Interesting, well-written/well-read autobiography

This is an interesting and well written account of the crime writer Agatha Christie’s life, from when she was a small child through to her 75th year. It is very easy listening and provided a comprehensive account of her background, where she lived, what she did, who she encountered (including relatives) and what she thought of them. It is as if you were sitting next to her and she was recounting her life in detail and in chronological order. However, as with all autobiographies, it only relates what the author wants to remember and wants to share. So, there are no shocking revelations, but on the whole I think it is candid and well balanced.

Christie does little to hide any social/class biases she had, although it is clear that she recognised the significant social changes through which she had lived. After listening to this book I held her in greater esteem than before, not for her writing, but for being true to herself. She came from a ‘comfortable’ background; she knew it and accepted it.

The book also showed Christie as a young and adventurous girl, someone who was a complex mixture of emotions, sometimes thoughtful and reflective, sometimes risk taking. What disappointed me a little was the relatively small amount of prose allocated to her literately work, there are some insightful comments, but they were relatively thin on the ground. Considering how widely travelled she was, the accounts of people rather than places seems to dominate and this, perhaps, is why she was such a successful author. Also, she wrote it looking back as a seventy five year old woman and I suspect that her quite vivid accounts of some parts of her life might actually be more faction than fact, in the sense that a biographer may have undertaken much research, whilst this book is probably what the author has remembered, or thought she remembered.

Finally, Judith Boyd gave Christie a voice that was consistent and measured. I suspect that she captured the manner in which the Author might have read it herself.

If you like biographies and wish to know about Agatha Christie’s full and interesting life then this is a good choice… as long as you are not seeking great insights about her literary works.

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1 person found this helpful

Sublime!

Having set myself the challenge of listening to everything this remarkable lady had written several months ago I was absolutely ready to hear this wonderful autobiography (narrated perfectly by my favourite Archers character). It is a truly enchanting, fascinating, inspiring tale full of daring, adventure and romance and I loved every moment. I am full of admiration for this incredibly gifted splendid lady and I consider this to be her finest work. Thank goodness I still have a few plays and her Westmacott novels left to do, otherwise I would feel quite bereft.

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i enjoyed hearing about the different attitudes in different time, decade and, time of stress and, sorrow.

I loved everything about this book and, some places made me laugh and, other places made me go oohh and, ahuh, I was sorry too see the book end xXx

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IT NEEDS A BETTER NARRATOR .

Enjoyable writing but spoilt by the narrator, Judith Boyd, whose idea of voice acting is to go high pitched in a randomly fashion or to sound like a child. The high pitched sound was the one that really irritated me, she sounded like a hag. It was an ordeal to listen to as it is a quite long audiobook.
They should record it with a better narrator.
I have to put off buying Agatha Christie's "Come, Tell Me How You Live" audiobook as it is also narrated by Judith Boyd.

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What a life story!

More entertaining than I expected. A life full of love, laughter and tears. I am so surprised the amount of travelling Christie managed to do.
Very informative. It is worth listening to again. Narrator very good.

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Excellent

Excellent story and audio presentation . I enjoyed it very much. The narrator sounds very like Agatha Christie.

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I could have carried on listening

I will miss this book … fascinating insight into AC’s life … very enjoyable listen … what a life she had and such amazing experiences … feel flat now it’s over

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Amazing Woman

Where does An Autobiography rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

High up the list. Thoroughly enjoyed listening to this. Learned so much about the life of one of my favourite writers

Who was your favorite character and why?

Max Mallowan - her 2nd Husband. Had a tremendous influence on her life and clearly his interest in archeology awoke something in Agatha that influenced many of her novels.

What about Judith Boyd’s performance did you like?

Clearly read with passion and the right amount of inflection and emotion in the voice. She used different voices for different characters and to good effect. Full marks

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The real woman behind Hercule Poirot

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very interesting narrator easy to listen to.

I found this book easy to listen to and felt like I accompanied her on her life journey

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Brilliant!

This was great from start to finish. Jumps around a little but stick with it!

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