UPCOMING O'NEAL LIBRARY PROGRAMS FOR ADULTS:
Every Tuesday morning 10-11am – Gentle Yoga with Marie Blair (drop
in)
Tue, Oct 7 6-8pm – Sustainable Style: Clothing Swap
Thu, Oct 9 5:30-7pm – Writing Workshop with Miriam Calleja
Sat, Oct 11 10:30-noon – Medicare Made Clear
Sun, Oct 12 3-4:30pm – Poetry as Prayer
Mon, Oct 13 6:30-7:30pm – Great Short Stories discussing“Cyclists’ Raid” by Frank Rooney
Tue, Oct 14 10-11:30am – The Bookies Bookclub discussing“The Emperor of Gladness by Ocean Vuong (drop in)
Tue, Oct 14 5:30-7pm – Writing Workshop with Miriam Calleja
Sun, Oct 19 3-4:30pm – Poetry as Prayer
Wed, Oct 22 10-11:30am – Medicare Made Clear
Wed, Oct 22 10am @ Junior League of Birmingham (2212 20th Ave South) - O'Neal Library presents Technology Tips for Everyday Life in collaboration with ALL IN Mountain Brook's Silver Spartans
Wed, Oct 22 5:30-8pm – (ages 18+) Nightmare on Oak Street:DIY Sweater Pumpkins
Thu, Oct 23 6-7pm – Neurodivergent Community Group
Fri, Oct 24 6:30-8:30pm – Traditional Music of Scotland withmusician Jim Malcolm
Fri, Oct 24 – Ticket vouchers available for Alabama SymphonyOrchestra Masterworks concert
Sat, Oct 25 – Ticket vouchers available for Alabama SymphonyOrchestra Masterworks concert
Sun, Oct 26 3-4:30pm – Poetry as Prayer
Tue, Oct 28 6:30-8pm – Books & Beyond discussing horror
(drop in)
FILM & TELEVISION:
Miss Marple, starring Joan Hickson
Miss Marple, titled Agatha Christie's Miss Marple in
the series, is a British television series based on the Miss Marple murder
mystery novels by Agatha Christie, starring Joan Hickson in the
title role. It aired from December 26, 1984 to December 27, 1992 on BBC
One. All twelve original Miss Marple novels by Christie were dramatized.
Witness for the Prosecution (1957)
The affable Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power) is being tried for
the murder of a wealthy woman, and legendary lawyer Sir Wilfrid Robarts
(Charles Laughton) has chosen to represent him. Unfortunately, Leonard's alibi
depends on the testimony of his callous wife, Christine (Marlene Dietrich) --
who, after the discovery of a legal loophole, makes the shocking decision to
appear in court against him. To Sir Wilfrid's surprise, this is only the first
in a series of puzzling revelations and reversals.
Agatha Christie: Lucy Worsley on the Mystery Queen (2022)
Historian Lucy Worsley explores the life of Agatha Christie
through documents and interviews and tries to understand what inspires her to
write her novels.
Evil Under the Sun (1982)
Agatha Christie's Belgian sleuth, Hercule Poirot (Peter
Ustinov), solves the murder of an actress at a Balkan resort.
Ordeal by Innocence (1984)
A 1950s U.S. scientist (Donald Sutherland) probes the murder
of a British friend's (Christopher Plummer) wife (Faye Dunaway).
4:50 from Paddington (1987)
Miss Marple (Joan Hickson) investigates her friend's (Mona
Bruce) claim that she witnessed a murder on a train.
Murder She Said (1961)
When aging sleuth Miss Marple (Margaret Rutherford)
witnesses a murder through the window of her passing train car, she alerts the
authorities. Unfortunately, the police are hesitant to take the word of an old
lady in lieu of an actual body. Taking matters into her own hands, Marple gets
a job as a maid at Ackenthorpe Hall, where she believes the murder took place.
There, she must match wits with blowhard Luther Ackenthorpe (James Robertson
Justice) if she wants to solve the mystery.
BOOKS SIMILAR TO OR ABOUT AGATHA CHRISTIE:
Bringing a fresh twist to the hallmarks of a classic Agatha
Christie mystery, these twelve esteemed writers have captured the sharp wit,
unique voice, and droll ingenuity of the deceptively demure detective. A
triumphant celebration of Christie’s legacy and essential reading for crime
lovers, Marple is a timely reminder why Jane Marple remains
one of the most famous detectives of all time.
A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie by Kathryn
Harkup
Fourteen novels. Fourteen poisons. Just because it's fiction
doesn’t mean it's all made-up ...Agatha Christie revelled in the use of poison
to kill off unfortunate victims in her books; indeed, she employed it more than
any other murder method, with the poison itself often being a central part of
the novel. Christie's extensive chemical knowledge provides the backdrop for A
is for Arsenic, in which Kathryn Harkup investigates the poisons used by the
murderer in fourteen classic Agatha Christie mysteries.
