In Not Dead Yet. . . by Peg Herring, a group of four transients have made a home in the basement of the Schmidt Museum in Chicago between 1965 and 1967. Libby, an older British woman; Leo, an older Italian man; Memnet, a young Egyptian woman; and Roy, an American cowboy were brought to this museum by Norman, the eccentric scientist head curator of the museum and who was killed in a fall down the stairs soon after they arrived there. Together the foursome support each other with petty crime and Memnet’s playing music on a lute at the train station. They have installed a secret passage to get into the museum and a hidden room in which to secrete themselves in the event that someone comes to their unused storage room.
Then one day, Memnet gets approached by a homeless girl but is too afraid of the girl to talk to her. But the girl keeps lingering around the museum, so Roy takes an opportunity to confront her but scares the girl away. However, he runs into the girl soon after in a park where she has been sleeping. Since the girl left her bag under the bush where she had slept, the group of four decides to go to the park and wait for her to return. But just as the girl starts to approach, the group sees a pair of men roughing up a third man. When the third man escapes from the pair, one takes out a gun and kills the third. The girl walks up and promptly faints. Their protective instincts kicking in, Leo and Roy attack the men to keep the girl safe, and, using their wits, the duo succeeds in knocking out the criminals. They take the still unconscious girl back to their museum, which is how the newly orphaned 14-year-old Jake joins their group.
Though the group members keep their eyes out for news of the murdered man, there is nothing about him anywhere. Then they spot the man with the gun and hurry to move outside of their local community. But they soon learn that the man with the gun is a high ranking agent of the FBI. They have to keep away from him while starting a new life in their new home as a family unit. Their deductions cause them to fear that something sinister is about to happen. But how could this group of misfits stop that?
Despite my initial concerns about whether Not Dead Yet. . . would suit me, Peg Herring, who knows my taste in books, encouraged me to give her book a try, and I am glad she did. It worked well to have set the book in 1967, and the slang from that era gives it authenticity. Each slang term is given in context enough to help us understand the meaning even if we haven’t run across the word before ourselves. The book really contains three mysteries: What happened to the murdered man? What is the truth about how this disparate group of people came to be together in the museum? And what do the murderers have in plan for the future? These questions, as seen through the eyes of Jake, draw us further into the story.
I enjoyed the characters in this book. Each of the four transient characters has unique features to her or his own nature. Libby, imperious and proper, has become the chef and strict grandmother figure. Leo, intelligent and creative, repairs everything and has become the kind grandfather figure. Roy, impetuous and independent, takes care of stealing all their necessities to provide for the group. Memnet, timid and nervous of new experiences, grows in courage and strength through her relationship with Jake. In addition, Jake shows deep intelligence and a great love of reading, ultimately helping her new family in their darkest hour.
Becky Boyd performs the audio edition of this book. I enjoyed her performance as she portrays the unique characters in this book, to each of whom she gives flavor so that we see the differences in the nature of each individual. I appreciated the voices she uses for each, including doing an excellent job with the accents of each, British, Italian, Egyptian, Western American, and general American. With good expression that drives the narrative, Boyd makes the book all the more lively.
Not Dead Yet. . . turned out to be an unusual, quirky mystery with a surprise twist halfway through the book. The details of a man’s having been murdered without his body’s being discovered and the way the murderers chase after the artificial family starts off interesting. Then the conclusion becomes exciting and dramatic, and we see real growth in the lives of the five friends. I enjoyed this book and give it four stars.
Disclaimer: I received this audiobook from the author, but that had no impact upon the content of my review.
To purchase this book for yourself, click here on Amazon.
