Reading Order for the Unofficial Poirot Buddy Reads

[Jessica-sim]

Dear all,

Welcome to the overall list for the Unofficial Poirot Buddy Reads project which will take us well into 2020... I will open two new threads here each month, one for spoiler-free discussions and one where spoilers can be indulged in.

I am a big Agatha Christie fan and read almost all her books, except the Poirot ones... That's, of course, inexcusable, which is why I set out to read one Poirot each month in the reading order as suggested on www.agathachristie.com. I am very happy for your company here! Feel free to post in any of the older threads as your catching up or just occasionally joining in with specific books.

Here we go:

2018
January – The mysterious affairs at Styles
February – Murder on the Links
March – Poirot Investigates
April – Poirot's Early Cases (short stories) 1974
May - The Murder of Roger Ackroyd 1926
June - The Big Four 1927
July - The Mystery of the Blue Train 1928
August - Black Coffee (play novelisation by Charles Osborne) 1997
September - Peril at End House 1932
October - The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest (short story) 1932
AND Second Gong (short story) 1932
November - Lord Edgware Dies 1933
December - Murder on the Orient Express 1934
AND optional reading of Christmas Adventure (short story) 1923

2019:
January - Three Act Tragedy 1935
February - Death in the Clouds 1935
March - The ABC Murders 1936
April - Murder in Mesopotamia 1936
May - Cards on the Table 1936
June - Yellow Iris (short story) 1937
AND Murder in the Mews (four novellas) 1937
July - Dumb Witness 1937
August - Death on the Nile 1937
September - Appointment with Death 1938
Octobre - Sad Cypress 1940
November - One, Two Buckle my Shoe 1940
December - Evil Under the Sun 1941
AND Christmas themed one! Hercule Poirot's Christmas 1938

2020:
January - Five Little Pigs 1943
February -The Hollow 1946
March - The Labours of Hercules (short stories) 1947
April - Taken at the Flood 1948
May - Mrs McGinty's Dead 1952
June - After the Funeral 1953
July - Hickory Dickory Dock 1955
August - Dead Man's Folly 1956
September - Cat Among the Pigeons 1959
October - The Clocks 1963 AND Hallowe'en Party 1969
November - Third Girl 1966
December - Elephants Can Remember 1972
AND Christmas themed one The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (short stories) 1960 not published in the USA

2021 January
At long last (fittingly) - Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case 1975

[Sandy]

Thanks. I will be joining the conversations soon as The Mystery of the Blue Train is next on my Christie list.

[Roman Clodia]

Thanks, Jessica - I'm in for this! I've read most of the books before but it's fun re-reading them in the right order. The Mystery of the Blue Train is one of my favourites!

[Adrian]

Jessica wrote: "Dear all,

Welcome to the overall list for the Unofficial Poirot Buddy Reads project which will take us well into 2020... I will open two new threads here each month, one for spoiler-free discussio..."

Jessica, you're a star, I shall certainly be joining in all the way through

[Susan]

Thanks for doing that, Jessica. I have put the list at the top.

[Susan]

Good to hear that everyone thinks our group will still be active in 2020 :)

[Jill]

I hope it is, even if it's just dear Poirot keeping us going!

[Susan]

We will do our best to keep active, Jill. Members participation make a group, and the Poirot challenge is a good example of that.

[Adrian]

Susan wrote: "Good to hear that everyone thinks our group will still be active in 2020 :)"

I'm sure it'll be more than just Poirot keeping us going

[Jill]

Yes I would think so !

[Susan]

So many groups seem to fizzle out on Goodreads. In the end, Judy and I started our own, as we were fed up with the ones we were members of not running things the way we wanted them run ;)

[Adrian]

Susan wrote: "So many groups seem to fizzle out on Goodreads. In the end, Judy and I started our own, as we were fed up with the ones we were members of not running things the way we wanted them run ;)"

And a fab job you are both doing :)

[Susan]

Thank you, Adrian. And our other mods, I hasten to add.

[Judy]

Thanks, Adrian. Although, like Susan, I was frustrated by the way some groups were run, I do also belong to other well-run groups at Goodreads which I enjoy ... when I have time to take part, which hasn't always been the case recently!

[Susan]

Yes, there are some great groups on Goodreads, but it is the members involvement that give them a long life.

[Judy]

Very true - we are lucky to have such great members here.

[Adrian]

Judy wrote: "Thanks, Adrian. Although, like Susan, I was frustrated by the way some groups were run, I do also belong to other well-run groups at Goodreads which I enjoy ... when I have time to take part, which..."

