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Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman
Agatha Christie: A Very Elusive Woman | Lucy Worsley
32 posts | 15 read | 18 to read
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review
rwmg
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Pickpick

An informative and interesting biography of the author convincingly showing how much she was a victim of not only misogyny but also intellectual snobbery and how progressive many of her works were when looked at in the cultural climate they were written in.

AnishaInkspill your review 💛💛, I have this, I just haven't been able to find a space to read it with all my other books. 1mo
26 likes1 comment
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kspenmoll
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#12bookdof2023 #12daysofchristmas
#December
Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman

The title says it all.

Andrew65 A great choice. Thanks for playing long, a great way to review 2023. See you for #12Booksof2024 on Christmas Day. 11mo
43 likes1 comment
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kspenmoll
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#YearEnd #20in4 #OutWithTheOldInWithTheNew #friday29tothursday2
Finished the top 3 books.
Read 131/355 The Art of Rivalry
Just started The Zen Teacher

Andrew65 Brilliant, well done and thanks for playing along 👏👏👏🙌🎊🎉🥳 11mo
53 likes1 comment
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AnneCecilie
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Pickpick

Born in 1890 into an Edwardian upper class family with servants, she volunteered for Red Cross during both the world wars, a child of her time that wanted something more.

I had absolutely no idea about how much of Christie‘s life made it into her books. It could be the smallest things like a comment, it could be people in her life that inspired characters, she worked as a medicine dispenser during the wars and learned a lot about poison, it was

AnneCecilie the archeological trips she went on with her second husband. It‘s marriage and divorce and mother daughter relationships that would show up as she went through things in her own life. The murder cases that would inspire cases in her own books. As Worsley wrote, Christie is a lot more contemporary than we know because of the 80s and 90s TV series that placed the show in a nostalgic past in the 20s/30s. 11mo
AnnR Nice review! 11mo
Ruthiella I definitely want to read this when I am finished with the Mary Westmacott novels! 11mo
kspenmoll Great review! I finished this right before NYear‘s Day. So much new to me background information & just how she lived her daily life. Her obsessions with houses…. Fascinating. 11mo
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kspenmoll
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Morning coffee. @Gissy the small jar to the left is filled with all the witchy elements, crystals you sent me. I love them. You are so thoughtful and generous.

Gissy Im so happy you liked it. I enjoy buying for swaps. Trying to know the person through photos in Litsy with what answered in the form, but also following the swap topic. It is fun 11mo
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kspenmoll
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On a whim, I picked this up today & read about 60 pages. I am hooked.

AnnR 👍 I hope you continue to enjoy it. Earlier this year, I listened to it on audio. Quite interesting. 11mo
Librarybelle I meant to read this last year and did not get a chance. It sits on my Agatha Christie shelves just begging to be read…maybe next year is the year! 11mo
jlhammar So good! Glad you‘re enjoying it. 11mo
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kezzlou85
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So five days into #AwesomeApril and two books done. Tagged one was so good but forgot to get photo before returning to library. Not the highest time count but I'm reading so it's all good.
@Andrew65

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rabbitprincess
Pickpick

An excellent biography, with three sets of photos!
Warning: this book contains spoilers for The Mysterious Affair at Styles, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, the stage version of And Then There Were None, The Hollow, and Endless Night. So make sure you‘ve read those before reading this!

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jenniferw88
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Bookwormjillk Great book 2y
AllDebooks I really enjoyed it. Lucy Worsley's narration is so joyful. Like chatting with a best friend! 👌 2y
Andrew65 Looks a fabulous book. Thanks for playing along, it‘s been a good way to review the year. 2y
44 likes3 comments
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AllDebooks
Pickpick

This autobiography is concise but retains a heartfelt admiration for Agatha. Wolsey manages to delve into the mysteries of Agatha's life a s a child and a young woman with compassion and empathy. An enjoyable, informative read.

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AllDebooks
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#ALSpine #Readyourtbr #Jumpstart2023

A very satisfying read from @jenniferw88 recommended reading list. This was already on my tbr as I adore Lucy Worsley, so I have ticks for other challenges, too.
Also Roll 1 - 96 #Roll100 @PuddleJumper
#Doublespin 7 for #bookspinbingo @TheAromaofBooks

@monalyisha @melissajayne @Lizpixie @Clwojick

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 2y
TheAromaofBooks I also really enjoyed reading Christie's autobiography a few years ago. It's more of a sort of memoir - it felt a bit like sitting and having tea with an old auntie who has a lot of stories and opinions 😂 2y
AllDebooks @TheAromaofBooks oh that sounds delightful 😊 I'm in x 2y
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PuddleJumper That's great! 2y
Lizpixie I absolutely loved this one. Worsley is a brilliant writer.♥️ (edited) 2y
AllDebooks @Lizpixie She is magnificent. I love her tv programmes too 2y
36 likes7 comments
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jlhammar
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#12Booksof2022 🎶 On the tenth day of Christmas my true love read to me, a lady most elusive 🎶

For my twelve, I‘m highlighting my favorite audiobooks of the year. Great books that were all the more enjoyable thanks to outstanding narration &/or production.

