WWW.WEDNESDAY

WWW. WEDNESDAY asks three questions to prompt you to speak bookishly. To participate, and to see how other book lovers responded, click here. 

1. What are you currently reading? Death of a President by William Manchester. This month marks the 59th anniversary of President Kennedy's assassination. I'm an old lady now, having lived through Vietnam and Watergate and the Challenger explosion and 9/11 and Katrina and Sandy Hook and the January 6 attack on the Capitol. All those national nightmares were heartbreaking, but none has left the mark on me personally that 11/22/63 did.

We murdered our own President, in broad daylight, during a parade, and it was caught on camera.

That day -- coincidentally my 6th birthday -- fundamentally changed America and I want to revisit it. In a sober, scholarly way (no lurid, tin-hat conspiracies for this gal). This book is considered the gold standard and now is the time.

2. What did you recently finish reading? Murder Is Easy by Agatha Christie. People are dropping like flies in the peaceful rural town of Wychwood. Though the deaths are happening at an alarming rate, the local constabulary doesn't suspect foul play. After all, each cause of death is very different and all the victims seem to have in common is that they all lived, and died, in Wychwood.

A charming spinster thinks she has it figured out, though, and is on her way to Scotland Yard. If the local Wychwood police don't appreciate her insights, maybe Scotland Yard will. Only she's run down by a hit-and-run driver before she can get to the London office.

It takes a while for all the suspects to be revealed, and even longer for the killer to be found out. That's OK. Most of the 250+ pages was an entertaining ride. I don't think Agatha Christie gets her proper credit for dialog. One of the characters, raven-haired Bridget, sounded just like Lady Mary of Downton Abbey to my ear.

I didn't love it, though. The denouement was too long. I was like, "OK, I know who did it. I know why. I know how. Let's move on to the next book." But Dame Agatha had other plans for me and went on ... and on ... and on. It's too bad when the very ending kinda spoils a good read.

3. What will read next? I don't know.