Book-Movie Match-Up: Agatha Christie
Book or movie? With so many Christie adaptations and books to choose from, we’ve rounded up the cinematic cream of the crop and the stories that give the most mystery mileage in text form just in time for her birthday on September 15.
READ THE BOOK: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)
The premise is simple enough — a newly retired Hercule Poirot agrees to investigate the murder of wealthy Roger Ackroyd. But this book turns the detective novel on its head in the best possible way. No wonder the Crime Writers’ Association voted it the best crime novel ever written.
Make your own call
Orson Welles’s radio drama The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is the best of the dramatic adaptations.
WATCH THE FILM: Murder on the Orient Express (1974)
Even Agatha Christie approved of Sidney Lumet’s star-studded adaptation of her 1934 classic — though she took issue with star Albert Finney’s scantier-than-she’d-imagined mustache for Poirot.
Make your own call
The book is pretty darn good, too, though.
READ THE BOOK: And Then There Were None (1939)
In this atmospheric thriller, ten strangers are invited to an isolated island, where they’re accused of past crimes and murdered one by one. The tension builds as they realize that the killer must be one of their own number.
Make your own call
This fairly recent BBC adaptation channels the book’s lingering atmospheric dread.
WATCH THE FILM: Death on the Nile (1978)
Mia Farrow is compelling as a jilted lover and Peter Ustinov brings a Continental gravitas to his first outing as Poirot in this gorgeously filmed whodunnit, featuring some pretty spectacular Egyptian scenery.
Make your own call
The book pulls your sympathy from one suspect to the next.
READ THE BOOK: Crooked House (1949)
Christie broke all the rules in this ostensibly mild-mannered investigation into the murder of a wealthy magnate by his granddaughter’s worried fiancé.
Make your own call
The 2017 adaptation plays up the drama — but it does star Glenn Close.
WATCH THE FILM: The Mirror Crack’d (1980)
Elizabeth Taylor and Kim Novak play to type as Hollywood actresses while Angela Lansbury is a convincing Miss Marple in this adaptation about a would-be murderer terrorizing a visiting actress.
Make your own call
The original book makes Miss Marple’s mild-mannered revelation feel completely shocking, even though there have been plenty of clues laid.
READ THE BOOK: Five Little Pigs (1942)
Christie gives Poirot a chance to test his own theory of detection — that all you need is sufficient reflection to solve any crime—in his investigation of a sixteen-year-old murder.
Make your own call
The best adaptation of this book is probably the season 9 Poirot episode.
This list was originally published in the summer 2015 issue of HSL. (We’re Amazon affiliates, so if you purchase something through an Amazon link, we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Obviously this doesn’t influence what we recommend, and we link to places other than Amazon.)
Covid cases are spiking, and lots of secular homeschool families are still navigating social activities with extra caution. Having clear policies for homeschool co-ops and get-togethers can help all the folks in your community make the best choices for their families.