{"text":"British","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/british"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Secret of Chimneys","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/The-Secret-of-Chimneys.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":139,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/139","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":4},"title":"Where’s My Cow?","author":"Michelle","date":"October 7, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Where's My Cow? (2005) Terry Pratchett If you like Terry Pratchett's Discworld, then you will definitely want to read this book. First of all, it has an award, \"Children's Winner of the Ankh-Morpork Librarians' Award. OOK!\" Also, it has blurbs on the back, \"'...wonderfully instructive' Tuppence Swivel, the Times of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "9\/10"","block_context":{"text":"9\/10","link":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/category\/9-10"},"img":{"alt_text":"Where's My Cow","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.klishis.com\/Books\/images\/wheres%20my%20cow.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":20854,"url":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/archives\/20854","url_meta":{"origin":21504,"position":5},"title":"A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie","author":"Michelle","date":"October 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie (2015) Kathryn Harkup Agatha Christie volunteered as a nurse during the first world war, and ended up working at the pharmacy. In order to prepare for the Apothecaries Hall examination Christie was tutored in practical, as well as theoretical, aspects of\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":"A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/A_is_for_Arsenic.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\/21504","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=21504"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21504\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/klishis.com\/reading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}