Here’s the thing that keeps me coming back to the books in this series, all the characters are so interesting and real. I love both the central characters and the new characters introduced for each new story. In this story we get to see Maisie start to really embrace life and put her experiences in the war firmly behind her and start looking for both joy and companionship. Realizing her loneliness and need for human connections she reaches out to Priscilla and her family. I can’t even tell you how much I love Priscilla. And I adore she has been given more depth with each new story. Here we see that Pris isn’t as “over” the war as she may have seen earlier. Back in London Priscilla must truly deal with the loss of her family and her fears of the future for her own boys.

In contrast to Priscilla’s fears for the future is Doreen’s inability to let go of her horrible loss in the past. Doreen, Maisie’s assistant Billy’s wife, cannot get past the loss of their daughter.  The Beale’s lost their daughter Lizzy in the fourth novel in the series Messenger of Truth. Where that story showed the inequity the lower classes had in treating illness this story showed just how awful some of the treatments towards the mentally ill were. Particularly, if you were poor. The treatment Doreen first received was just frightening.

This story also bring to light the treatment of men and women damaged psychologically by war. Though the setting is 1930s England I’m sure there are some parallels to the lack of attention paid to mental illness as a result of war. Other comparisons can be made to today’s fears of chemical terrorism. It was so interesting to think there is nothing new under the sun. Where we may think worrying about terrorist with chemical weapons is something new, it obviously is something that has been around a very long time. Boy, did tht add to the suspense.

I mentioned there were some wonderful new characters introduced. We met Detective Chief Superintendent Robert MacFarlane. (Boy, is that a mouthful-I tell you they sure know how to drag out the names of their Police officials) Let me tell you, Robert MacFarlane can go toe to toe with our Maisie. He even calls her on her habit of mimicking people in order to make them feel more at ease and easier for her to relate. While I hope there is not a romance between the two (something it seems Robert would like) because I am standing strong for team Stratton, I hope MacFarlance is around for awhile. He has broken down some of Maisie’s barriers. Maisie also has to deal with members of MI-5 and I can only hope we see more of that. I can see story lines coming as WWII looms in the near distance.

This was a jam packed edition to the series with both the mystery (maybe the best so far) and the personal stories grabbing me and holding on to the end. I can’t wait to see what’s next. I have high hopes for the next in the series. I know I have said this over and over and over (and over and over-that’s five times over for each in the series so far) but this is my favorite so far. At first I hesitated saying this because I starts to lose it something to say it for each book. But they do just keep getting better. Winspear adds layers with each new story and Maisie, Billy, Priscilla, Stratton, and all the characters keep getting more endearing. So, yes this is my favorite so far and I won’t be surprised if I end up saying this again in my next Maisie review.

At the end of my reading career I’m fairly certain I will be multilingual and will be able to use the slang of many lands and social groups.

This week’s words come from the sixth in the Maisie Dobbs series, Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear. I’m including some words I already knew but are British slang we don’t get to use. I’ve already mentioned how much I love English slang and wish I were able to use it without sounding well, either pompous or odd.

Blokes – “You don’t get these Scotland Yard blokes making telephone calls early on Boxing Day morning for nothing.”

Bloke is British slang for man, similar to our using guy. See what I mean, we just can’t use the word bloke but it’s kind of awesome.

Demijohns – “He stood up and, taking small steps toward a cupboard, pulled out a large box containing a collection of empty demijohns, tubes, and rubber piping.”

A demijohn is a large bottle with a narrow neck, often with two small handles at the neck and encased in wickerwork. I had to look up a picture of this and then, of course knew exactly what it was.

Here’s are some demijohns: Neurasthenia – “First built as an asylum, it had been turned over to military cases of neurasthenia and other neuroses during the war, as had the Clifton Hospital.”

Neurasthenia means a sort of nervous exhaustion. It is not a technical term and is no longer in use.

Cosh – “The first attacks-with chlorine gas-were like a cosh on the back of the head of the military…..”

Cosh is another slang meaning a blackjack or bludgeon. It’s also a verb (as used in the sentence) meaning a hit on the head. This is another word I think just sounds great.

Gaff - “The landlord lives in a house -old gaff, it is, split into about six rooms that he lets out.”

Gaff is slang for house.

Ceilidh – “Hope you’ve not any plans for going to a ceilidh this evening.”

Ceilidh is Scottish term for party. I tell you by the end of my reading career I’m going to be multilingual.

Boffins – “There was a team of boffins-you know, scientists, physicists, that sort of person-working in Berkshire on antidotes for gas.”

Boffins is slang for scientists or technical experts. See I like this one a little better than geeks or nerds.

There were actually a few more words I could have added, maybe next time. I have to say again, I just love English slang and wish I could use it outside my house (I use it a fair bit inside my house).

What what words had you running for the dictionary?

Teaser Tuesdays

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

This week’s tease comes from Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear, the 6th in the Maisie Dobbs series. If you’re not reading this series you are really missing out.

“I have no further use of this life, of this body, or of this mind. But before I go, before I decline the opportunity to step forward into another year of sidelong glances and piteous abuse, I will make my mark. You will be sorry, so sorry not to have listened to me.”

So what are you going to tease us  with this week?

