Are You An Agatha Christie Fan?

1. Agatha Christie, whom Joan Acocella writes about in The New Yorker this week, is

A duchess

A lady

A dame

A wench

Agatha Christie is referred to as a "dame" because she was awarded the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1971. This title is given to women who have made significant contributions to their field and have achieved great success. It is a prestigious honor bestowed by the British monarchy, recognizing Christie's accomplishments as a renowned author and her impact on the literary world.

Explanation

Agatha Christie is referred to as a "dame" because she was awarded the title of Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 1971. This title is given to women who have made significant contributions to their field and have achieved great success. It is a prestigious honor bestowed by the British monarchy, recognizing Christie's accomplishments as a renowned author and her impact on the literary world.

2. Who invented the detective story?

Charles Dickens

Edgar Allen Poe

Raymond Chandler

Louisa Mae Alcott

Edgar Allen Poe is credited with inventing the detective story. He is known for his famous detective character, C. Auguste Dupin, who appeared in three of Poe's stories. Poe's stories laid the foundation for the modern detective genre, introducing elements such as a brilliant detective, a mysterious crime, and the use of deductive reasoning to solve the case. His works greatly influenced future detective fiction writers and established the conventions that are still used in the genre today.

Explanation

Edgar Allen Poe is credited with inventing the detective story. He is known for his famous detective character, C. Auguste Dupin, who appeared in three of Poe's stories. Poe's stories laid the foundation for the modern detective genre, introducing elements such as a brilliant detective, a mysterious crime, and the use of deductive reasoning to solve the case. His works greatly influenced future detective fiction writers and established the conventions that are still used in the genre today.

3. Which of the following is the pseudonym that Christie has used?

Jane Marple

Mary Westmacott

Martine Crackenthorpe

Lord Windlesham

"Mary Westmacott" was the pseudonym under which Christie wrote six romance novels.

Explanation

"Mary Westmacott" was the pseudonym under which Christie wrote six romance novels.

4. Agatha Christie's "Murder on the Orient Express" was based in part on what real-life murder?

Elizabeth Short, known as “The Black Dahlia”

Lizzie Borden’s father

Charles Lindbergh’s son

Jack the Ripper’s fourth victim

The Lindbergh kidnapping also makes appearances in Philip Roth's "The Plot Against America" and Danielle Steele's "Vanished."

Explanation

The Lindbergh kidnapping also makes appearances in Philip Roth's "The Plot Against America" and Danielle Steele's "Vanished."

5. In "Elephants Can Remember," Poirot notes that his initials are the same as HP Brown sauce, which he calls "such a fine delicacy, a good English creation." Where did HP Brown sauce get its initials?

Herman Plottsville, in honor of the inventor of the sauce

Holland Pride, after its founder’s country of origin

Hot and Pucker, to describe the sauce’s spicy yet sour taste

The Houses of Parliament, which the founder claimed was serving it

The bottle features a picture of Westminster Palace, where the House of Lords and House of Commons meet.

Explanation

The bottle features a picture of Westminster Palace, where the House of Lords and House of Commons meet.

6. Christie wrote "The Mousetrap," which is the longest continually running play in history, as a birthday present for Queen Mary. What was President Obama's birthday present for Queen Elizabeth II, who turned eighty last year?

A sonnet that he wrote

A signed copy of “Dreams of My Father”

Tickets to “The Lion King” on Broadway

An iPod

It was loaded with show tunes.

Explanation

It was loaded with show tunes.

7. Which actor has not played Christie's foppish lead detective Hercule Poirot, who, as Acocella describes, "wears pointy patent-leather shoes ill-suited to walking the grounds of the country houses where he must often do his sleuthing" and "deplores the English preference for fresh air, thin women, and tea"?

Alfred Molina

Albert Finney

Jason Alexander

Patrick Stewart

Jason Alexander's portrayal of Poirot, perhaps the least known of the three, was for an episode of "Muppets Tonight." Kermit the Frog played the train conductor, and the passengers confuse Hercule Poirot with Hercules.

Explanation

Jason Alexander's portrayal of Poirot, perhaps the least known of the three, was for an episode of "Muppets Tonight." Kermit the Frog played the train conductor, and the passengers confuse Hercule Poirot with Hercules.

8. In "The Secret Adversary," Christie's 1922 book that introduces the detective duo Tommy and Tuppence, what does Tuppence say she thinks about "morning, noon and night!"?

Justice

Love

Money

Truth

The duo started their career as blackmailers.

Explanation

The duo started their career as blackmailers.

9. In 1993, the scientist Douglas Erwin used the phrase "Murder on the Orient Express" to describe his model of what?

Climate change

A predicted asteroid collision in 2182

The Permian–Triassic extinction event

That year’s oil spill in the Persian Gulf

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Explanation

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10. Who attacked Agatha Christie and the entire mystery genre in three essays in The New Yorker in the nineteen- forties?

Edmund Wilson

E. B. White

Roald Dahl

George Orwell

Of Christie, Wilson said, "I did not care for Agatha Christie and never expect to read another one of her books!"

Explanation

Of Christie, Wilson said, "I did not care for Agatha Christie and never expect to read another one of her books!"

11. Christie's book "Curtain" topped the New York Times best-seller list for fiction on January 11, 1976, the day before she died. What was in second place?

“Ragtime,” by E. L. Doctorow

“Slapstick,” by Kurt Vonnegut

“1876,” by Gore Vidal

“Sleeping Murder,” by Agatha Christie

On January 11, 1976, the day before Agatha Christie died, her book "Curtain" topped the New York Times best-seller list for fiction. The question asks for the book that was in second place on that list, and the correct answer is "Ragtime" by E. L. Doctorow.

Explanation

On January 11, 1976, the day before Agatha Christie died, her book "Curtain" topped the New York Times best-seller list for fiction. The question asks for the book that was in second place on that list, and the correct answer is "Ragtime" by E. L. Doctorow.