An Autobiography
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Get 3 months for £0.99/mo
An Autobiography
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Narrated by:
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Judith Boyd
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By:
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Agatha Christie
About this listen
Agatha Christie’s ‘most absorbing mystery’ – her own autobiography.
Over the three decades since her death on 12 January 1976, many of Agatha Christie’s readers and reviewers have maintained that her most compelling book is probably still her least well-known. Her candid Autobiography, written mainly in the 1960s, modestly ignores the fact that Agatha had become the best-selling novelist in history and concentrates on her fascinating private life. From early childhood at the end of the 19th century, through two marriages and two World Wars, and her experiences both as a writer and on archaeological expeditions with her second husband, Max Mallowan, Agatha shares the details of her varied and sometimes complex life with real passion and openness.
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Critic reviews
‘Wonderfully easy to read and engrossing.’ The Times
‘The best thing she has ever written.’ Woman’s Own
‘Agatha Christie’s most absorbing mystery – the story of her own unusual life. She has put it all on record: her early romances; a broken (and a happy) marriage; strange events on the path to roaring success.’ Daily Mail
‘A wonderful book – written with a delight in the gradual unfolding of 75 years through the eyes of an exceptional old lady and writer.’ Financial Times
This is no misery memoir or tell-all-- Christie likes everybody and enjoys everything, has an idyllic childhood, a comfortable middle-class life, and then becomes of course an incredible success. There are some money worries, a divorce etc that are rather swiftly gone over, but they only make her eventual triumph sweeter. It's hard to believe the real Christie was quite such an uncomplicated creature but the 'character' she creates of herself is someone I'd cheerfully spend a long train journey with.
This would all be terribly dull except for the fact that Christie is simply an incredibly good writer (and up till now I haven't been a fan, I think I've only read a couple of her books). She can make even a scene of uneventfully choosing wallpaper entertaining, with the deft characterisation of the workman and a wee three-act structure. Always pleasant and fun, the book has touches of greatness-- her channeling of her childhood self must be one of the great depictions of the child-mind, up there with David Copperfield.
This book is already great, and Judith Boyd's reading makes it wonderful. She reads with all the energy and drama of a novel, I'll definitely look out for other readings by her.
First Class Writing and Reading
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What made the experience of listening to An Autobiography the most enjoyable?
I loved the way she describes the way she has used her imagination at different times throughout her life. I also enjoyed finding out there was much more to her life than her books and that she found it hard to think of herself as a professional writer.What was one of the most memorable moments of An Autobiography?
It's hard to pick just one, maybe it's her mentioning "the kittens" as her way to entertain herself.What does Judith Boyd bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
The voices, especially of Agatha as a child. And it sometimes felt as though I had gone to tea with Agatha and she was telling me her life story over scones and jam.Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Both, especially during both the wars.Any additional comments?
This made my journey to and from work seem much shorter and I often wanted to stay sat in the car once the drive was over just to continue listening.More twists & turns than one of her novels
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Excellent
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wonderfully enjoyable
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loved it
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