I agree with you both, I to belong to a number of groups, some of which have "fizzled out" within 6 months which is a shame. But others , like this group are well run (thank you ALL mods) and have a lively membership. Makes it very enjoyable, but a problem as I have too many books to read (I blame you both for introducing me to ER Punshon ha ha.)

[Susan]

Adrian, you can never have too many books to read ;)

[Nicola]

I am new to buddy reads and liked the idea of reading a Poirot book every month. I am looking forward to hopefully joining in on some of the discussions.

[Susan]

Good to hear, Nicola. I am enjoying re-reading Poirot very much.

[Adrian]

So for October 2018, I have had to read
The Mystery of the Spanish Chest: A Short Story and
Dead Man's Mirror: A Short Story
These being the extended versions of what we were meant to read, however it does mean that I've now read 1 story in "The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding' (December 20) and 1 from "Murder in the Mews" (June 19).

Having to work out what I was actually meant to be reading has meant I have investigated the numerous issues that surround Christie short stories, the books they were published in and the issues around American vs English books.

So I have a question (or 2) for our esteemed organiser :-
December 18, we have "Christmas Adventure" which I understand is another name for "The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding" which we are reading in December 20 as part of the book of short stories??

Also are we not reading The Regatta Mystery, the 1936 original ??

Finally, many many thanks Jessica (and moderators ) for this fabulous challenge, thoroughly enjoying it

[Susan]

Adrian, I also read, "Christmas Adventure," which I think later becomes the extended, "The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding," with the addition (if I recall correctly) of the Prince in question asking Poirot to investigate at the beginning of the story.

I think the original story you refer to featured Poirot and was then later adapted to The Regatta Mystery in 1938. The original story was 1936,

According to the Agatha Christie site: The original magazine publication of the story actually featured Hercule Poirot as the lead detective in 1936, but Agatha Christie replaced him with Parker Pyne for the first book edition of the story in the US collection The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories. The story also appeared in the now out of print collection Thirteen for Luck! in 1966. It was later published in the UK collection Problem at Pollensa Bay and Other Stories (1991).

This means the story was adapted three times - from "Christmas Adventure," to "The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding," to "The Regetta Mystery," for different magazine publications in different countries and shows how lucrative magazine sales were for her.

[Susan]

Should have said that the original, "Christmas Story," in my edition was written in 1923, so the idea had a long life!

[Adrian]

I know, it is very confusing sometimes, following the genealogy of her stories. ( my tome makes no mention of the Christmas Pudding /Regatta Mystery link, although it does agree Xmas Pud Is 1923, Regatta mystery 36 with Poirot and 39 with Parker Pyne)

I have already read “The Incredible Theft” rather than “The Submarine Plans” so when we get to Murder in the Mews (June19), I’ve already read 2 of the stories.

There are so many examples when you dig deeper, “Yellow Iris” drops Poirot and becomes the novel “Sparkling Cyanide”.

Ooh I’ve just discovered my reference says “Xmas Pud -> The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding” become “Theft of the Royal Ruby” ???

And it is all not helped by the different anthologies published in UK/ US that contain a mixture of detectives eg Problem at Pollensa Bay or While the Light Lasts.

And finally I wonder if there is any record of the original 12th Labour of Hercules that was rejected by the publisher. Agatha had to write a complete new story 6 years later to be included.

All that said, it does make it fun ha ha.

[Susan]

Yes, it is very confusing, Adrian, but also fun! I enjoyed reading the collection of early stories though, a great collection.

[Jessica-sim]

Yes, it is a good puzzle for us too! I thought I would make things easier by following the "official" reading order list by agathachristie.com but look at that.... there are many hidden complications.

Indeed, the two stories for this month were very hard to find for me as well. And though I, as an additional threat, allowed myself to buy a real paper one Poirot book each month despite being on an otherwise strict book buying diet... this month I will have to resort to ebook versions.

And Adrian, I do understand the exasperation of your complete collection not being complete... I have a book with Agatha Christie short stories entitled of "Witness for the prosecution and..." but it does not include "The second gong" no matter what the agathachristie.com website states haha

So for October, I would suggest:
- The Second Gong: A Short Story

which is available as stand-alone ebook for all ereaders.

The story can also be found two collections, but check the contents before buying them because various variations are around "The Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories" and "Problem at Pollensa Bay and Other Stories."

