Death on the Shelf discussion
April 2020
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The Circular Staircase-- Discussion Questions
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Here are answers to the questions from Linda Wolfe and myself. Let us know what you think, especially any disagreements with us! 1. The Circular Staircase is a short book-- what do you think of its pace? Do the events occur too quickly, too slowly, or exactly as they should? Did you feel excited to keep reading, or bored?
LINDA: The first part was kinda slow; then it seemed OK
Ben: It was off to a slow start, a leisurely pace, to be sure, as many books are, setting the tone, setting the scene, but once the action picked up, I didn’t have any trouble with the pace. I was never too excited about the story, to be honest. Too many details were withheld to make it very tantalizing. I just kept reading, waiting for the next revelation.
2. What was your initial reaction to the book, when you first began? How did that first impression hold up as you kept going?
LINDA: It was slow, too much description about the manor house. I wanted it to get to the mystery right away.
Ben: My initial reaction was “This certainly is old-fashioned,” with the fainting ladies, the deference to men, class attitudes towards servants on full display. No cellphones. A period piece.
3. What did you think of the setting of Sunnyside? What role does it play in the novel? Could it have taken place anywhere else?
LINDA: Probably not. They had to have a stealthy place big enough to keep the bonds, papers, whatever.
Ben: It could have happened somewhere else, but that other place would have needed a circular staircase or they would have had to change the name of the book. Maybe that’s why they named the play based on this book “The Bat.” No fancy staircase needed. But I don’t remember reading about a bat. Was there a bat in “The circular staircase”? Anyway, it would seem that any huge, old home might serve as a place for this mystery to unravel.
4. NoveList compares this book to a variety of domestic mysteries ranging from Agatha Christie to Agatha Raisin; does it remind you of anything? Does it benefit or suffer from the comparison?
LINDA: It reminds me of Agatha Christie. The fact that it was in the manor house and kind of a cozy. I like Christie a little better. Seems to me she gets into the meat of the mystery quicker.
Ben: I’ve already mentioned in this discussion that this book reminds me of “The Woman in White,” by Wilkie Collins, written and set in times long ago. I feel like we’ve worked hard to move beyond that particular era in terms of equality and respect. Unlike, say, “Huckleberry Finn,” which tries to deal with and (often) make fun of the conventions of the day, “Staircase” is deeply mired in them without seeming to notice.
5. Were you surprised by any of the answers the book provides in its final chapters?
LINDA: I was surprised that the man Paul was not dead (until they exhumed the casket). I’m not saying I had it all figured out but I did think there was something funny about the phony gardener. I had it figured he was working with the detective, that there was some sort of collaboration going on there.
Ben: I was surprised by how well the various loose ends were tied up. I thought the author, through her narrator, did that well. I wasn’t surprised that the missing documents were found in Sunnyside nor too much surprised by who turned out to be the bad guys, or that Halsey got the girl, but the other explanations (who went down the laundry chute? And others) did come as a surprise and I was pleased to learn about them.
6. What did you think of the characters? Are Rachel, Liddy, Halsey, Gertrude, Louise et al people you can imagine existing in a more contemporary setting?
LINDA: I liked Rachel but Gertrude, Halsey and the detective were annoying because they weren’t telling all that they knew and I find that annoying. I thought Liddy was a ditz.
Ben: As I mentioned before, I didn’t think character development was a strong suit of this book. We knew Rachel pretty well, and Liddy, but the rest of the characters were seen through a very narrow lens. I liked the sometimes strained but very loyal relationship between Rachel and Liddy and the humor they added to an otherwise pretty bland narrative.
7. Some parts of the novel were deliberately humorous. Did you laugh when Rachel mentioned her “wrinkle eradicators”? Did you notice any other instances?
LINDA: No, because I still see wrinkle eradicators advertised. I didn’t find it particularly humorous
Ben: See above, No. 6.
