The Queen of Mystery, Agatha Christie, has an impressive number of works. The Moving Finger (1942) is one of her Miss Marple mysteries. Why should you read it and is it the right mystery for you? The answer to that riddle is here.
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What is it about?
When pilot Jerry Burton and his sister Joanna move to the quaint little town of Lymstock, they expect a calm environment where Jerry can finish recovering from a plane crash. However, a vicious anonymous letter writer is sending salacious and usually untrue letters to the townspeople, upsetting this quiet community. When one letter recipient commits suicide, the police begin to investigate. Jerry (and later, Miss Marple) assist in their efforts. All the while, Jerry and Joanna are interacting with the townsfolk and become more connected to Lymstock. Will they ever be accepted and happy there?
(Want to know the ending? See the spoilers at the end of this post.)
Reasons you should read The Moving Finger
- If you enjoy mysteries set in charming little English towns with lots of unique characters
- It has a nice narration style, from the first-person point of view of Jerry Burton
- This is a relatively short book, and is an easy introduction to Christie
But you might not want to read The Moving Finger if …
- Don’t read The Moving Finger if you’re looking for a lot of Miss Marple. While she is in this book (and discovers the murderer), she only comes in at the end and isn’t as connected to the characters as she is in other books.
- This book also might not be for you if you’re not interested in romance in your mysteries. The narrator, Jerry, is a young Englishman who has an eventual relationship, as does his sister Joanna, who is a notorious flirt.
Fun facts
- There have been four television adaptations to date. Two are English, and there is also one French and Korean television series each.
- The title of The Moving Finger comes from a poem in Edward FitzGerald’s translation of Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám.
- The term “poison pen writer” is used often in the novel, and is a less-used expression these days that refers to a specifically malicious anonymous letter writer.
Other book recommendations
If you would like to read more books set in charming English villages, check out D.E. Stevenson’s Miss Buncle book series.
Or for a novel that is also about a recovering soldier in a little town, try The Keeper of the Bees by Gene Stratton-Porter.
Need a refresher? (spoiler warning!)
At the end of the book, Jerry and Megan get married. Jerry’s sister, Joanna gets married to Owen Griffith. Miss Barton leaves Lymstock and goes on a cruise with Aimie Griffith.
The poison pen writer (and murderer, as Mrs. Symmington did not commit suicide) is Mr. Symmington.
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