- for US based readers The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest: A Short Story

Also, inexpensively available as a standalone ebook but only in the US

The Mystery of the Baghdad Chest was published in US in The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories in 1939 and also in While the Light Lasts in 1997.

For the rest of us: The Mystery of the Spanish Chest: A Short Story
It was expanded by Agatha Christie in 1960 and retitled The Mystery of the Spanish Chest. This longer version was adapted for television and starred David Suchet as Hercule Poirot in 1989.

----------------------------------

Can you all live with that plan?

[Adrian]

Ha ha, love the plan , unfortunately I got over excited and I started early and have already read October 😬
In that I read what I had :- The Spanish Chest and Dead Man’s Mirror 😬

We will of course encounter them both again in
The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding anthology and
Murder in the Mews anthology respectively

They were good 🙄

[Jessica-sim]

Well by then (june 2019 and dec 2020) you will be ready to read the stories again ;-)

[Adrian]

Ha ha very true. I know I’ll enjoy them again 😊

[Robin]

I can't stand the pain, so shall be a pain myself. I'll limit my recall of Poirot to the full length novels.

[Jessica-sim]

Robin wrote: "I can't stand the pain, so shall be a pain myself. I'll limit my recall of Poirot to the full length novels."

No problem! We'll see you next month then :-)

[Jessica-sim]

Best wishes for 2019 everyone! And thank you, again, for joining me in the exploration of all Poirot books. Over the last year, I've changed from "I've read ALL Agatha Christie stories, except Poirot because that's not my cup of tea" ... to "Oh my, have you read the Poirot books? They are such fun!" haha. Living proof that you have to personally invest time into something before you should make judgements.

For this year we have scheduled:

2019:
January - Three Act Tragedy 1935
February - Death in the Clouds 1935
March - The ABC Murders 1936
April - Murder in Mesopotamia 1936
May - Cards on the Table 1936
June - Yellow Iris (short story) 1937
AND Murder in the Mews (four novellas) 1937
July - Dumb Witness 1937
August - Death on the Nile 1937
September - Appointment with Death 1938
Octobre - Sad Cypress 1940
November - One, Two Buckle my Shoe 1940
December - Evil Under the Sun 1941
AND Christmas themed one! Hercule Poirot's Christmas 1938

Feel free to join in whenever you want or go back to discussions of any book we have previously read.

[Sandy]

Thank you for the list Jessica. I too enjoy my deepening relationship with Poirot.

[Adrian]

Thanks Jessica, I will certainly be along for the ride, as I’m thoroughly enjoying it

[Susan]

For some reason I got confused and read Death in the Clouds instead of Three-Act Tragedy! Will listen to Three-Act Tragedy over the weekend and catch up.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Susan wrote: "For some reason I got confused and read Death in the Clouds instead of Three-Act Tragedy! Will listen to Three-Act Tragedy over the weekend and catch up."

Yes, I thought Death in the Clouds was this month, too. But I had not started it yet and will wait until next month.

[Jessica-sim]

Oh my! I am personally running so late with the Poirot's for December 2019... but that doesn't take away the joy of preparing my reading for next year!

I am still permitting myself the luxury of buying one book per month and that book is the Poirot we are reading then. Therefore my home "library" (ahum 4 Ikea Billy shelves, a desk, an aquarium and a very comfortable chair) is a little unbalanced with 2 complete shelves dedicated to Agatha Christie already as I already owned most of Agatha's non-Poirot books before we set out on this adventure.

Can you believe we are embarking on the third and last year of reading Poirot? Whatever will we do in 2021 ;-)

Our previous Poirot discussions remain open, so feel free to drop in whenever you want. For 2020 we will read:

January - Five Little Pigs 1943
February -The Hollow 1946
March - The Labours of Hercules (short stories) 1947
April - Taken at the Flood 1948
May - Mrs McGinty's Dead 1952
June - After the Funeral 1953
July - Hickory Dickory Dock 1955
August - Dead Man's Folly 1956
September - Cat Among the Pigeons 1959
October - The Clocks 1963 AND Hallowe'en Party 1969
November - Third Girl 1966
December - Elephants Can Remember 1972
AND Christmas themed one The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding (short stories) 1960 not published in the USA

I am undecided where to fit in the last one:

At long last (fittingly) - Curtain: Poirot’s Last Case 1975

perhaps January 2021 just to not quit cold turkey? Or add it as an extra in December?

