My Current Interest

Last year I did comparisons of three film adaptations of Agatha Christie’s Death on the Nile in relation to the book. I have decided to do the same with Ms. Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express . This time, instead of one post, I will have separate posts for all four versions of Murder on the Orient Express . I will start with the book itself. Murder on the Orient Express Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot finds murder on the Orient Express Detective Hercule Poirot was not supposed to be on the train. An emergency forced his need to travel, which is how he ended up on the surprisingly full Orient Express. The train ride is already expected to be a long journey, but it becomes even longer when the train gets stuck in a snowstorm. The snowstorm, however, is a minor inconvenience compared to the murder Poirot must solve. The victim is a man named Ratchett. At least that is the name he has been going by. Cassetti is his true name. It is a well-known name as he is the man who got aw...

I started reading The Bodyguard  by Katherine Center at a very memorable moment. The power had just gone out for my street only. At that time of night, without any light, my two options were to go to bed early or read by flashlight. I opted to read by flashlight. One would think during this time I would go for a scary book. I chose a romance. While I worried about when the lights would come back on and if everything in the refrigerator and freezer was going to spoil, a light, fun romance was exactly what I needed. The Bodyguard Katherine Center Hannah Brooks needs a change of scenery Hannah Brooks’s life is not going well. Her mother has died. She has been taken off an assignment she was looking forward to. Plus, her boyfriend has broken up with her. With all this going on, Hannah needs to get out of town. Which is why she is not at all happy when her new assignment keeps her exactly where she lives. Guarding Jack Stapleton What are these assignments I am talking about?...

There are some books that take me a long time to read. Then there are some I read quickly because I am curious about what direction the story is going to go. The Marriage Clock by Zara Raheem was a book I read quickly. The Marriage Clock Zara Raheem If only life were like a romantic movie Leila Abid has always imagined that finding the man for her would be like a Bollywood movie. So far, her path to a husband has been nothing like a movie. Now that Leila is in her mid-twenties, her parents are starting to get anxious about the fact their daughter is unmarried. Her mother is particularly upset about this single status. To solve the problem, Leila’s mother decides to help her find a husband in the traditional way she grew up with in India: by arrangement. For a while Leila lets her parents set her up with men. When these dates all turn out badly, Leila asks for time to find a husband on her own. Her parents give her three months. Three months to find a husband In those three...

It was frightening how similar the situations in The Library of Lost and Found by Phaedra Patrick are to events that have happened in my life. The book experiences are more extreme than my own, but I still understood all to well what was going on. You may be surprised how much you can relate to this book too.            The Library of Lost and Found Phaedra Patrick Everyone has a breaking point Martha Storm spends her life doing things for other people. She does so much, she has a notebook with a list of things she must get done for others. It is not often everything on the list is accomplished. Yet, even with Martha’s inability to finish everything, the list keeps growing. It grows because, no matter what, people keep taking advantage of Martha and wanting her to do things for them. One day it all gets to be too much. Martha finally has enough of constantly doing things for others while receiving nothing in return. She tells the library book club, as w...

Sometimes a book is incredibly timely. Just as Roe vs. Wade was being outrageously overturned, I was reading A Perfect Equation , the second book in the Secret Scientists of London series by Elizabeth Everett. As women’s reproductive rights were being sent back decades, if not centuries, I was reading about men protesting in the streets. What were they protesting about? How women were meant to be in the home taking care of their men and children. And doing nothing else. Does this sound like a mindset this country is falling back to? It certainly does to me. Interestingly, this book is set in the year 1843. So, in essence, we are moving back to the mentality of a time when a car would not be seen for the first time until decades later. Is that a time we really want to go back to? A Perfect Equation Secret Scientists of London Book 2 Elizabeth Everett Letty faces a double standard Letitia “Letty” Fenley has been disgraced. She had sex with a man without being married. Now she has been b...

