Born Agatha Mary Clara Miller in Torquay, Devon, England on, Sep. 15, 1890. The youngest of 3 siblings, she was educated at home by her mother who encouraged her daughter to write. As a child she enjoyed fantasy games and creating characters and when she was 16 she went Paris to study vocals and piano.
She married an airforce pilot named, Col. Archibald Christie in 1914 and became a nurse during WW1. She published her first book, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, in 1920. The story focused on the murder of a rich heiress and introduced readers to one of Christie's most beloved characters, Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot.
In 1926, Christie released the Murder of Roger Ackroyd, which was a hit and became a "genre classic". Disaster struck for her that year, her mother died and her husband revealed he was having an affair with another woman. Traumatized she disappeared, only to be discovered several days later at the Harrogate Hotel, registered under the name of her husband's mistress. She divorced Archibald in 1928 and in 1930 she married archaeology professor, Max Mallowan with whom she accompanied on several expeditions. Later she recounted their experiences in the 1946 memoir, Come, Tell me how you Live. The year she married Mallowan, she published, Murder at the Vicarage, which introduced the world to another of her most beloved characters, Miss Jane Marple, an inquisitive village lady.
Some of her other books include, The Murder on the Orient Express (1974), The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928), Death in the Clouds (1935), Moving Finger (1942), Pocket full of Rye (1953). Over her lifetime she wrote more than 70 detective novels as well as short stories. Her success as an author as earned her titles like "Queen of Crime" and "Queen of Mystery". She was a renowned playwright as well, with works like, The Hollow (1951) and Verdict (1958). Her play, "The Mousetrap", opened in 1952 at the Ambassador Theatre-- and over the next 21 years, had 8,800 showings, allowing it acquire the record for the longest run in London theater. She was made a dame in 1971. She made her last appearance at the opening of the play version of the Murder on the Orient Express in 1974. Agatha passed away on Jan. 12, 1976.
She has sold over 2 billion copies worldwide making her one of the bestselling authors of all time.
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Women in Literature and Music
Non-FictionWomen who have changed the world through poetry, books and music.
