02.05.2005 The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax By Dorothy Gilman Suspense (c) 1966 192 pages

My mother has hundreds of mystery and suspense novels on the shelves of the guest room, and every so often I'm in the mood to pick one out. They're usually quick reads and a nice change from my usual fare. The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax was a re-read, even though I didn't know it at the time. I remembered reading one of the books in the Mrs. Pollifax series years ago, but it was only about halfway through the book that I realized that it was the same one. Oh well.

I made the mistake of trying to read this book to get to sleep at 3 a.m., and ended up reading it until I finished it at 7 a.m. Mrs. Pollifax is a suicidal 60-year old woman who decides to get into spying to feel useful and help out her country. The book is charming and cute and a little cliché, complete with an engaging heroine, a suave secret agent, a far-fetched plot, and a fairy tale ending. I don't know how a book about a 60-year old woman joining the secret service can be anything else.

The characters are really the best part about this book, especially Mrs. Pollifax. Despite a good amount of predictability in the book, her adventures in trying to charm her captors out of bullets, knives, and guns were amusing, and I found myself laughing more than once. This book was written in 1966, so I had to check myself when people said things like, "I've been an agent since '45," etc. However, I like mixing in light reading with the heavier stuff, and this book was definitely enjoyable to read.

3.5/5 STARS

FAVORITE AMAZON REVIEW by Malinda Lo
My grandmother is a big fan of the Mrs. Pollifax mysteries by Dorothy Gilman. I was at first hesitant to try the books, because I wasn't sure if I'd be able to relate to mysteries featuring a suburban grandmother working for the CIA. But because my grandmother's taste in literature has always been impeccable, I decided to delve into Mrs. Pollifax's adventures. I began with The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax, the first in the series, and immediately found them delightful. Mrs. Pollifax is just the kind of grandmother I'd love to have: resourceful, intelligent, somewhat sly, and, of course, a secret CIA operative. Her adventures take her to all corners of the globe: from an authentically described communist China (Mrs. Pollifax on the China Station) to an exhilarating safari across Africa (Mrs. Pollifax on Safari). I've thoroughly enjoyed joining her on her adventures, and intend to read them all. I recommend them to everyone who's interested in learning about different countries and cultures--and, obviously, espionage!

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