Library Book Group To Discuss Female Detectives

By Jan Howard

A Body in the Library by Agatha Christie will be the first book featured in an upcoming book discussion at the C.H. Booth Library sponsored by the Friends of the Library.

“Female Detectives: What Makes Them Different” will be the subject of the discussion led by Newtown residents Liz Arneth, a retired English teacher, and Marian Wood, a writer, beginning September 26 at 7:30 pm.

The group will meet every two weeks. Sign up at the circulation desk or by calling the library at 426-4533.

 The discussion will also feature best selling mysteries by three other female writers, All That Remains by Patricia Cornwell on October 10, Ill Wind by Nevada Barr on October 24, and One for the Money by Janet Evanovich on November 7.

A limited number of copies of all titles are available at the library. Participants can come to one discussion or all four.

The female detectives theme came about through a discussion between Mrs Arneth, Mrs Wood, and Gordon Williams following a book discussion Mr Williams and Mrs Arneth led last winter. Mary Maki, president of the Friends of the Library, and Kim Weber of the library staff helped develop the theme and choose the books.

The subject is not unfamiliar to Mrs Arneth and Mrs Wood.

“We’re absolutely fanatics about murder stories,” Mrs Arneth said. “We want to share our love of the mystery and have those who come give their opinions.”

“We’ve read a lot of them,” Mrs Wood said. “We chose a representative sampling that are all very readable.”

 Mrs Arneth and Mrs Wood point out they are not academic experts on the subject. They just love murder mysteries, and have read all four books. They will facilitate discussion and want to hear what other members of the group think about the characters and the interactions between people in the books.

How the female characters handle violence and weapons and who their sidekicks are will be among the topics discussed.

 “Each book is totally different and has a different style,” Mrs Arneth said. Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple may never go to a crime scene like later female detectives, she noted, “but she’s as smart as any of the cops. The cops come to her for her observational skills.”

Later female detectives may be concerned with environmental issues or scientific data, she said. There may be graphic descriptions of a crime scene.

“Miss Marple was one-dimensional. She was not flawed. The other three female detectives are fully realized,” Mrs Wood said.

“Miss Marple was outside of time,” Mrs Arneth said. “Everything happens in a small town or nearby. Later women detectives were more active, and reflect women in their times.”

 Following a book discussion at the library on mysteries led by Gary Storhoff, a professor at the University of Connecticut at Stamford, “We thought we’d build on that,” Mrs Wood said. “These books are eye candy. They make their characters so fascinating that you can’t wait to read the next book.”

At the beginning of each session, Mrs Wood will offer a brief biography of the author. Mrs Arneth will lead the discussion.

Readers are secretly addicted to murder mysteries, Mrs Arneth said, “but they don’t talk about them.”

“Readers find a character they like, and read the series,” Mrs Wood said. They follow the development of the character and her relationships with others, she added.

Mrs Arneth said she gets caught up in the role of solving the crime while reading a mystery. “I think about what I’d do at a crime scene. I read mysteries to get focused. The craft of mystery writing fascinates me.”

 “There is something satisfying when you get to the end,” Mrs Wood said. “Because I write textbooks, fiction is a vacation from my normal writing.”

 “Why is Agatha Christie still so popular today?” Mrs Arneth questioned. “You wonder if modern writers will be as popular years from now.”

From Agatha Christie to Janet Evanovich is a span of 50 years, Mrs Wood said. “We start with the oldest and end with the most recent. We cover the scope of 20th century female detectives.

“We’ll discuss how the female detective has evolved from an elderly, staid, prim spinster to Stephanie Plum, who deals with crime differently than Miss Marple.”

The main characters live in very different times, she said. “Things have changed. The roles of women have changed,” Mrs Wood noted.

The discussion will have appeal for all readers, Mrs Wood said. “The characters lead real and fascinating lives.”

Plus, Mrs Arneth added, there’s a puzzle involved.

“We’ll discuss what happened and why,” Mrs Wood explained. “The relationships of people usually determine what happens in a crime.”

Mrs Arneth and Mrs Wood are obviously looking forward to the discussion.

 “The last book discussion was so lively it was difficult to shut off the lights and get out the door,” Mrs Wood said.

Mrs Arneth graduated from Queens College of the University of New York with a bachelor of arts degree in English literature with a specialty in English. A teacher for 20 years, she also earned a sixth year in administration.

Mrs Wood, a textbook writer, earned her bachelor’s degree in liberal arts at the City College of New York and an MBA from Long Island University. She has been writing full time for ten years. She was previously a vice president of marketing for banks.