REVIEW: The Man in the Brown Suit (Agatha Christie)

The Man in the Brown Suit
Author: Agatha Christie

The first time I read this early novel by Agatha Christie was in the 1980s. I saw the title listed in the front of one of my Poirot paperbacks and wanted to read it. Back then, with no internet for ebooks or digital library sites, this meant a trek across town to the very small library in my hometown. Of course, they did not have the book. Plenty of Poirot and Marple....but no Brown Suit. I remember having to request an inter-library loan....a waiting period of another week...then another trek across town (I don't remember if I walked or rode my bike....but I did one or the other. My dad was not one for providing what he called "frivolous rides''...unless it was for homework or required pursuits, I had to use self-propelling transportation....feet or pedals.) I remember this particular book quest because the librarian did not want to check the book out to me. I waited all those days for the inter-library loan to arrive, walked the long trek to the library AGAIN, and then the librarian told me I couldn't check the book out. My father was not with me. I was 12...and the book was firmly in the adult section of the library. I had to get parental consent to even check the book out. I was allowed to use the phone...I fully expected my father to yell. Frivolous phone calls while he was working (He ran his insurance business from home) and all that. But no....he was sympathetic. I was shocked when he got in his car, drove across town, and wrote out a note for their file that I was allowed to check out any book in the library at any time, adult section or not, with his full permission. He signed it with a flourish, thanked the surprised librarian, and even gave me a ride home....with my book. Memories like that make me very thankful for the internet because now when I want to read a book, even ones long out of print, I can almost always ferret up a copy instantly. And, when that fails, I can easily order a copy online....and wait pleasantly for it to appear in my mailbox in a few days. No more multiple 4-mile treks on a bike. :)

Flash forward several decades, and I'm reading my way though all of Christie's writing in publication order. The second I picked up my ancient 1970s paperback copy of this book, I smiled, remembering the bike treks, the phone calls, the parental permission I had to have just to read this book back in 1980. Nostalgia. :)

The main character in the book, Anne Beddingfeld, has quite the adventure of her own! She sees a murder in the subway station, finds a clue written on a tiny piece of paper, and off she goes for some sleuthing. Turns out the mystery involves more than one dead body....and a boat headed for Africa. Lots of danger, intrigue, romance, and excitement!

The Man in the Brown suit introduces Colonel Race. Race is also in several other Christie novels -- Cards on the Table, Sparkling Cyanide, and Death on the Nile. The book was published in 1924. Some of the characters, the setting, and some events were inspired by Christie's 10-month around the world trip in 1922 to promote the upcoming British Empire Exhibition. I never knew until this year that the character of Sir Eustace Pedler in the book was inspired by the man who headed up that trip -- Major E. A. Belcher. The book is even dedicated to him: to E.A.B. -- in memory of a journey, some lion stories, and a request that I should someday write the "Mystery of the Mill House.''  She penned all of the Hercule Poirot early short stories while on this trip. I was so excited to learn something new about my favorite author that I bought a book about her adventures on this trip: The Grand Tour! I can't wait to read it! :)

This book is more of a thriller or romantic adventure story, rather than Christie's usual mystery. Several reviews at the time she published the book complained about this fact and that Poirot was set aside for this story in favor of Colonel Race and Harry Rayburn. The story was serialized in several parts in the London Evening News in 1923-24 (Anne the Adventurous) before being published in novel form.

I like this story! It's almost 100 years old now....and the main character is a young girl, alone in the world, heading off to find adventure and a life of her own. Anne refuses to do the normal thing -- get married for security, have babies, clean house, etc. She wants more than that -- she wants some adventure, to live life on her own terms....   Pretty brave for 1924! I loved the story in 1980....and I find it still a very enjoyable read in 2020!

I read and listened to this book at the same time. The audio book I checked out using Kindle Unlimited said that some "editorial edits'' had been made to the story. So I pulled out my 45-year old paperback version, and read along with the audio to see what changes were made. Mostly superficial....some differences in where chapters started and ended....a word changed here or there...sentences added/removed. Nothing major. My old paperback copy has an unusual cover, so I'm going to add a photo of it. :) So 1970s!

All in all, a very enjoyable read. A bit dated in spots....but not bad for a book written 97 years ago! On to the next book -- The Secret of Chimneys (1925)!

A made-for-television movie starring Stephanie Zimbalist was released in 1988. It's on youtube...  The movie makes significant changes to the story -- it's set in modern times, and so makes major plot changes.  But, it's still an enjoyable watch!