In 2025, the world will celebrate the 135th anniversary of the birth of the Queen of Crime, Agatha Christie, and simultaneously mark the 50th anniversary of the publication of her classic work, “Curtain.” This book marks the final case of her famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, and his loyal friend, Hastings.
The creation of “Curtain” predates its publication by many years. In the late 1930s, as World War II loomed, Agatha Christie feared for her life and wrote Poirot’s final story as a gift for her daughter, Rosalind Hicks. The completed manuscript was locked away in a safe, where it remained for over three decades. It wasn’t until 1975, when Christie decided to retire from writing detective fiction, that she agreed to publish “Curtain.” On August 6, 1975, The New York Times featured Poirot’s obituary and the cover of the newly released novel on its front page. Tragically, just half of a year after the novel’s publication, in January 1976, Agatha Christie passed away.
Agatha Christie’s literary journey is remarkable. Despite having little formal education, she was passionate for reading, particularly captivated by the stories of Sherlock Holmes. Her mother believed children should not learn to read before the age of eight, but young inquisitive Agatha started reading on her own at the age of four. After World War I, she wrote her first detective novel, “The Mysterious Affair at Styles,” published in 1920. This debut not only launched her illustrious writing career but also established her as a major figure in detective fiction.
Agatha Christie created a series of widely acclaimed works, including “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” “Murder on the Orient Express,” “Death on the Nile,” “And Then There Were None,” and “Evil Under the Sun.” To this day, these novels remain classics in the history of detective literature. Her creations, the meticulous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot and the The elderly spinster Miss Marple, have left a lasting impression on readers around the world.
Widely regarded as the greatest detective novelist after Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie was both a pioneer and a master of the Golden Age of detective fiction. In recognition of her enduring contributions to literature, she was awarded the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 1971 New Year Honours. This accolade stands as a testament to her monumental impact on the literary world.