‘Hercule Poirot’s Casebook’ keeps readers guessing

Dear Editor,

Recently, a friend was cleaning out some stored items. She found Hercule Poirot’s Casebook by Agatha Christie.

I was very pleased when she brought it to me to read.

Agatha Christie was born in 1891 and died in 1987. She was an English writer of detective stories. While working in a hospital during World War I, she wrote her first detective novel.

After many rejections, “The Mysterious Affair at Styles” was published in 1920. This book introduced her famous character, the Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot.

In 1953, she adapted the mystery play “Witness for the Prosecution” from one of her short stories. Her name at birth was Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller. Her home was in Torquay Devon, England.

Hercule Poirot’s Casebook is a collection of 50 short stories. Hercule Poirot’s adventures keep readers guessing.

One short story, “The Nemean Loin,” is the story of a Pekinese dog that was kidnapped. Mrs. Samuelson was the owner of this Pekingese canine that she called NanKipoo.

Miss Kebler, the companion and caregiver of Mrs. Samuelson, was blamed for the dog’s disappearance. She had taken NanKipoo to the park on a leash.

Shortly before she left the park, Miss Keble bent over a perambulater (baby buggy) to admire an infant who had been taken to the park by a nurse who cared for him.

When she turned to leave, the leash had been cut and the Pekingese dog was gone.

Hercule Poirot was called in to investigate the case. He arrived when NanKipoo showed up on the front steps.

They mysterious kidnapping is solve when Poirot discovers that Miss Keble is the person who has kidnapped Pekinese dogs owned by wealthy ladies.

She was charging 200 and 300 pounds for the safe return of the animals.

Helen Ruth Arnold,

Trenton, Neb.