Murder on the Orient Express

by Agatha Christie
Scott County Library audiobook 6 CDs
read by Dan Stevens
genre: Detective Mystery (Hercule Poirot)

Although I've read this book before (and seen the 1974 film), I like having an audiobook in my car and this one fit my mood. I love Agatha Christie, though I prefer Miss Marple to Hercule Poirot.

I had forgotten the details about the murdered man - Samuel Ratchett - but I remembered the conclusion. Still, it was fun to listen as the story unwound and the clues cropped up.

I've requested the "old" movie from the library. After I've watched it, I'll get the "new" one. I've not seen it yet and the cast looks pretty incredible.

Stevens vocal work was quite good.

Oh! I wanted to make note of this: The Daisy Armstrong kidnapping and murder, though fictional, made me think of the Lindbergh baby. I had to check. Charles Lindbergh, Jr. was kidnapped and murdered in 1932. Agatha Christie wrote this book in 1933 (published in January 1934 . . . ). It seems too coincidental, but I'm not going to research if she is on record as crediting that awful real-life tragedy for the storyline in this book. 

 

<Above published on 5.19.20. Below added 3.27.24.> 

I listened to a 2010 BBC full cast version. It was okay. The Poirot guy didn't sound like him to my ears! It was only two hours long and was the dramatized version, complete with train whistles, etc. A much abbreviated version, but kept the key points. I prefer an unabridged version, though.

<Below added 4.21.25.>

I listened again, this time to the unabridged story as read by Kenneth Branagh. (So a third audio version!) I enjoyed it and made a "cheat sheet" of the people on the train, their job / alias, and their connection to the Armstrong family. But I don't feel like including it here. It was also interesting to note their different nationalities. I liked Poirot's comment that you would see such an assemblage of different people in America. (But perhaps not in the future. I fear our current POTUS will do more to keep people away from our country than anything or anyone in our history.)

I've enjoyed listening to this story and seeing how Hercule puts "two" possible solutions before everyone. I also loved the doctor's amazement at how he figured things out.