Thursday, 29 July 2010

Character Connection - Mrs. Emily Pollifax


We all have characters we love. Let's spotlight these fantastic creations! Whether you want to be friends with them or you have a full-blown crush on them, you know you love them and want everyone else to love them too!

Character Connection host by
TheIntrovertedReader.blogspot.com

Today I'll tell you about Mrs. Emily Pollifax from the Mrs. Pollifax series by Dorothy Gilman.

At the start of the series Emily Pollifax is a widow with grown-up children and she feels her life has little worth anymore. When one day she's standing on the roof of her building and can't find one reason why she shouldn't step over the edge she decides to visit her doctor to talk to him about her feelings.

Her doctor asks her what dreams she had when she was young and if there are any she could chase right here and now.

It happens to be that as a child Emily Pollifax dreamed of being a spy!
So she indeed decides to follow her dream and she heads to the headoffice of the CIA to apply. Due to a mix up she is actually send on a mission and her dream comes true although being a spy is a lot more dangerous than she might have expected.

Emily Pollifax is a great character in my opinion. She's quirky, inventive and due to her elderly and innocent looks many of her adversaries underestimate her. The missions she is being send on and the fact that she feels useful again make her come alive again after being in a depression and she grows from someone who just keeps on going because she has to in to someone with a zest for life and she inspires and helps many of the people she meets.

If I ever get into a scratch I would want someone like Mrs. Pollifax at my side because she would surely see possibilities where no one else would.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've seen the character on TV a few times, but hadn't read her yet. I had no idea she hit such a low before starting her spy thing.

Enbrethiliel said...

+JMJ+

How lovely for her to have her dream come true like that! She may have buried a husband and raised children to adulthood, but it's not too late for her to do what she has always wanted to do. =) She certainly sounds like an inspiring, cheery character.

danya said...

Haven't heard of this series before but it sounds like fun!

Sullivan McPig said...

@Enbrethiliel: oh, she is! I know some will think these books are a bit dated, but they are among my favourite rereads.

Jen at Introverted Reader said...

I always think that I've read these, but I haven't. My first job was in a library, shelving books, and I had to shelve these books constantly. Plus, I was reading Miss Marple at the time, so they're all mixed up in my head.

Mrs. Pollifax sounds wonderful though, so I should get around to really reading them sometime. I'm always hooked at "quirky." I also have a soft spot for the elderly folks who show that enjoyment of life doesn't stop because of your age.

Gigi Ann said...

I haven't read one of her books in ages, but I always enjoyed them.