Agatha Christie (1890-1976)
English crime writer
Agatha Christie was the Queen of Crime Fiction. In a career that spanned more than half a century and two world wars, Agatha wrote 80 novels and short stories, creating such unforgettable characters as Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. Revered as the 'Master of Suspense', Agatha Christie perfected the art of the 'whodunit' 每 and her mysteries were a masterpiece in misdirection. One of her many plays, 'The Mousetrap', is the longest running play in theatrical history.
It was Agatha's experiences in World War One that first set in motion a career in detective fiction 每 inspired by medicines, and especially poisons, when volunteering with the British Red Cross dispensing unit. Agatha went on to travel extensively across the Middle East, finding inspiration for many of her most famous books 每 'Death on the Nile', and 'Murder on the Orient Express'.
But her dramas and mysteries were not just contained within her books. There were rumours of a nervous breakdown, an unexplained disappearance and an acrimonious divorce, made all the more painful by the death of her beloved mother.
But Agatha Christie, a shy, clever and complex woman, set this all aside to become the best selling author of all time, alongside Shakespeare 每 selling over 2 billion books worldwide, translated into over 45 languages. And yet, despite her fame, the real Agatha Christie remains as mysterious as any of the characters in her novels.
Intensely private all her life, Agatha did leave hidden clues 每 and if you know where to look, these clues reveal a very different woman to that of her accepted public persona.
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