Helen Chappell

Of the four Maryland series that I am familiar with (Laura Lippman's Tess Monaghan, Tim Cockey's Hitchcock Sewell, and Barbara Lee's Eve Elliott, being the others), this is easily my favorite.

A book with a ghost as a continuing major character could be unfortunately twee, but in Helen Chappell's hands it is sardonically funny. Chappell manages to make this all seem reasonable. Hollis Ball is an engaging character and it is a pleasure to spend time with her. The books' humor about various follies of humankind, fanatic collectors featuring in this volume, are extremely amusing.

The book has a very strong sense of place - my branch of the family moved away from the Eastern Shore a couple of generations ago, so I can't pose as an expert, but certainly the local views of what Chappell calls the 3Rs, rich retired Republicans, are dead on. How clannish are the old Eastern shore families? Well, my great-aunt and uncle moved from Chestertown to Easton (both on the Eastern shore) shortly after their marriage. My aunt told my mother that after 55 years in Easton, she felt that they had almost been accepted. On the other hand, when my parents retired to the Eastern shore, they did find that their connections made them somewhat more acceptable.

Two points that might be considered a weakness. Chappell introduces an African-American States Attorney, but she really doesn't have local Blacks as characters. Discussing race can get touchy - such a minefield that I'm not sure that I can really fault Chappell for not getting into it in a book that is intended to be light. I'm not sure how realistic it would be in this case - the de facto separation in some places can be a really strong barrier.

The other is a pet peeve: Chappell keeps referring to the local upper strata as WASPS, Aryans, rich Protestants, etc. People tend to use WASP as if the "W" stood for wealthy, but in fact it stands for "white". Aren't the Balls WASPS? There are a fair number of WASCs in Maryland, since it was founded to serve as a haven for English Catholics, but the Balls are Methodist. Aren't most white people on the Eastern Shore "Aryan" and Protestant? I myself am a half-WASP, if you use the word strictly and a whole-WASP in the loose sense, and I get very tired of people using WASP to imply boring, complacent and rich.

Well, tantrum over. I have found the two books that I have read very enjoyable, and I hope that the series will continue.… (mais)