Editing Agatha Christie (section)

== Critical reception ==

[[File:Agatha Christie Memorial (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright|Memorial to Christie in central London|alt=Colour photograph of a large, book-shaped bronze memorial|left]]
Christie is regularly referred to as the "Queen of Crime"—which is now trademarked by the Christie estate—or "Queen of Mystery", and is considered a master of suspense, plotting, and characterisation.<ref name="Trademark">{{cite news |title=QUEEN OF CRIME Trademark of Agatha Christie Limited |url=https://trademarks.justia.com/792/71/queen-of-79271301.html |access-date=7 October 2022 |website=[[Justia]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Wagoner |first=Mary S. |title=Agatha Christie |publisher=[[Twayne Publishers]] |year=1986 |isbn=0-8057-6936-6 |location=Boston}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=The Bedside, Bathtub & Armchair Companion to Agatha Christie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zd3yIaoBjrMC |page=240 |year=2001 |editor-last=Riley |editor-first=Dick |edition=2nd |location=New York City; London |publisher=[[Continuum International Publishing Group|Continuum]] |isbn=978-0826413758 |editor2-last=McAllister |editor2-first=Pam |editor3-last=Cassiday |editor3-first=Bruce |access-date=21 August 2020 |archive-date=1 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501105414/https://books.google.com/books?id=zd3yIaoBjrMC |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Engelhardt |first=Sandra |title=The Investigators of Crime in Literature |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0olaAAAAMAAJ |page=83 |year=2003 |location=Marburg |publisher=Tectum Verlag |isbn=978-0805769364 |access-date=4 July 2020 |archive-date=16 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200716005148/https://books.google.com/books?id=0olaAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1955, she became the first recipient of the [[Mystery Writers of America]]'s Grand Master Award.<ref name=":14"/> She was named "Best Writer of the Century" and the Hercule Poirot series of books was named "Best Series of the Century" at the 2000 [[Bouchercon]] World Mystery Convention.<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 September 2015 |title=Winners and Nominees 2000s |url=http://www.bouchercon.com/anthony-awards/winners-and-nominees/2000s/ |access-date=1 July 2020 |website=[[Bouchercon]] |language=en |archive-date=9 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180609172627/http://www.bouchercon.com/anthony-awards/winners-and-nominees/2000s/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2013, she was voted "best crime writer" in a survey of 600 members of the Crime Writers' Association of professional novelists.<ref name=":18"/> However, the writer [[Raymond Chandler]] criticised the artificiality of her books, as did writer [[Julian Symons]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Chandler |first=Raymond |author-link=Raymond Chandler |url=https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20140930 |title=The Simple Art of Murder |publisher=[[Houghton Mifflin Company]] |year=1950 |chapter=The Simple Art of Murder: An Essay |access-date=4 May 2020 |archive-date=21 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021050156/https://www.fadedpage.com/showbook.php?pid=20140930 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":20"/>{{Rp|100–30}} The literary critic [[Edmund Wilson]] described her prose as banal and her characterisations as superficial.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Wilson |first=Edmund |author-link=Edmund Wilson |date=14 October 1944 |title=Why Do People Read Detective Stories? |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1944/10/14/why-do-people-read-detective-stories |access-date=4 May 2020 |archive-date=10 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200810154925/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1944/10/14/why-do-people-read-detective-stories |url-status=live}}</ref>{{Refn|Wilson's 1945 essay, "Who Cares Who Killed Roger Ackroyd?" was dismissive of the detective fiction genre in general but did not mention Christie by name.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Wilson |first=Edmund |author-link=Edmund Wilson |title=Who Cares Who Killed Roger Ackroyd? |url=http://archives.newyorker.com/?iid=18408&startpage=page0000061#folio=058 |url-access=subscription |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |date=20 January 1945 |access-date=25 November 2017 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033959/http://archives.newyorker.com/?iid=18408&startpage=page0000061#folio=058 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Edmund Wilson on Crime Fiction |url=http://www.crazyoik.co.uk/workshop/edmund_wilson_on_crime_fiction.htm |access-date=23 June 2020 |website=The Crazy Oik |archive-date=23 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223115044/http://www.crazyoik.co.uk/workshop/edmund_wilson_on_crime_fiction.htm |url-status=live}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}}

