Life changed
quickly at the end of the 20th century and it seems to continuing
that rapid change in the 21st. Personal computers, cell phones,
email, and the Internet were the first to crash onto the scene at public
libraries before the Y2K scare. Since then, streaming video, digital books and
magazines, gadgets, and much more have found their way into the library and
onto the Cloud.
Many of the library’s staff who
served Norwood from its desks and telephones in the 20th century
have retired in the past 17 years. One
of those librarians, Margot Sullivan, came to Norwood from the Boston Public
Library in the 1980’s. Although she officially retired her position as Adult
Services Librarian in 2008, she continued her very popular First Thursday book
discussion group for nearly another decade. After 33 years leading the group,
she recently decided to move closer to her son and his family in New Jersey. Of
course no one could replace Margot or her leadership of the First Thursday book
group. Margot’s fans had read well over
250 books in the thirty-plus years that they met within the library’s
rooms.
And so, it was time to Turn the
Page. A handful (or two) of library
staff decided to lead a newly-formed discussion group with a decidedly
different format. Plans were made for two staff each month to organize and host
a once-a-month Wednesday program (held both in the morning and afternoon, as
Margot had done.)
For
the first discussion of the Turn the Page book discussion group in November, librarians
Alli Palmgren and Nancy Ling chose David McCullough’s 2015 biography of the
Wright Brothers. Over forty-five enthusiastic readers took the challenge,
checked out the book in advance, and attended the Turn the Page discussions on Wednesday,
November 15.
December’s discussion will continue
this new format with Louise Penny’s first book, Still Life. Technical Services
Assistant Patty Bailey and I are reading the book for what we hope will be a
lively talk. Penny’s mystery Still Life, published in 2005, is the beginning
book in the Three Pines Mystery series. Her latest and thirteenth book, Glass
Houses, was published just this past summer.
Although I’d never read Louise Penny
before now, I had heard people rave about her stories for years. Her Three
Pines mystery series (and one novella for teens) feature Armand Gamache, Chief
Inspector for Homicide (and eventually superintendent) of the Sûreté du Québec,
the provincial police force for the Canadian province of Quebec. The setting is the fictional village of Three
Pines, not far from Montreal. (Author Penny claims that Three Pines is somewhat
of a compilation of a few villages she has known and loved.) The mystery is the
death of retired teacher Jane Neal, killed while walking in the woods near her
home.
Louise Penny’s career did not begin
with writing. Penny became a radio broadcaster for the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation after graduating from college at 21. She remained in that
professions for 18 years. As a professional radio host in various locations
across Canada, Penny suffered from a deep loneliness, and at the age of 35
realized that she had become an alcoholic. She did not like herself and admits
that continuing her drinking would have cost her everything – her friends,
family and career – had she not broken the downward spiral. After giving up
alcohol and marrying a well-known Montreal hematologist, she left radio and was
able to focus on her writing. Dr. Michael Whitehead convinced Penny to give up
her broadcasting career to write. A historical novel did not materialize,
however, and she suddenly, and fortuitously, decided to write mystery novels,
one of her own favorite genres. She claims her leading man, Inspector Gamache, is
modeled on her husband and she credits Whitehead’s love and support for much of
her success. Sadly, Whitehead succumbed to dementia at the age of 82. Penny,
twenty-years his junior, cared for him until his death in 2016 in gratitude for
giving her the freedom to write.
Many readers and reviewers have
labeled Penny’s Three Pines novels “cozies” which are a subset of mystery
novels. Cozies downplay the violence of
crime and death with a setting that often exudes warmth and intimacy. Marian
Masters, owner of the popular Toronto mystery bookstore Sleuth of Baker Street,
claims the cozy label doesn’t actually fit Penny’s books. Master’s argues that “Louise’s books are
police procedurals with a very British flavor … with nasty murders and
fascinating, complicated characters.”[1]
The name of the village of Three Pines
itself has a mystique of its own. (Besides, of course, having an abnormally
high murder rate. For a small village, you certainly wouldn’t expect so many
mysterious deaths.) The lore behind three pine trees planted together in Canadian
towns and villages, just over the border of New England states, is interesting.
The three pines were supposedly code for the Loyalists to the British crown,
those who fled America during the Revolutionary War. A house with three white
pines in the front was a signal that Loyalists could seek refuge there. While
there does not seem to be much historical reference to what might just be a
legend, it adds intrigue to Penny’s tales.
Still Life was filmed as a
made-for-television movie in 2013. While it was an adaptation, Penny co-wrote
the screenplay and was pleased with it. (It’s available in the Minuteman
Library catalog and should not be mistaken with either the Italian movie
starring Eddie Marsden or the Chinese film directed by Jia Zhang-Ke. All three
are titled Still Life.) Still Life: The Three Pines Mystery is fun with great
characterization and scenery. One of the complaints is the decidedly British
accent of Inspector Gamache who most assuredly spoke both Canadian English and
French.
Many versions of Still Life can be found
in the Minuteman Library catalog, including the audiobook, e-book, and large
print. A version of the audiobook narrated by Ralph Cosham is currently
available free on Hoopla, one of our library’s streaming services.
The Turn the Page Book Discussion
group will meet on Wednesday, December 20th at both 10 am and 7 pm.
We ask that you register as free refreshments are offered to all participants.
Patty Bailey and I will be sharing a publisher’s map of Three Pines and other
interesting trivia about Louise Penny and Still Life. Call the library for more
information.
