Recently I was at a panel where the usual topic of the Queen of Crime came up. One author said that they had never read any Agatha Christie, and I said, well I have and it’s not great. A third panellist then said that you can’t slag off Agatha Christie.
My question is, why not?
How can any one writer be so protected from criticism? It’s not like the woman is going to care, she’s already dead. And it’s not like the estate isn’t still raking the money in, and good for them! Though I think they overstepped the mark in going against Val McDermid being referred to as the Queen of Crime. The Queen is dead, long live the Queen.
If you like Agatha Christie, all power to you. She was a trailblazer of the genre, and deserves that recognition. If you are a Christie devotee, then long may you enjoy reading her work. I respect that. But it’s just your opinion. And this is mine, and I’m just as entitled to say it as the next reader.
The thing is, I don’t live in a cosy little village. The vicar won’t come round for tea. I don’t have friends in high or low places. I don’t go to stay with distant relatives or friends from the ‘old days’. Exotic (expensive) journeys to far flung places are out of my reach. And I was given the MMR jab as a child. I don’t drink sparkling wine let alone cyanide, though I suppose if I did, I’d only do that once. And if I can reference all those icons of AC without reading many of her works, that goes to show just how impressive and influential her works really are. But here’s the thing, I don’t enjoy reading those works.
It’s not that her works were in any way bad, it’s just that they are of their time and they don’t speak to me. They are set in a time that doesn’t draw me in. They are written with a language that doesn’t resonate with me. I don’t gel with the characters, most of them just irritate me. I can watch an adaptation. I’ll read clip notes. I’ll follow the plot and recognise how good that it. But my God, reading the stuff is a work of patience and persistence for me. And the older I get the more I subscribe to the if you’re not enjoying it, don’t read it practice.
There’s also a thing about some of the endings, and Agatha Christie ending. Like ten pages from the end, she’ll introduce a new character and they’re the killer. If you did that in fiction today, the reader will feel that you’ve cheated them, robbed the of the chance to identify that character as the murderer. And that’s really the point of this article. Tastes and styles change with the times. Agatha Christie will always endure because there is skill in her writing, but that doesn’t mean that everyone has to love her work. That notion would be ridiculous.
What I’m railing against here is not Agatha Christie, it’s the gatekeepers. It’s those who think they have a right to dictate how other see things. What they are doing is reinforcing an increasingly untenable position that there is only one way to see a subject.
Agatha Christie is not a woman I have researched, I’m not bothered about her, I don’t buy into the cult of celebrity at any significant level, but I can’t imagine that she would expect to get put on a pedestal so high no one could attack her.
I’m not saying that Agatha Christie shouldn’t be on people reading lists. Read what you want. That’s your business not mine. But do not tell me I can’t say a negative word about something or someone. That’s censorship and I won’t stand for it.
No matter how great the queen, freedom of speech is more important.
GB Williams Crime Blog 