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| quote = "With Christie&nbsp;... we are dealing not so much with a literary figure as with a broad cultural phenomenon, like Barbie or the Beatles."
| source = —[[Joan Acocella]] writing in ''The New Yorker''<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Acocella |first=Joan |title=Queen of Crime |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/08/16/queen-of-crime |access-date=29 April 2020 |magazine=[[The New Yorker]] |language=en |archive-date=23 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923235430/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/08/16/queen-of-crime |url-status=live}}</ref>
| style = padding:1.5em
| fontsize=85%
}}
In 2011, Christie was named by the digital crime drama TV channel [[Alibi (TV channel)|Alibi]] as the second most financially successful crime writer of all time in the United Kingdom, after James Bond author [[Ian Fleming]], with total earnings around [[£]]100&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite news |date=2011 |title=Crime Writer Rich List |work=[[Alibi (TV channel)|Alibi]] |url=https://alibi.uktv.co.uk/articles/article/crime-writer-rich-list/ |access-date=22 September 2020 |archive-date=19 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919160514/https://alibi.uktv.co.uk/articles/article/crime-writer-rich-list/ |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2012, Christie was among the people selected by the artist [[Peter Blake (artist)|Peter Blake]] to appear in a new version of his most famous work, the Beatles' ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' album cover, "to celebrate the British cultural figures he most admires".<ref>{{cite news |date=13 November 2016 |title=New faces on Sgt Pepper album cover for artist Peter Blake's 80th birthday |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/apr/02/peter-blake-sgt-pepper-cover-revisited |access-date=13 November 2016 |archive-date=5 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161105095109/https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/apr/02/peter-blake-sgt-pepper-cover-revisited |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=13 November 2016 |title=Sir Peter Blake's new Beatles' Sgt Pepper's album cover |work=[[BBC]] |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17583026 |access-date=21 July 2018 |archive-date=3 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170103234105/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-17583026 |url-status=live}}</ref> On the record-breaking longevity of Christie's ''The Mousetrap'' which had marked its 60th anniversary in 2012, [[Stephen Moss]] in ''[[The Guardian]]'' wrote, "the play and its author are the stars".<ref name="Mousetrap record"/>

In 2015, marking the 125th anniversary of her birth date, 25 contemporary mystery writers and one publisher gave their views on Christie's works. Many of the authors had read Christie's novels first, before other [[Mystery fiction|mystery writers]], in English or in their native language, influencing their own writing, and nearly all still viewed her as the preeminent crime novelist and creator of the [[plot twist]]s used by mystery authors. Nearly all had one or more favourites among Christie's mysteries and found her books still good to read nearly 100 years after her first novel was published. Just one of the 25 authors held with Wilson's views.<ref>{{cite news |author=Doyle, Martin |date=15 September 2015 |title=Agatha Christie: genius or hack? Crime writers pass judgment and pick favourites |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/agatha-christie-genius-or-hack-crime-writers-pass-judgment-and-pick-favourites-1.2351699 |access-date=7 December 2015 |archive-date=27 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127070034/http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/agatha-christie-genius-or-hack-crime-writers-pass-judgment-and-pick-favourites-1.2351699 |url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Book sales ===

In her prime, Christie was rarely out of the bestseller list.<ref>{{cite web |title=and then there were 75 facts about the queen of crime agatha christie |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/and-then-there-were-75-facts-about-the-queen-of-crime-agatha-christie |website=gamesindustry |date=24 October 2005 |access-date=1 October 2020 |archive-date=1 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501105411/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/and-then-there-were-75-facts-about-the-queen-of-crime-agatha-christie |url-status=live}}</ref> She was the first crime writer to have 100,000 copies of 10 of her titles published by [[Penguin Books|Penguin]] on the same day in 1948.<ref>{{cite web |title=Special Stamps to commemorate Agatha Christie – the biggest-selling novelist of all time |url=https://rmspecialstamps.com/collections/agatha-christie/#:~:text=Since%20her%20debut%20in%201920,in%201948%20%2D%20A%20Penguin%20Million. |website=rmspecialstamps |access-date=1 October 2020 |archive-date=1 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301135136/https://rmspecialstamps.com/collections/agatha-christie/#:~:text=Since%20her%20debut%20in%201920,in%201948%20%2D%20A%20Penguin%20Million. |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Where Are They Now? |url=https://www.penguin.com/penguin80/original-10/ |website=Penguin |access-date=1 October 2020 |archive-date=19 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919165531/https://www.penguin.com/penguin80/original-10/ |url-status=live}}</ref> {{As of|2018|}}, ''[[Guinness World Records]]'' listed Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time.<ref name="Guinness"/> {{As of|2020|}}, her novels had sold more than two billion copies in 44 languages.<ref name="Guinness">{{cite news |title=Five record-breaking book facts for National Bookshop Day |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2018/10/5-page-turning-book-facts |access-date=12 November 2020 |agency=Guinness World Records |archive-date=27 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201027042029/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2018/10/5-page-turning-book-facts |url-status=live}}</ref> Half the sales are of English-language editions, and half are translations.<ref>{{cite web |date=4 October 2018 |title=Five record-breaking book facts for National Bookshop Day |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2018/10/5-page-turning-book-facts |access-date=28 April 2020 |website=[[Guinness World Records]] |language=en-GB |quote=78 crime novels have sold an estimated 2{{nbsp}}billion copies in 44 languages |archive-date=9 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200509115438/https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/news/2018/10/5-page-turning-book-facts/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=About Agatha Christie |url=http://www.agathachristie.com/about-christie |date=2020 |publisher=Agatha Christie Ltd |access-date=29 April 2020 |quote=Her books have sold over a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. |archive-date=7 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151207094654/http://www.agathachristie.com/about-christie/ |url-status=live}}</ref> According to [[Index Translationum]], {{As of|2020|lc=y}}, she was the most-translated individual author.<ref name="UNESCO">{{cite web |author=UNESCO Statistics |title=Index Translationum – "Top 50" Author |url=http://www.unesco.org/xtrans/bsstatexp.aspx?crit1L=5&nTyp=min&topN=50 |access-date=29 April 2020 |work=Official website of UNESCO |publisher=[[United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization]] (UNESCO) |archive-date=12 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140612072938/http://www.unesco.org/xtrans/bsstatexp.aspx?crit1L=5&nTyp=min&topN=50 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Who is the world's most translated author? |url=https://thewordpoint.com/blog/worlds-most-translated-author |access-date=10 June 2020 |website=thewordpoint.com |date=23 May 2015 |language=en |archive-date=10 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610072031/https://thewordpoint.com/blog/worlds-most-translated-author |url-status=live}}</ref>

