Agatha Christie

Chris Willis (London Metropolitan University)
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Agatha Christie, the “Queen of Crime”, has sold more books than any other writer of detective stories. Written in clear, unpretentious English, her books are intriguing puzzles which lead the bemused reader through shoals of red herrings until the murderer’s identity is revealed in the final chapter. She hated violence, and saw detective stories as modern morality tales about “the hunting down of Evil and the triumph of Good”.

Chriistie was born Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller on 15 September 1890 at her parents’ home just outside Torquay. On Christmas Eve 1914 she married RFC pilot Archie Christie, but they were separated by the First World War, and were not to live together until 1918. During the war, Christie worked first as a nurse then as a hospital dispenser, gaining an

1538 words

Citation: Willis, Chris. "Agatha Christie". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 16 July 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5054, accessed 21 November 2024.]

5054 Agatha Christie 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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