Andrew65 This must have been a fascinating listen. 2y
65 likes1 comment
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erzascarletbookgasm
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Wohoo! Massive congratulations on your Litsy milestone @wanderinglynn 🎉👏. Also, Happy Birthday month 🥳🎂, here‘s hoping you‘ll get lots of books for your birthday!
Thank you for the chance and your generosity.
I‘ll love to receive the tagged book. 😊
#300KBirthdayGiveaway

wanderinglynn Thank you! 😘 And thanks for entering! 2y
37 likes1 comment
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Emma_PK
Pickpick

I'm a HUGE fan of Lucy Worsley and of course the amazing Agatha Christie. I loved Worsley's biography of Jane Austen and this was just as good. Full of colour and interesting tidbits of daily life made exciting by her clever explanations. A great fireside read with a cup of something warm.

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jenniferw88
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Pickpick

Agatha Christie fan? ✔
Lucy Worsley fan? ✔
Amything other than 5 🌟? ✔😂

#litsylovereads

Maria514626 Oh yay! I was hoping this would be good. I love Lucy Worsley! 2y
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Lizpixie
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Bk4 of November is done!🙌 That was a fabulous read. I think it has to be one of the best, and certainly the most readable, biographys I‘ve read. The author is an historian who presents on TV, her writing makes Dame Agatha‘s life very much alive again, it brings the 20th Century & what it was like for women very much into the forefront. I highly enjoyed this & cant recommend it enough. 5⭐️ #BookspinBingo #NonFictionBingo2023 #NonFictionNovember

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! I may have to check this one out. I do love Christie!! Have you ever read her autobiography? I really enjoyed it when I read it a few years ago. 2y
Andrew65 Hope all is well and you‘ll be joining us for #WinterReadathon 😍 2y
kspenmoll I have this! Wonderful review ! I want to read it in January 2y
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Lizpixie
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Next up, and hopefully I actually finish this one, is the newest biography of the very woman the last book I read was an homage to. Dame Agatha has always fascinated me as a woman who succeeded in a time when women were basically background furniture. The fact is her life was not typical but she played it down so much because “ladies were not showy”. I‘m glad I live now, we still have a long way to go but women are much better off than 100yrs ago.

emmaturi I really enjoyed it, lots of information and it was so interesting. 2y
40 likes1 comment
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Evita
Pickpick

4 out of 5

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Birdsong28
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squirrelbrain Yes! I have this set to record… I just read her book too - looking forward to the programme. 2y
Birdsong28 @squirrelbrain Yes I am looking forward to reading her book but it will have to wait till new year now as I am now getting into my Xmas books. I saw this advertised in my BBC history magazine but I didn't think it would be so soon it said early December just saw it by chance tonight. 2y
jlhammar Jealous! I would love to watch this, but no air date here in the US as of yet. 2y
Birdsong28 @jlhammar What about iPlayer? 2y
jlhammar Unfortunately BBC iPlayer only works in the UK due to rights issues (or so it tells me). Hopefully PBS will pick it up as they have with many of Worsley‘s other programs 🤞 2y
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emmaturi
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Pickpick

This is a really fascinating biography about the crime writer. From her childhood to her death. I enjoyed finding out about her parents, sister, her two marriages, the disapperance, the archaeology elements. Really good.

jlhammar I thought so too. Such a fascinating life! 2y
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jlhammar
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Pickpick

Excellent biography of an intriguing and groundbreaking lady. Worsley‘s style is so warm and engaging. Her excitement for history is infectious. She reads the audiobook which I highly recommend. Though the print is great to have for the many photographs.

KathyWheeler I am reading the ebook of this right now. So far, I like it. (edited) 2y
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jlhammar
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Had to share this mention of middlebrow lit. I guess Agatha, unlike Virginia Woolf, was proud to be considered low or middlebrow.

