Daily writing prompt

What book could you read over and over again?

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It was the final year of high school, it was blisteringly cold that day… rain streaming down the windows of the library. The library, a shelter from the elements. I pushed open the door, felt the warm air of the heating system instantly and went and sat down on an old couch in the corner. I was staring at the book rack and noticed an author that I had heard of mentioned by older intellectuals in my orbit, family friends and on the TV.

As though by fate, I picked up the first book from the renowned Agatha Christie, called ‘Murder on the Orient Express.’ I was hooked from the first page, reading every morsel of this glorious piece of crime fiction masterfully crafted by the undoubted queen of the genre. I couldn’t get enough.. During that year of high school, I read every Agatha Christie book in my school library and her work became profoundly impactful on my life.

The Murder on the Orient Express deals with incredibly captivating themes of human nature, revenge and justice! The character arc of the lead was really interesting to me. Hercule Poirot, painted by Agatha Christie, as a believer in absolute justice..without spoiling the story… the narrative deals with Poirot confronting the perpetrator of a heinous crime and having to weigh that against the desire for retribution of the victims of that crime.

I feel that most decent human beings encounter this difficult binary in our everyday life. We want to try and go good, to be nice to people, even when they might not be nice back. It’s so easy to exact retribution. It is difficult, when led by our baser instincts to sometimes act opposite to our nature… to forgive, to turn the other cheek if you will. A time period when soceity was far more grand, magnanimous and classy! I often wish people these days would show that class, even if it was in public, in contrast to the trashiness we see in these modern times.

Hercule Poirot faces the hardest decision of his life, a life so richly devoted to the pursuit of justice. He must adjudicate whether the victims have acted in a just manner or should be punished for it. It’s a truly exciting read! I have read this book probably 5 times over the years and it holds a prominent position in my personal library.