TIME TO BE IN EARNEST

From British mystery writer (and recent Baroness) James, an elegantly constructed, deceptively off-the-cuff reflection on her life and times that is by turns humorous, nostalgic, instructive, and ominous.

In her tart fashion, James (A Certain Justice, 1997, etc.) initially notes that, rather than wait for interlopers to begin dissecting her life in unauthorized studies, it would be better (and more fun) to address the subject herself. In August 1997 she began a yearly diary in which her succinct daily entries arced inevitably backwards, using the medium to bring up long-neglected experiences in her own transformation from civil servant and young mother to acclaimed, best-selling author. In turn, she uses her personal journey to consider the tumultuous social changes that took place in Britain and British society (for whose popular culture and contemporary licentiousness she reserves harsh judgment). Although this approach sounds conceptually scattershot, there are a great many passages in this book of concentrated, unsettling power. These range from frightening yet acidly clear-eyed recollections of the war years to insightful considerations of the writing process and the mystery genre. As her journal coincides with the publication of A Certain Justice, she also portrays in restrained but humorous fashion the day-to-day chores of a top-flight popular writer “on the road”; at 78, James clearly relishes her contact with fans and her place in Brit-literary society, depicting her many speaking engagements at a variety of intellectual and social affairs. James is very adept in integrating consideration of her own past (including tales of her long-lost husband and of her own youth) into what is essentially a recounting of the present, both as response to the modern era and as a personal record not preoccupied with her “golden years.” Yet, as the title implies, an urgency pervades James’ setting down this selective kaleidoscope of memory, which makes her transitions seem smoother and her themes more universal (particularly her invaluable asides regarding her chosen genre).

A charming, informative, and timely memoir, with vividly somber undertones, sure to be treasured by James’ readers.