In Which We Celebrate the Queen of Crime's Birthday

Dame Agatha Christie at her typewriter
(15 September 1890 - 12 January 1976)

This is Dame Agatha Christie's birthday. Today, her cake would have to be large enough to hold 123 candles.

If you are a fan of this mystery writer, as I am, you will never run out of things to read as she penned almost 70 books, over 100 short stories, as well as plays - those with original plots as well as those adapted from her novels.

I saw her play The Mousetrap at St Martin's Theatre in London twice - once in 1982 and again in 2002. I was just as surprised upon the revelation of the murderer the first time as I was twenty years later! It is the longest running play ever. It had its 25,000th performance last November and is still going. I do remember that the audience is asked to keep the ending a secret - my lips are sealed. 

There is much to be learned about this beloved author online and I will let you do your own research if you are so inclined. To get you started though, here is a link to a short video about her courtesy of Biography.com.

Agatha Christie, An Autobiography was published in 1977, the year after her death. I have added it to my TBR list even though it is some 600 pages long! I am currently reading her memoir, Come, Tell Me How You Live, which is a very amusing tale of her experiences with her husband, archaeologist Max Mallowan, in the Middle East. 

Ms. Christie's former home in Devon is open to the public and contains many of her family pieces. It would be a wonderful place to visit. For a glimpse, here is a link to the National Trust's page featuring Greenway Estate.

For tonight, to celebrate her birthday, I rented the DVD The Murder on the Links with David Suchet as the dapper M. Hercule Poirot (my favorite of her detectives). I recently read the book and wrote about it here. It will be fun to watch the story unfold on screen. As I remember, the plot has many twists and turns. Just what this mystery writer is famous for.

How will you celebrate Dame Agatha Christie's birthday?

Where in the World?

I am all over the world in my reading right now. It is quite exciting!

In America, I am still paddling up the Missouri River with Meriwether Lewis and William Clark and their Corps of Discovery. I don't know how the men kept up their strength. As far as I can tell their diet consisted of wild game that they killed along the way, a little whiskey, and maybe some berries and other fruit they found along the riverside. Doesn't sound too nourishing.

On the northern coast of France, M. Hercule Poirot, in The Murder on the Links, is still mulling over clues. Yet another body has been found only adding to the confusion. 

And, finally, I just arrived last night in North Wales to meet up with Penny Brannigan in the mystery, The Cold Light of Mourning. Canadian author Elizabeth J. Duncan has created a lovely world in the small town of Llanelen, Wales. This is the first in a series of mysteries featuring Ms. Brannigan, watercolor artist and nail salon owner. 

The puzzle: A bride, an unpopular out-of-towner engaged to the local squire, has gone missing on her wedding day. The last person to see her was our heroine when she gave the bride a morning manicure on her walk-down-the-aisle day. Has beautiful Meg Wynne Thompson jilted the groom at the altar or has something more sinister - like murder - occurred?

Where in the World is your reading taking you this weekend?

The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

There is nothing more comforting after a long day than settling in with a mystery involving Hercule Poirot. And, The Murder on the Links (1923) is no exception. 

M. Poirot has received an urgent letter requesting his assistance in France. The plea comes from Mr. Renauld, a wealthy man with business holdings in South America. Unfortunately, by the time M. Poirot and his ever-faithful Hastings arrive, Renauld is dead. Stabbed in the back with a letter opener.  His body discovered on the golf course next to his villa's grounds. 

Mon Dieu! So far Dame Agatha has sweetened the pot with a whisper of blackmail, a grieving widow, a disinherited son, a possible mistress, a young woman on a train, a missing murder weapon, footprints, lack of footprints, young love, and a worthy protagonist for M. Poirot - a Monsieur Giraud of the Paris Sûreté. 

Unlike M. Poirot who uses his little grey cells, M. Giraud likes to dig about and look for the tiniest evidence of, well,  evidence. He is a bit brash and arrogant, and it will be a treat to see M. Poirot gently put him in his place.

One of the surprises that Dame Agatha has in store for the reader is a bit of gardening advice. So unexpected! I found this little exchange between M. Poirot and Auguste, the long-time gardener at the villa, to be delightful:

"I was admiring these magnificent geraniums. They are truly superb. They have been planted long?"

"Some time, monsieur. But of course, to keep the bed looking smart, one must keep bedding out a few new plants, and remove those that are over, besides keeping the old blooms well picked off."

"You put in some new plants yesterday, didn't you? Those in the middle there, and in the other bed also."

"Monsieur has a sharp eye. It takes always a day or so for them to 'pick up'. Yes, I put ten new plants in each bed last night. As monsieur doubtless knows, one should not put in plants when the sun is hot."

Yes, murder and gardening tips. What more could a reader want?