This biography is fantastic so far! I‘m doing a mix of print and audio, which Worsley reads herself.
#FurrowedMiddlebrowClub

Ruthiella I definitely used to be far more snobby about books than I am now! I love Christie mysteries and also enjoy reading around her works, so this one is on my list! 2y
LeahBergen I love some good lowbrow reading. 😆 2y
quietjenn Even more reason to love Dame Agatha! I'm so looking forward to this bio. 2y
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elkeOriginal ‘Battle of the Brows‘ - ❤️😆🥰 2y
MrsK I love Dame Agatha…defender of the common reader! I put the bio on my Xmas wishlist…but may not be able to wait ☺️ 2y
elkeOriginal When I recently read Vicarage, I had to mark (with post-it, not pen!) that line about poetry because it was so snarkily wonderful! 2y
erzascarletbookgasm I‘ve always loved the lowbrow fun by Agatha Christie! 😊 Thanks for sharing, will look this bio up 👌 2y
CarolynM 🤣 Middlebrow rules, ok! 2y
44 likes8 comments
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jlhammar
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Spent some time in Next Chapter this morning and came away with these lovelies. I‘ve been wanting to read the Barker for years and this edition was just released. The Comyns is described as a “twisted, tragicomic gem” and an “overlooked small masterpiece.” I loved The Juniper Tree so into my arms it went.

And can‘t wait to start Worsley‘s Christie bio. Funny that in the US she is only An Elusive Woman, but Very Elusive in CA & UK. #bookhaul

LeahBergen I love the new cover for O Caledonia! That one‘s a favourite of mine. And how did Agatha lose some of her elusiveness in the US? 😆 2y
squirrelbrain I brought the Agatha Christie to read at our #readingretreat (along with many other books so who knows if I‘ll even start it?!) 2y
batsy Great haul! I have a copy of the Comyns and have had O, Caledonia on the TBR for the longest time thanks to some Littens. 2y
53 likes3 comments
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Jess_Read_This
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Pickpick

I believe this was the first biography I‘ve read that I couldn‘t put down! Worsley‘s conversational yet educational tone made this incredibly enjoyable. The confiding manner in which she writes has moments shared that show how relatable Christie can be. A rather brilliant life led with problematic moments thoughtfully addressed. Highly recommend this one! #jessreads2022

jlhammar Now I'm even more excited to read this! 2y
Jess_Read_This @jlhammar I loved it! Seeing the breadth of time she lived all outlined out in historical context was amazing. She was born near the end of a luxurious Victorian time period, had an Edwardian adolescence into young womanhood, saw and served in WW1, the aftermath, WW2, the aftermath, and the 1950‘s-early 1970‘s. Worsley tries to show how it all influenced Christie and her writing. 2y
RebL I‘ve been looking all morning for my AC biography. I even folded my laundry purgatory pile. Tryna solve the mystery of my lost book. 2y
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Mitch
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Pickpick

Lucy Worsley is fab - she‘s as good in print as on TV. This is intelligent history in plain English with a warm hug and bucket loads of passion. She debunks many myths that surround Christie‘s life placing things reported of her in the culture and context in which they were written. Loved it and made we want to critically re read some of her key mystery novels.

squirrelbrain Great review - I just got this today! 2y
emmaturi I will be reading it in October. Looking forward to it 2y
Mitch @squirrelbrain 👍🏼 2y
Mitch @emmaturi I really enjoyed it! 2y
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Mitch
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The house is quiet and it‘s just me and my book for the next hour 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

Leftcoastzen Yay! 2y
Aims42 Enjoy!!! 2y
74 likes2 comments
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Mitch
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That my Sunday afternoon sorted! I might just have found my new favourite reading snack! 😋

TheLudicReader That's a famous candy bar in this neck of the woods...and made about 90 minutes from me. They recently changed the recipe after years and years and it caused a whole kerfuffle. Lol. Hope you enjoy it. 2y
squirrelbrain Enjoy! The chocolate sounds delish! 2y
Mitch @TheLudicReader it‘s super lovely- really fudgey & chocolatey & nutty and all round delish! 2y
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TheLudicReader @Mitch I am glad you enjoyed it. 😀 2y
quirkyreader Someone from Canada must really love you or was it at a local shop? 2y
quirkyreader @TheLudicReader kind of sounds like when a person is used to eating Cadbury from England and then has the stuff from America. Wow, a big difference. 2y
Mitch @quirkyreader the former! 2y
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Mitch
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Went to only my second book event in 2 years last night - and it was worth the wait! Lucy Worsley is soo entertaining. I love her!

jlhammar Sounds amazing! I'm really looking forward to this one. 2y
jenniferw88 I'm seeing her on the 5th! I'm guessing she changed outfits?! (Seen her twice before, where she has done so). 🤣🤣🤣 2y
Lcsmcat I will watch any documentary she does. I‘ll have to check this out! 2y
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maxfolsom Can‘t have enough good books about Agatha! 2y
Jean9 I love her documentaries! I will have to look for her book! 2y
Mitch @jlhammar 👍🏼 2y
Mitch @jlhammar she was fab! 2y
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Mitch
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jenniferw88
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I know what's going on my Christmas list this year! @Branwen

Branwen OMG! 😲😍👏 3y
Verity I preordered this because of you! 3y
67 likes2 comments