Play Dead

An extremely odd book. It can't decide if it's a mystery or a slice-of-life or a psychological examination of a highly diverse group of people - makes it a little hard to keep track of what's going on at time. The book starts in a playground, with a (young) grandmother and her grandson along with a gang of nannies (the Nafia is what they're called occasionally in the book) and at least one mother. All the children are quite young, most of them pre-talking. There's a mysterious man who stares at the grandson and then apparently attempts to follow him and his grandmother home; from there, English parliamentary politics and the fantasy/sex life of the grandmother play equally major roles in setting up and eventually solving a pair of show more murders. Lesser roles are played by opera, the Romanian revolution, and a hefty Persian cat, plus several of the kids. Seriously weird (in more-or-less standard Dickinson fashion), and I'll need to let it percolate for at least a couple months before I'll have any idea if I'll want to re-read this. I rather like Poppy, and Toby and Deborah are great. The Inspector's OK, though we don't see too much of him. And I love the old couple (Ogden-Ferrers? something like that). Beyond that, the book is full of the most self-centered, self-absorbed, unthinking lot of idiots.... Well. Let it sit for a while and I'll revise my opinion - either up or down. show less