From the Back Cover: A Shy and retiring woman who began to write "in order to avoid having to talk to people," Agatha Christies produced her first detective novel at age twenty-six on a dare from her sister. She went on to author seventy-eight crime novels and short-story collections that have sold over two billion copies in more than 100 languages, making her the bestselling author of all time (Shakespeare is second). Published in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of her birth, The Life and Crimes of Agatha Christie is a comprehensive, fully illustrated guide to the lifework of this remarkable woman and an in-depth portrait of the world in which she lived. In this insightful biography, acclaimed author Charles Osborne examines not only Christie's numerous murder mysteries and crime thrillers but also her plays, poetry, nonfiction, stories for children, the films based on her works, and the six semiautobiographical "romantic" novels that she wrote under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. Osborne also explores the creation of Christie's much loved sleuths-the egotistical and eccentric Hercule Poirot and the shrewd spinster Miss Jane Marple. From classics of detection like Murder on the Orient Express, Ten Little Indians, and her record-breaking play The Mousetrap to her mysterious 1926 "disappearance" and her life in the Middle East as an assistant to her archaeologist husband, this fascinating and authoritative biography reveals the life and work of the woman who ushered in the golden age of crime fiction and who remains the world's most popular mystery writer.

H.R.F. Keating, Michael Gilbert, Dorothy B. Hughes, Julian Symons and other writers discuss the life and work of Agatha Christie.

Janet Morgan’s definitive and authorised biography of Agatha Christie, with a new retrospective foreword by the author.

Over 2,500 entries examine the author's life and work, including her relationships with friends and family, her mysterious ten-day disappearance in 1926, synopses of her mystery stories, and film and stage adaptations of her works.

Major events in Agatha Christie's life are presented in this study as well as critical discussions of her works.

font size="+1"Fans of Murder on the Orient Express won't want to miss out on this insight into the life of arguably the greatest crime writer in the world, as Laura Thompson turns her highly acclaimed biographical skills to Agatha Christie./font size="+1" 'Laura Thompson's outstanding biography . . . is a pretty much perfect capturing of a life' Kate Mosse, Book of the Year 2007 It has been 100 years since Agatha Christie wrote her first novel and created the formidable Hercule Poirot. In this biography, Laura Thompson describes the Edwardian world in which she grew up, explores the relationships she had, including those with her two husbands and daughter, and investigates the mysteries still surrounding Christie's life - including her disappearance in 1926. Agatha Christie is a mystery and writing about her is a detection job in itself. But, with access to all of Christie's letters, papers and writing notebooks, as well as interviews with her grandson, daughter, son-in-law and their living relations, Thompson is able to unravel not only the detailed workings of Christie's detective fiction, but the truth behind her private life as well. font size="+1"Praise for Laura Thompson/font size="+1" 'Laura Thompson has certainly written the last word on Agatha Christie. Her book is a superb piece of biography' Literary Review 'Affectionate, admiring, perceptive and absolutely convincing' Sunday Telegraph 'This splendid account of [Christie's] life and work is unlikely to be bettered' Evening Standard 'A triumphant success' Daily Mail 'This book is a gem: fresh, intelligent and assured' Sunday Times 'Laura Thompson is a fine writer . . . and one can't help admire the way she breathes new life into an intriguing tale' London Review of Books 'Laura Thompson delivers the goods: a compelling narrative' The Times

This new and revised edition of Hilary Macaskill's classic book, with many new illustrations, offers an insight into the life and work of the world's bestselling author. Hilary Macaskill examines the houses that meant most to Agatha Christie, including her childhood home, Ashfield, in Torquay; Winterbrook in Oxfordshire, and, above all, Greenway, soaring above the River Dart and Agatha's favorite home from 1938 to the end of her life in 1976 (though requisitioned in the Second World War by the Admiralty, and from 1943 to 1945 home also to the United States Coast Guard). The author also explores more temporary abodes, not only a succession of flats and houses in London (mainly in Kensington and Chelsea) but also the homes she set up at the digs (mostly in the Middle East) that she traveled to with her archaeologist husband, Max Mallowan, and the hotels - notably the Moorland Hotel on Dartmoor, to which she adjourned in the grip of writer's block to complete her first detective novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, and the Burgh Island Hotel, a major inspiration for And Then There Were None and Evil Under the Sun.

Discover the science of forensics through Agatha Christie's novels in the ultimate true crime investigation Agatha Christie is the bestselling novelist of all time, and nearly every story she ever wrote involves one—or, more commonly, several—dead bodies. And the cause of death, the motives behind violent crimes, the clues that inevitably are left behind, and the people who put the pieces together to solve the mystery invite the reader to analyze the evidence and race to find the answer before the detective does. Nearly every step of the way, Christie outlines the nuts and bolts of early 20th-century crime detection, relying on physical evidence to tell the real story behind the facades humans erect to escape detection. Christie wouldn't have talked of "forensics" as it is understood today—most of her work predates the modern developments of forensics science—but in each tale she harnesses the power of human observation, ingenuity, and scientific developments of the era. A fascinating, science-based deep dive, The Science of Murder examines the use of fingerprints, firearms, handwriting, blood spatter analysis, toxicology, and more in Christie's beloved works. What readers are saying: "Highly entertaining with many fascinating snippets of insider information about real life criminal cases. This is a must for Christie fans." "Thoroughly researched and a delight to read!" "A wealth of information and knowledge to help give an insight to the golden age of crime fiction." "Absolutely brilliant book that looks at how Agatha Christie made use of developments in forensic science in her novels and upgraded her understanding over time." "Agatha Christie is one of my favorite authors, unparalleled in her clever plots and twisting tales. She was also a forensic expert, weaving into her novels human observation, ingenuity and genuine science of the era. This book illuminates all of Agatha's incredible knowledge, showing how she stayed at the cutting edge of forensic knowledge, as seen through her much loved characters."

In December 1926, renowned crime novelist Agatha Christie vanished, sending shockwaves through British society. As the authorities scoured the country for her, theories and suspicions abounded: it was murder, a hoax, suicide, a publicity stunt, revenge. When she was finally located - ten days later, living under an assumed name in a hotel in Harrogate - she returned to normal life, refusing to explain what had happened. Despite Christie's reputation for final act revelations, this episode of her life would be forever shrouded in mystery

In the Little People, Big Dreams series, discover the lives of outstanding people from designers and artists to scientists. All of them went on to achieve incredible things, yet all of them began life as a little child with a dream. The book follows Agatha Christie, who taught herself to read at the age of five, on her journey to becoming the most famous crime writer of all time. This inspiring and informative little biography comes with extra facts about Agatha's life at the back.