BOOK OF THE MONTH: JANUARY 2016

                                                
Title         : A is For Arsenic:  
                  The Poisons of Agatha Christie
Author     : Kathryn Harkup
Pages       : 288  
Publisher : Bloomsbury  
ISBN       : 10-147291130X

Before Agatha Christie became the world’s most famous mystery writer, she worked in a pharmacy. That experience served her well on the subject of poisons, by the far the most common cause of death in her novels and short stories. Now Kathryn Harkup, a chemist by training, has written an engaging and endlessly fascinating account of the science of these poisons, set against the backdrop of Christie’s substantial oeuvre. 

Each chapter focuses on a particular poison, arranged alphabetically, from arsenic and belladonna to thallium and veronal. We learn about the particular novel or short story in which said poison was used, its history, whether it has an antidote (vital information for anyone hoping to survive such a murder attempt), and we even get a smattering of real-life poisoning cases for good measure. The reader emerges with a deeper appreciation for how well Christie knew her stuff and perhaps just the slightest temptation to drop a bit of arsenic into the elderberry wine should unwanted guests come to call.

Agatha Christie used poison to kill her characters more often than any other crime fiction writer. The poison was a central part of the novel, and her choice of deadly substances was far from random; the chemical and physiological characteristics of each poison provide vital clues to the discovery of the murderer. Christie demonstrated her extensive chemical knowledge (much of it gleaned by working in a pharmacy during both world wars) in many of her novels, but this is rarely appreciated by the reader.

Written by former research chemist Kathryn Harkup, each chapter takes a different novel and investigates the poison used by the murderer. Fact- and fun-packed, A is for Arsenic looks at why certain chemicals kill, how they interact with the body, and the feasibility of obtaining, administering, and detecting these poisons, both when Christie was writing and today.

Chapters:

1. Dame Agatha's Deadly Dispensary 
2. A is for Arsenic-Murder is Easy  
3. B is for Belladonna-The Labours of Hercules 
4. C is for Cyanide-Sparkling Cyanide  
5. D is for Digitalis-Appointment with Death 
6. E is for Eserine-Crooked House 
7. H is for Hemlock-Five Little Pigs 
8. M is for Monkshood-4:50 from Paddington 
9. N is for Nicotine-Three Act Tragedy  
10. O is for Opium-Sad Cypress  
11. P is for Phosphorus-Dumb Witness 
12. R is for Ricin-Partners in Crime 
13. S is for Strychnine-The Mysterious Affair at Styles 
14. T is for Thallium-The Pale Horse  
15. V is for Veranol-Lord Edgware Dies

Review Courtesy: http://gizmodo.com