[Susan in NC]

Jessica wrote: "Oh my! I am personally running so late with the Poirot's for December 2019... but that doesn't take away the joy of preparing my reading for next year!

I am still permitting myself the luxury of ..."

I vote January 2021 for poirot’s last case - as you wisely point out, cold turkey would be tough! I think your home library sounds lovely - thanks so much for this buddy read, it’s always a highlight of my reading month! It had been too long since I read Poirot - one of my goals this year will be to reread the early Poirot books I missed the first year! Always a pleasure.

[Adrian]

Jessica wrote: "Oh my! I am personally running so late with the Poirot's for December 2019... but that doesn't take away the joy of preparing my reading for next year!

I am still permitting myself the luxury of ..."

I have to agree with Susan, this has been a fun 2 years, albeit I am now like you Jessica, a book behind as I haven't read Poirot's Christmas book for this year.
I like the idea of going into Jan 2021, as I know I shall be missing this challenge a lot when it ends. 😊

[Tara]

Thank you so much for organizing this Jessica. I'm particularly looking forward to the reading list for 2020, as those are Poirots that I haven't read before. I have also treated myself to the books I don't own, leaning towards vintage paperbacks with over-the-top covers!

We can reassess at the end of next year, but I wouldn't be opposed to a buddy read in 2021 on her non-Poirot/Miss Marple mysteries. I think they would be new to most of the group, and make for interesting discussions as they are mostly stand alone.

[Judy]

For anyone who hasn't heard about it already,we have a new Christie challenge coming up in the group in 2021, with a selection of some of her lesser-known detectives and standalone mysteries - the titles are listed here:

https://www.goodreads.com/challenges/...

I think in January this will overlap with the very last Poirot, Curtain: Poirot's Last Case - had you decided where to schedule this one, Jessica? I'm guessing January since there are already two Poirot reads in December? That will mean two months of Christie doubles for all our fans in the group!

[Jessica-sim]

Oh great news. I'm glad I can escape into a next Agatha Christie Challenge, it's a relief! I indeed intend for the last Poirot to slide over to January.

[Judy]

Thanks for confirming that, Jessica. There's a lot to be said for escaping at the moment. :)

[Jessica-sim]

I updated the reading order with that. Can you believe we have been reading since 2018? Thanks everyone for making this such a super fun long-term buddy read!

[Judy]

Thank you to you for organising it all, Jessica!

I know it has been a lot of fun for the group's Christie fans, and I hope to catch up with some of the titles I missed in the future.

[Susan in NC]

Oh, frabjous joy, two Christies in January! Sounds good to me- thank you, ladies, for all you do - the escapism and entertainment of reading is more vital now than ever!

[Adrian]

I have to echo Susan's comments. Thanks to Jessica, and the moderators of this group for nearly 4 years of Agatha ( 1yr of Marple and 3yrs of Poirot), and now another year to go, brilliant 5 years in total.
As Susan said, frabjous joy !!

[Jessica-sim]

Merry Christmas Everyone!

We are nearing the end of our 3yr Poirot adventure. I loved it. I started out as a Poirot sceptic but ended as I Poirot defender, such a joy to read all the books in order. As I allowed myself to buy a physical copy of each book I am afraid that my home library is a bit unbalanced now, 3 IKEA Billy Book Cases and one almost entirely filled with Agatha Christie haha

2020 has been a challenging year with so much viral stress load. For all of us. As I work in health care I sometimes really lost track of time, but thankfully I was still able to have one reliable reading highlight each month and could count on the lovely Mods of our Reading the Detectives group for opening up the monthly discussion when I was MIA... sorry... Thanks for sticking with me!

We still have one book rationed out for us for January and then we can all hop over to the Agatha Christie challenge to get our monthly Agatha fix ;-)

Up next: Curtain: Poirot's Last Case

[Judy]

Happy Christmas, everyone. Jessica, many thanks for organising this 3-year read, and sorry I haven't had a chance to join in with as many of the Poirots as I hoped initially - fortunately I know I can dip into the threads in future as I catch up with more of them!

As you work in healthcare I know 2020 must have been incredibly busy for you - hoping that 2021 is better for all of us. x

[Tara]

Merry Christmas to everyone! I have thoroughly enjoyed reading these Poirot books with the group, many of which were new to me. Like Jessica, I found much comfort and joy in between these pages, and they have proved a solace in an otherwise challenging and stressful year. Here is hoping 2021 is a better year for all, with plenty more Christies to discover!