8. The Circular Staircase was adapted into a successful Broadway play under the title The Bat, which itself spawned several film adaptations. Have you seen any of the movies? If not, do you think you would like to?
LINDA: I don’t think I have seen any. If I were out in NYC I might like to go see it, see what they would have done with it.
Ben: I have not seen the play or movie adaptations. I would like to see them. The novel had an interesting plot. A filmmaker might make better use of it using different points of view. I thought the first-person approach was perhaps not best in serving the goings-on.
9. The original publication date was over 100 years ago, in 1908. How do you think the time that’s passed affects your experience as a modern reader?
LINDA: Sometimes I like to read those old-time books. They take you to another era. I don’t want a steady diet of it.
Ben: See above, No. 4
10. What role does social class play in the events of the book? Do you think it has similar effects today?
LINDA: It was very important back in those days, everybody had their place, not too much of an effect today.
Ben: The class system was part of the story, as it is/was in “Downton Abbey.” It wouldn’t have been the same book if those “Upstairs/Downstairs” attitudes had not been in place. It would be a different story if the same plot was portrayed in the 21st century.
11. Did you feel like you could trust Rachel as a narrator? Why or why not?
LINDA: I think she was a pretty sharp observer and had a lot of courage, wandering around at night. I think I could trust her. She seemed like your aunt, someone you could talk to.
Ben: It took me awhile to trust Rachel, but her portrayal of herself in sometimes a less than favorable light, as not able always to rise to the occasion, helped me trust her more as the novel went on.
Mod
I did think the book had a good first line, that set the stage for events to come: "This is the story of how a middle-aged spinster lost her mind, deserted her domestic gods in the city, took a furnished house for the summer out of town, and found herself involved in one of those mysterious crimes that keep our newspapers and detective agencies happy and prosperous." A strong opener! I don't know that the early-middle particularly backed up that strength, but I did think the middle-end picked up more excitement as the pieces started to come together.
I was most wrong about the mysterious child, who I thought would turn out to be Louise's and that was why she had to marry the doctor, to keep the secret; it turned out to be totally unrelated. In retrospect, that would have been pretty scandalous for an ingenue in 1908, and more likely to turn up in a book written now but set in the past.
Ben, if Linda would like a say in the next book, you can email one of us to put it in the tally for her-- I assume it prevents you from doing it for you both!
I can do that on Thursday, maybe. I'll let you know if I succeed and, if so, which she prefers.How about contacting others in the group? Any progress on that front?
Mod
1. The Circular Staircase is a short book-- what do you think of its pace? Do the events occur too quickly, too slowly, or exactly as they should? Did you feel excited to keep reading, or bored?
2. What was your initial reaction to the book, when you first began? How did that first impression hold up as you kept going?
3. What did you think of the setting of Sunnyside? What role does it play in the novel? Could it have taken place anywhere else?
4. NoveList compares this book to a variety of domestic mysteries ranging from Agatha Christie to Agatha Raisin; does it remind you of anything? Does it benefit or suffer from the comparison?
5. Were you surprised by any of the answers the book provides in its final chapters?
6. What did you think of the characters? Are Rachel, Liddy, Halsey, Gertrude, Louise et al people you can imagine existing in a more contemporary setting?
7. Some parts of the novel were deliberately humorous. Did you laugh when Rachel mentioned her “wrinkle eradicators”? Did you notice any other instances?
8. The Circular Staircase was adapted into a successful Broadway play under the title The Bat, which itself spawned several film adaptations. Have you seen any of the movies? If not, do you think you would like to?
9. The original publication date was over 100 years ago, in 1908. How do you think the time that’s passed affects your experience as a modern reader?
10. What role does social class play in the events of the book? Do you think it has similar effects today?
11. Did you feel like you could trust Rachel as a narrator? Why or why not?
If you haven’t already voted in the group poll to select the next book, you have a week to do so! We will announce the next book here and on the Floyd County Library’s Facebook page once the poll is closed.