I saw the most recent adaptation of Death on the Nile (2022) and walked away confused. It was very different from the other film versions I have seen. This made me wonder which film version was closest to the book. To find out, I had to actually read Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie. I also had to rewatch the David Suchet and Peter Ustinov versions in order to compare everything accurately. Death on the Nile is one of those titles probably everyone has at least heard of. Whether they have read the novel or watched any of the adaptations is a different story. I myself had never read the book, but I had seen two adaptations before this most recent one. For this experiment, I got the book from the library , eager to read it, not knowing what a chore it would be. Death on the Nile was not an easy read. Although, I will give the book the benefit of the doubt. Had I not known the ending so well, I may have enjoyed the book more. Death on the Nile Agatha Christie Too much money lea...

There are not a lot of books that make me cry. But every once in a while, there is one that does. Fat Chance, Charlie Vega is a book that almost made me cry. I didn’t quite get to tears, but I was close. That’s because this book is so relatable! Who hasn’t at some point felt like the second choice (or third, or fourth . . .)? Who hasn’t felt there is something about themselves that makes them not as good as everyone else? If you haven’t ever felt either of these things at any moment in time, you are incredibly lucky. Charlie Vega has these feelings, and they are feelings I completely understand.       One of the toughest battles is our own insecurities There are many reasons Charlotte “Charlie” Vega feels she is not seen as being as good as everyone else. One of the biggest reasons is her weight. Even her mother is constantly on her about it. Charlie’s mother leaves her diet shakes and comments on what she is eating. Not exactly a way to get someone on the ...

I f you want to watch something nice and simple without too much blood, gore, and explosions, you have to go back to shows of the past. This may get you laughed at. Or at least have someone shake their head at you, but who cares! As long as you enjoy the show, that is what matters. Laughter and headshaking are the reactions I get when talking about Murder, She Wrote , and I’m sure I’ll get them with Diagnosis Murder . But scoff all you want, because I’m enjoying this show. Diagnosis Murder Dick Van Dyke We all need a doctor like Mark Sloan Dr. Mark Sloan (Dick Van Dyke) is a well-respected doctor at L.A.’s Community General Hospital. He’s the one everyone turns to when there is a medical concern or mystery. His patients love him, and they know he always has their best interests at heart. It is Mark’s participation in solving murders that gets him into trouble. His son, Steve (Barry Van Dyke), an LAPD detective, wants his father to stay out of the cases Mark insists on looking into. Hos...

Love & Saffron Photo of book cover taken by Kate Dorsey      If you love food, this is the book for you. There are different descriptions throughout of the food the characters discover and try. Something people who are into food will probably love.      If you’re not a food person, Love & Saffron is for you as well. I say this being not a huge food person myself. I tended to zone out at the food parts, which is what made me think I would not finish this book at first. Then I thought how silly it would be to drop out on a book so quickly when it was less than 200 pages long. At least get to page 50. Which I did. Then I got to page 100, to page 150, and to the end. By keeping going, I found myself reading a great story about a beautiful friendship.                             It all started with a packet of saffron. Joan Bergstr...

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies Photo of Blu-ray cover taken by Kate Dorsey      As the name suggests, there is a lot of battling in this final film of The Hobbit trilogy. A LOT. Pretty much the entire film is one battle or another. The Extended Edition adds even more.         At the end of Desolation of Smaug , the dragon Smaug ( Benedict Cumberbatch ) is on his way to Laketown to wreak his revenge. The townspeople are running for their lives; including the Master of Lake-town (Stephen Fry), who is trying to run off with the town’s gold. Bard the Bowman ( Luke Evans ) is in prison, doing whatever he can to break free.      With the inadvertent help of the Master, Bard is able to free himself. He runs to a watchtower where he tries to kill Smaug with an arrow. Except, Smaug’s scales are too tough for the typical arrow. Bard soon runs out of arrows, except for one.      Bard’s son, Bain (John Bell), brin...