The Labors of Hercules
Author: Agatha Christie
The Labors of Hercules is a short story collection gathering 12 tales featuring Hercule Poirot. The collection was first published in 1947 in both the US and UK.
In the UK, 11 of the stories (The Capture of Cerberus was rejected) were first printed in The Strand magazine from 1939 - 1940. In the US, 11 of the stories were printed (The Augean Stables was left out) in magazines from 1939 - 1947.
This is the first time I read this short story collection. I've had the paperback on my Agatha Christie shelf for years, but never actually read the book. So glad I finally did -- I enjoyed all of these stories!
The forward sets the stage for all of the stories....Hercule Poirot wants to retire and spend his days growing vegetable marrows and relaxing, rather than solving crimes. Maybe take a vacation or enjoy a weekend getaway to the country without a murder taking over his leisure time. But first.....Hercule plans to spend a year taking only cases that interest him so he can go out with style and on his own terms.
My first task before reading this book was to investigate and find out exactly what vegetable is a "vegetable marrow" -- I wasn't sure if this was summer squash, zucchini, cucumber....so I made use of the lovely tool that is the internet and found out......
Zucchini - allowed to grow large (courgette). Yum!! When I have finished this book, I will have to buy some zucchini and saute them with onion and spices and celebrate Hercule's dream of cultivating, improving and leisurely growing vegetable marrows. :)
I read my old paperback version from 1972 (really odd cover art lol) while listening to an audio book [HarperAudio, 2012, narrated by Hugh Fraser, 8 hrs 45 minutes]. And, when I finished I threw my ancient paperback copy in the recycle bin.
NOTE: I find it really annoying that I can't add cover photos to Goodreads anymore. Yes, I could apply to be a librarian on the site, but.....I only want to add information or editions for books that I am reviewing. So, not going to bother applying to be a librarian. Just annoys me that my review of this book on Goodreads is without a cover picture because there isn't one already loaded to the site. That's really disappointing when so many of the old paperbacks have really odd/cool/interesting covers like this one!!
One interesting thing about the book -- it had a very old mystery book club advertisement inside:
It's a shame really, as the thick paper of the ad screwed up the spine of the book over time. But, it was really interesting to read the old ad.
The introductory offer for The Detective Book Club was 4 volumes with 3 stories in each for $1 plus shipping. After that, each volume with 3 stories was $3.99. Nice mix of authors. I would imagine that a lot of people took them up on the offer. I looked up what $1 in 1972 would be in 2025 dollars: $7.69. But, that $3.99 price tag per book after that equals to about $30 per book. Yikes! ha ha
I love it when I find things tucked into old books, even advertisements! I've found shopping lists, book marks, letters, and other ads (even for cigarettes - why in a book?). Always fun!
And, my old paperback also had a used bookstore stamp in it from Asheville, NC.
I googled the business because I'm nosy and it's always fun to see if shops are still open. And, alas, The Book Rack is no more. There is a Books by Linda listed at the same address, but I couldn't find it on street view so not sure if that store is still open. Anyone from NC / Asheville??? Let me know if this bookshop still exists! Just an aside -- Asheville is the only thing I miss from NC! Malaprops Bookstore is the bomb!!
Now on to the stories!
The Nemean Lion - Poirot gets pulled into a case to investigate the kidnapping of a Pekinese dog. Of course, it turns out that the case has much more to it than a missing doggo. This is a very cute story. I enjoyed it!
The Lernaean Hydra - A doctor hires Poirot to investigate the death of his wife who died a year previouly. He's anxious for the case to be looked into because people are gossiping that he poisoned her. He is enduring gossip, people avoiding him and even poison pen letters. Poirot takes the case and discovers there is nothing more difficult to defeat than a rumor and that there really is no smoke without at least a bit of fire. Great story!
The Arcadian Deer - A garage mechanic approaches Poirot about a girl he met. He spent one day with her, fell in love....and then she disappeared. Poirot does much traveling and asks many questions to track down the mysterious, beautiful disappearing ladies maid. Great story! Just a feel-good tale. Loved it! And I really love it when Poirot takes cases because they are right and not because the person can pay his usual fees.
The Erymanthian Boar - Poirot is called upon to help catch a notorious killer in Switzerland. Very interesting and enjoyable story! I loved listening to Poirot's thoughts on all of the guests at the hotel. I kept wondering if I was faced with a group of strangers and had to pick out a criminal from among them, could I figure out who the bad guy was? I don't think I could! Poirot has those skills -- I do not!
The Augean Stables - A political scandal involving a former Prime Minister may create a really bad outcome for England. Hercule Poirot is called in to discredit a unscrupulous newspaper, but he has to do it in a most unusual way. This story gave me a bit of deja vu, as political scandal is never out of the press. Interesting twist on an old problem.
The Stymphalean Birds - Poirot is hired by a young politician who is being blackmailed after he tried to help a distressed woman. Great story with a fun, entertaining twist. Loved it!
The Cretan Bull - A woman seeks out Poirot's help for an unusual problem with her fiance. Not the sort of case Poirot usually takes on, but that fact made this a very entertaining story!
The Horses of Diomedes - A doctor hires Poirot to help with a girl who has fallen in with a very bad crowd. His job? To find out who is supplying cocaine to young people in the area. This was a very odd story, but still really good. And, it's amazing (and sad) that after 90 years, society is still dealing with this same problem. Hugh Fraser did such a great job of voicing a country busybody character in this story -- just delightful!
The Girdle of Hippolyta - Poirot investigates an art theft and the strange case of a girl who disappeared from a moving train. This one kept me guessing until the end. Very entertaining story!
The Flock of Geryon - Poirot investigates a strange cult with the help of a former acquaintance. Enjoyable story with just a touch of creepiness because similar incidents still happen. Yikes!
The Apples of the Hesperides - When a priceless goblet with a macabre history is stolen, Poirot is called in to recover it. Entertaining story!
The Capture of Cerberus - A chance meeting with a woman from his past sends Poirot on a strange search for her in "Hell." What an entertaining story -- my favorite of the book. And, if "Hell" actually existed....I would have to go there! :)
Adaptations:
I only found one adaptation of sorts.
Agatha Christie's Poirot: An episode of this long-running television show [Poirot's Final Cases 2013,
episode 4] combined the plots of four of the stories into a single episode. [The Arcadian Deer, The Erymanthian Boar, The Stymphalean Birds, and The Capture of Cerberus]. The stories have some pretty significant changes to meld them all together. Frankly, it made a bit of a jumbled mess out of it, but....I still enjoyed the episode.
I had to do some research on this because I was under the impression that David Suchet had played Poirot for all of the novels/stories on the show. Turns out that some of the story themes were combined with other bits and pieces to extend other episodes, some of the stories were deemed unsuitable to adapt for television, and some were found to be too similar to other Christie stories/novels. The producers picked which stories were included in the episode. The "final cases" season was meant to mop up the Christie books/story collections that hadn't been featured in the show previously. So, although not every story was completely represented, they did at least touch on every book. I read an article that said that every story featuring Poirot was mentioned/touched on by the series in some way, even if some were never a fundamental part of an episode.
I enjoyed the episode! I have yet to find an episode of Poirot that I didn't like!
Old worn out paperwork has gone into the recycling bin and on to the next: Taken by the Flood! Another Poirot mystery! :)
