The Borrowed Book Club

The Mysterious Affair at Styles was Agatha Christie's debut novel, which introduced Hercule Poirot, Belgian detective extraordinaire, to the British public in 1920. Little did she know that she would go on to be the world's best selling author, publishing a further 65 detective novels that would win her international fame. In The Mysterious Affair , Christie introduces her readers to Poirot through the eyes of Arthur Hastings, an ex-military figure who has been forced into recuperation due to injury. He is a visitor at Styles, a stately home belonging to Emily Inglethorp, the mother of one of his childhood friends. Styles is also home to her two stepsons, John and Lawrence Cavendish, her new, young husband, Albert, and a variety of other family members and servants. When Mrs Inglethorp is suddenly and inexplicably murdered, blame immediately falls onto Albert, who the family suspect has only been using Emily for her money. Yet a trail of contradictory clues lead Poirot, Has...

Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar has become a classic of the 20 th century, as a novel about the demise and then recuperation of Esther Greenwood’s mental health, a college student in New York. Although Esther is ‘supposed to be having the time of her life’, she feels incredibly constrained in a society which bases such great importance on traits and events that seem meaningless to Esther, and limits women’s options to either their career or their family. In the summer, following her first year at college, Esther rapidly spirals into depression, finding herself unable to read, eat, or even sleep. She attempts or almost attempts suicide on several occasions and is subsequently institutionalised. Although the end of the novel is ambiguous, it would seem that Esther has recuperated well and will be returning to college in time for the second semester of her second year. The novel is widely regarded as being semi-autobiographical, as Plath also experienced severe depression in her lifeti...

The early 1960's, in which Charles Webb's The Graduate  was both written and set, was a time when cynical young men were protagonists of many notable novels. Webb brings an interesting twist to this theme through the complex relationships of his story: Benjamin Braddock is the graduate of the title   who finds himself disillusioned by the ultimate meaningless of anything one achieves in life. Following a party celebrating his graduation, Benjamin begins an illicit affair with Mrs Robinson, the wife of his father's business partner, in an attempt to bring some excitement into his aimless existence. However, they have nothing in common except a desire for physical intimacy, and after taking the Robinsons' daughter, Elaine, on a date, he quickly falls in love with her and ends his twisted relationship with her manipulative mother. From hereon in, the plot spirals into an increasingly dramatic and, unfortunately, unbelievable series of events centred on Benjamin desperat...

Having not enjoyed any of Daphne du Maurier’s more renowned novels, The Parasites , a psychological study of the Delaney children, Maria, Niall and Celia, was a pleasant surprise. The novel focuses on the manner in which their upbringing influenced the people they now are as adults. Their childhood was unconventional to say the least, with them constantly following their parents, who were internationally renowned performers, around from one country to the next. Now, in adulthood, none of them feel fulfilled, as Maria struggles with her lack of desire to fulfil her duties as a mother and wife whilst continuing her career as a renowned actress, Niall creating a remarkable new song every fortnight with no real effort, and thus failing to find any fulfilment despite his international success, and Celia denying herself the opportunity to fulfil her dream as an illustrator in order to continue ensuring that those she loves can have their every need catered for. They are the ‘parasites’...