Play Book Tag discussion

Elegy for Eddie by Jacqueline Winspear, 3.5 stars

This installment of the Maisie Dobbs series focuses on Eddie Pettit, a gentle man with a cognitive disability. The book opens with his frightened young mother, who gave birth to him in a horse stable. He always had a way with horses, and he made a good living helping people (including very wealthy people ) with all sorts of horse problems. (Now he would be described as a horse whisperer.) When he is killed in a suspicious accident, Maisie is asked by old friends of her father’s to investigate. It was nice to hear from people who knew her when she was very young. The parts of the story with Eddie’s mother were particularly touching.

Maisie learns that secret pictures of new military planes may have played a role in his death. Her investigation leads her to John Otterburn, a news mogul who owns the printing factory where the death took place. He was also a client of Eddie’s. When her boyfriend James is invited to a party given by Otterburn, she is eager to attend. Winston Churchill was also there, seated next to James. (view spoiler)[ She eventually learns that Otterburn is helping Churchill to secretly prepare for War with Germany. (This is 1933.) They have a team of writers (including a good friend) working on longterm propaganda. They asked James to run a flight school in Canada to test the new planes. At the same time, Billie’s recent injury brings back memories of the First World War, so war was a strong theme. (hide spoiler)]