Christie is one of the most-borrowed authors in UK libraries.<ref>{{cite web |title=List:The most borrowed library books and authors in UK 2011–2012 Children's library borrowing continues to increase |url=https://www.infodocket.com/2013/02/08/list-the-most-borrowed-library-books-in-uk-2011-2012-childrens-library-borrowing-continues-to-increase/ |website=infodocket |date=8 February 2013 |access-date=2 October 2020 |archive-date=5 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201205022150/https://www.infodocket.com/2013/02/08/list-the-most-borrowed-library-books-in-uk-2011-2012-childrens-library-borrowing-continues-to-increase/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=crime fiction steals top slot in UK library loans |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/feb/05/fiction-runs-away-with-uk-library-loans-lee-child |website=thegurdian |date=5 February 2016 |access-date=2 October 2020 |archive-date=29 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200629105931/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/feb/05/fiction-runs-away-with-uk-library-loans-lee-child |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Jacqueline Wilson most loaned author |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8512613.stm |website=bbc |date=12 February 2010 |access-date=3 October 2020 |archive-date=25 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125140822/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8512613.stm |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Sorry, Harry Potter – it is Danielle Steel who casts the greatest spell over UK library readers |url=https://inews.co.uk/news/harry-potter-danielle-steel-most-borrowed-uk-library-books-225966 |website=inews |date=23 November 2018 |access-date=3 October 2020 |archive-date=1 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210301015524/https://inews.co.uk/news/harry-potter-danielle-steel-most-borrowed-uk-library-books-225966 |url-status=live}}</ref> She is also the UK's best-selling spoken-book author. In 2002, 117,696 Christie audiobooks were sold, in comparison to 97,755 for [[J. K. Rowling]], 78,770 for [[Roald Dahl]] and 75,841 for [[J. R. R. Tolkien]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Agatha Christie Inspires Video Game |url=https://www.writerswrite.com/agatha-christie-inspires-video-game-102605177 |website=writerswrite |access-date=1 October 2020 |archive-date=28 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028122645/https://www.writerswrite.com/agatha-christie-inspires-video-game-102605177 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Best Sellers of All Time: Fiction |url=https://www.audible.com/ep/article-best-sellers-all-time-fiction?ipRedirectOverride=true&overrideBaseCountry=true&pf_rd_p=bac5e436-7dfa-47d0-b492-98f01c3a5af3&pf_rd_r=X3BWC4GT5652MSR17V3F |via=audible |access-date=1 October 2020 |archive-date=1 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210501105414/https://www.audible.com/ep/article-best-sellers-all-time-fiction?ipRedirectOverride=true&overrideBaseCountry=true&pf_rd_p=bac5e436-7dfa-47d0-b492-98f01c3a5af3&pf_rd_r=X3BWC4GT5652MSR17V3F |url-status=live}}</ref> In 2015, the Christie estate claimed ''And Then There Were None'' was "the best-selling crime novel of all time",<ref>{{cite web |title=125 Years of Agatha Christie |url=https://www.agathachristie.com/about-christie/125-years-of-agatha-christie |website=The Home of Agatha Christie |language=en-US |access-date=3 May 2020 |archive-date=27 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127200520/https://www.agathachristie.com/about-christie/125-years-of-agatha-christie |url-status=live}}</ref> with approximately 100 million sales, also making it one of the [[List of best-selling books|highest-selling books]] of all time.<ref name=":15"/><ref>{{cite news |last=McClurg |first=Jocelyn |date=18 May 2016 |title=Agatha Christie hits USA Today's list |work=[[USA Today]] |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2016/05/18/agatha-christie-and-then-there-were-none-fall-books-usa-today-best-selling-books/84500896/ |access-date=4 May 2020 |archive-date=4 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200704022630/https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2016/05/18/agatha-christie-and-then-there-were-none-fall-books-usa-today-best-selling-books/84500896/ |url-status=live}}</ref> More than two million copies of her books were sold in English in 2020.<ref>{{cite web |title=Agatha Christie mysteries are still raking in the cash a century on |url=https://www.marketplace.org/2020/09/28/agatha-christie-mysteries-still-raking-the-cash-100-years-later/ |website=marketplace.org |date=28 September 2020 |access-date=12 March 2021 |archive-date=24 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210124192602/https://www.marketplace.org/2020/09/28/agatha-christie-mysteries-still-raking-the-cash-100-years-later/ |url-status=live}}</ref>