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Title: Why Did She Write It?
Review: Stout creates a female character here who writes a poem. She is moved to write it because she has killed a squirrel and is mourning its loss. Her turn of phrase is "If Death Ever Slept..."This supposes, of course, that death never sleeps. The conceptual buzz much informs this book. As detective fiction goes, it is leisurely and ruminative, so I give it only the two stars you see. However, I enjoyed its characterizations of the relationships in "the family." Archie's insecurities and professional jealousy are never better described than they are here, and the other extended family members are given a good airing.But why did she write it? If it was because she felt bad about the squirrel and wants to share, she almost succeeds. There is too little satisfaction at the conclusion of this one; its tone of futility and moral loss rival the way the reader feels at the end of "Fer-de-Lance."
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