Agatha Christie was the author of over 100 plays, short story collections and novels which have been translated into 103 languages; she is outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. There have been many attempts to capture her personality on paper, to discover her motivations or the reasons for her popularity. Charles Osborne, a lifelong student of Agatha Christie, has approached this most private of persons above all through her books, and the result is a companion to her life and work. This life of Agatha Christie provides information on each book's provenance, on the work itself and on its contemporary critical reception set against the background of the major events in the author's life. Illustrated with photographs, this comprehensive guide to the world of Agatha Christie has been fully updated to include details of all the publications, films and TV adaptations.