PARKER PYNE INVESTIGATES
US title: MR. PARKER PYNE, DETECTIVE
UK publication: 1934 (Collins)
US publication: 1934 (Dodd, Mead)
Detective: Parker Pyne
Genre: Short stories
Plot
summary and comments: 12 short stories, the only Christie work to feature
Parker Pyne, who says he is not a detective but a "heart specialist",
a consultant to those who are unhappy. In the first six cases, the unhappy
come to his small London office, where he uses his experience in a Government
statistics office to solve their problems, some of which lead to the uncovering
of crimes. (His secretary is Felicity Lemon, later to work for Poirot;
he has several other part-time helpers.) In the second set of six, he
is on holiday and reluctant to accept problems, but finds himself acting
as advisor or investigator when odd things happen or crimes are revealed.
The settings are mainly in the Middle East, which Christie knew well by
this time. Titles:
- The Case of the Middle-Aged Wife (Pyne's "lounge-lizard" employee Claude Luttrell is used to make a straying husband jealous of his wife);
- The Case of the Discontented Soldier (introduces Mrs. Ariadne Oliver, detective novelist, who will reappear in seven novels-- she presents Pyne with a plot);
- The Case of the Distressed Lady (about the theft of an emerald ring--two of his helpers pose as exhibition dancers);
- The Case of the Discontented Husband;
- The Case of the Rich Woman;
- The Case of the City Clerk;
- The Pearl of Price (set in Petra);
- The House at Shiraz (set in Shiraz);
- Death on the Nile (a crime story, not to be confused with the novel of the same name);
- The Gate of Baghdad (set there); Have You Got Everything You Want? (set on the Orient Express train);
- The Oracle at Delphi (set there).
::READERS REVIEWS::
"I
enjoyed reading the Parker Pyne stories because they focus on both the
human angle as well as detective puzzles. The stories start out by being
more about love and romance but gradually take on a more serious appearance
with Parker Pyne solving complex murders. The most amusing aspect is that
Pyne has worked his whole life in a government office compiling statistics,
yet is able to apply his knowledge to solving all kinds of puzzles. I
definitely liked the Middle Eastern setting in some of the later stories.
Christie had traveled extensively in the region with her archaeologist
husband Sir Max Mallowan and you can see her love for the region in the
stories. A nice alternative to the usual Poirot and Marple fare!"
"The
title is a misnomer. Parker Pyne isn't a detective, he's more of a 'Mission:
Impossible' guru. People come to him when they're unhappy, he gives them
adventures. Unlike the previous reviewer, I liked the first 6 stories
better than the last, when he does become a mere detective!"
"The
first six stories about helping people to realize their own self-worth
are too sentimental. The other stories in the book are much better. More
like the Agatha Christie I loved to read. Murder, thief, and ,of course,
a clever plot twists. I really like the different version of "Death
on the Nile." So skip the first ones, and read the last six.
::YOUR OPINION::