The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujanta Massey
Mistry Law has been appointed to execute the will of Mr.
Omar Farid, a wealthy Muslim mill owner who has left three widows behind. But
as Perveen examines the paperwork, she notices something strange: all three of
the wives have signed over their full inheritance to a charity. What will they
live on? Perveen is suspicious, especially since one of the widows has signed
her form with an X—meaning she probably couldn't even read the document. The
Farid widows live in full purdah—in strict seclusion, never leaving the women's
quarters or speaking to any men. Are they being taken advantage of by an
unscrupulous guardian? Perveen tries to investigate, and realizes her instincts
were correct when tensions escalate to murder. Inspired in part by the woman
who made history as India's first female attorney, The Widows of
Malabar Hill is a richly wrought story of multicultural 1920s Bombay
as well as the debut of a sharp new sleuth.
Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
When editor Susan Ryeland is given the manuscript of Alan
Conway’s latest novel, she has no reason to think it will be much different
from any of his others. After working with the bestselling crime writer for
years, she’s intimately familiar with his detective, Atticus Pünd, who solves
mysteries disturbing sleepy English villages. An homage to queens of classic
British crime such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, Alan’s traditional
formula has proved hugely successful. So successful that Susan must continue to
put up with his troubling behavior if she wants to keep her job.
Conway’s latest tale has Atticus Pünd investigating a murder
at Pye Hall, a local manor house. Yes, there are dead bodies and a host of
intriguing suspects, but the more Susan reads, the more she’s convinced that
there is another story hidden in the pages of the manuscript: one of real-life
jealousy, greed, ruthless ambition, and murder.
The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict
In December 1926, Agatha Christie goes missing.
Investigators find her empty car on the edge of a deep, gloomy pond, the only
clues some tire tracks nearby and a fur coat left in the car―strange for a
frigid night. Eleven days later, she reappears, just as mysteriously as
she disappeared, claiming amnesia and providing no explanations for her time
away. Agatha Christie novels have withstood the test of time, due in no small
part to Christie's masterful storytelling and clever mind that may never be
matched, but Agatha Christie's untold history offers perhaps her greatest
mystery of all.
Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict
London, 1930. The five greatest women crime writers have
banded together to form a secret society with a single goal: to show they are
no longer willing to be treated as second class citizens by their male
counterparts in the legendary Detection Club. Led by the formidable Dorothy L.
Sayers, the group includes Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and
Baroness Emma Orczy. They call themselves the Queens of Crime. Their plan?
Solve an actual murder, that of a young woman found strangled in a park in
France who may have connections leading to the highest levels of the British
establishment.
BOOKS BY AGATHA CHRISTIE:
There are a variety of Miss Marple ebooks and eaudiobooks available on the Libby and Hoopla apps!
Ten people, each with something to hide and something to
fear, are invited to an isolated mansion on Indian Island by a host who,
surprisingly, fails to appear. On the island they are cut off from everything
but each other and the inescapable shadows of their own past lives. One by one,
the guests share the darkest secrets of their wicked pasts. And one by one,
they die…which among them is the killer and will any of them survive?
When penniless Michael Rogers discovers the beautiful house
at Gypsy’s Acre and then meets the heiress Ellie, it seems that all his dreams
have come true at once. But he ignores an old woman’s warning of an ancient
curse, and evil begins to stir in paradise. As Michael soon learns: Gypsy’s
Acre is the place where fatal “accidents” happen.
Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories
Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories is a
collection of eleven tantalizing tales of murder and other criminal
pursuits—including the classic title story, the basis for the 1957
Oscar-nominated Billy Wilder film starring Marlene Dietrich, Tyrone Power, and
Charles Laughton.
Sparkling Cyanide (previously published as Remembered Death)
Six people sit down to a sumptuous meal at a table laid for
seven. In front of the empty place is a sprig of rosemary - "rosemary for
remembrance." A strange sentiment considering no one is likely to forget
the night, exactly a year ago, that Rosemary Barton died at exactly the same
table, her beautiful face unrecognizable, convulsed with pain and horror. But
then Rosemary had always been memorable - she had the ability to arouse strong
passions in most people she met. In one case, strong enough to kill....
It was not unusual to find the sun-loving Arlena Stuart
stretched out on a beach, face down. Only, on this occasion, there was no
sun…she had been strangled. Ever since her arrival, the air had been thick with
sexual tension and each of the seaside guest had a motive to kill her,
including Arelena’s new husband. But Hercule Poirot suspects that this apparent
‘crime of passion’ conceals something much more evil.
Item descriptions pulled from Rotten Tomatoes and Amazon.
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