Jacqueline Winspear

I must admit that before I met fellow blogger Sandra Carey Cody I wasn’t a very regular mystery reader.  Then Sandy introduced me to Jacqueline Winspear and her wonderful heroine Maisie Dobbs, Psychologist and Investigator, and my life has been the richer for it.  Initially I was attracted to the series because of its setting and time period:  England, from before the Great War into the 1930s.   Then I became intrigued by Maisie’s intelligence and fierce independence.  Jacqueline’s 8^th Maisie Dobbs novel is due out on March 22 and my copy from Amazon is currently in transit with an anticipated delivery date of March 23.  It can’t come soon enough to feed my passion!  That’s why I’m so excited that Jacqueline Winspear agreed to be interviewed  for Birth of a Novel.  Jacqueline was born and raised in Kent, England, but has been living on the West Coast since 1990.  The first book in the series – Maisie Dobbs – was a New York Times Notable Book in 2003.  All of her books have been nominated for awards since that time with the Agatha Award for Best Novel going to Birds of a Feather.  An Incomplete Revenge (2008) and Among the Mad (2009) were both instant New York Times bestsellers.  In a future blog, I will review her latest book:  A Lesson In Secrets.

 GRETCHEN HAERTSCH:  You’ve gone from a career in higher education and academic publishing to life as a best-selling novelist.  How did your academic publishing and essay writing prepare you for life as a fiction writer?

 JACQUELINE WINSPEAR:  When I was in academic publishing, I was responsible for the sales and marketing of books in the “hard side” sciences, so there is no way that graduate level books on mechanical engineering, electronic control systems or artificial intelligence were ever going to prepare me to be a fiction writer – academic publishing is a very different industry to general book publishing.  But I love the personal essay with a passion, and I learned much from writing creative non-fiction that I have been able to draw upon to write fiction.  

HAERTSCH:  The Maisie Dobbs novels take place mostly in the late 1920s and 30s but are grounded in the Great War of 1914-18.  I know your grandfather’s service in the war inspired you. What else speaks to you about this period?

 WINSPEAR:  I’m interested in what happens to ordinary people in extraordinary times, and the period of time from – roughly – 1913 to 1954 (the end of WW2 rationing) in Britain can be counted as an extraordinary time, when society changed dramatically.  And I am inspired by the lives of women, not only throughout the period 1914-18, the Great War, but afterwards, when women really began to blaze a trail.  The 1921 census revealed that, in Britain, there were 2 million “surplus” women for whom there would never be a husband and children. Of course there were many who faltered, who were impoverished throughout the depression, who perhaps lived with elderly parents, or alone in a bed-sitting room and who tried desperately to find work.  But there were those who blazed a trail, moving into public life in a very visible way.  The women of this generation in Britain earned and demanded freedoms that had not been known before. 

 HAERTSCH:  Do you find the research portion of your projects as pleasurable as the drafting?  How time-consuming is the research and what is your process?

WINSPEAR:  My process is that I just get on with discovering more about those things I need to know to bring color and depth to my story, and to anchor it in time.  I love research because I love history, and the era I write about fascinates me.  Research is ongoing, so it never seems as if it is time-consuming – it’s part of a life-long passion, so it is never a weight in terms of my work.

 HAERTSCH:  Maisie Dobbs is able to leap across the boundaries of class to rise from the Lambeth-born maid to a Cambridge-educated psychologist and private investigator working at the highest level of government.  What intrigues you about these class issues?

 WINSPEAR:  The aspect of class in my novels is something that happens organically, so to speak – you can’t write about Britain, especially between the wars, without class being part of the social landscape.

 HAERTSCH:  Dr. Maurice Blanche, Maisie’s mentor, teaches her to use Eastern philosophy and intuitive practices to solve mysteries.  This theme adds so much richness to the novels. Does your own work as a life coach influence your character, Maurice Blanche? What inspired you to use Eastern philosophy in your novels?

 WINSPEAR:  I think my coaching background added some color to several characters, however, this aspect of Maisie’s background and the lessons she receives from Maurice really came about in a very natural way. Indeed, this aspect of Maisie’s background – an immersion in eastern philosophy – is very much of the time, when there were those in what we might call the “chattering classes” who were fascinated with the philosophy that made its way back to Britain due to the British involvement in the Indian sub-continent.

 HAERTSCH:  Maisie tries to ensure that her clients are left at peace at the end of her investigations, even when that means she may not be able to reveal the whole truth to her clients.  In fact, secrets are a major theme of your novels.  Does your new novel, A Lesson In Secrets, underline this theme?

WINSPEAR:  To some extent, yes it does – but more than that is a secret ….

HAERTSCH:  You have spoken about being very fortunate in so quickly finding an agent for your first novel.  What advice would you give to today’s new writers looking for that first big break?

WINSPEAR:  Send your work out to as many agents as possible – never one at a time. First of all, buy a book such as the one by Jeff Herman – the Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents.  Then go through it carefully, making a note of those agents who are most likely to represent a book such as yours; you find that out by paying attention to what they say they are looking for and what they’re currently representing.  Follow their submission guidelines to the letter and prepare your work and cover letter accordingly – just send it out.

 HAERTSCH:  It occurs to me – and I’m sure to many of your fans – that the Maisie Dobbs novels would make a wonderful television series.  Is anything in the works for film or television?

WINSPEAR:  Not at the moment – but if it happens, readers will see an announcement on my website.

HAERTSCH:  Raised in Kent, England, you’ve been living on the West Coast in the U.S. since 1990.  Will we see more American influence in future Maisie Dobbs novels?

 WINSPEAR:  Probably not, but I’d never say never ….

 HAERTSCH:  Can we expect more Maisie Dobbs novels?  What’s ahead for you?

 WINSPEAR:  I’m working on the 9th novel in the series, and there will be more to come after that.  In addition, I am working on a non-series novel that has nothing to do with Maisie Dobbs, as well as a non-fiction book. 

 *

These are not light and fluffy though–they deal with the reality of the commoner in Britain between the world wars–focusing especially on the poor treatment and plight of the WWI veteran.

Read the entire review here.

**Attention participants:  Remember to email us a link to your reviews, and we’ll post them here so we can see what everyone is reading!**