Nonfiction Work

Agatha Christie published several works that were not the mystery novels and her romance novels. She published two autobiographies, two collections of her poetry, and a religious children's book.

Autobiographies

Come, Tell Me How You Live (1946) is an account of Agatha Christie's travels and experiences with her husband archaeologist Max Mallowan. She wrote about the digs in Syria and Iraq, and of the associations she had with the native women and those working on the archaeology team. This delightful memoir is educational, insightful, and humorous. She is candid in her observations and stories, and shows a respect and love for the region and its peoples.

Her other autobiography is her An Autobiography, written about her birth till 1965 (she died in 1976). She stopped at 1965 because she believed there was nothing more to say and that she's had a fulfilling life even at 75 years of age. The book, however, was published posthumously in 1977. This is not a really in-depth book, although it is a lengthy one, but rather it's a charming look back to her childhood and family. More than half of the book talks of her detective novels and her detectives, of travel, of the archaeological digs, of marriage, of her various associations with people, and her life generally speaking. However, she omits anything regarding her disappearance in 1926 when she had amnesia. An Autobiography was critically acclaimed among many as an excellent history of one of the world's greatest authors.

Poetry

Her first book of poetry was The Road of Dreams (published in 1924), which contained the character of Harlequin, whom Christie said is the actual Harley Quin the mysterious detective. The 26 poems in this collection were written when Mrs. Christie was a young lady. Some of these poems are ballads, like "Elizabeth of England" and "The Ballad of the Flint," which include the Norse gods. Some of her other poems dealt with nature, love, and even war.

The collection Poems (1973) consists of two volumes in one slim book. The first volume is The Road of Dreams and the second volume is more poetry not previously published. In the second volume, her poetry focused on childhood memories, more on love, nature and regions visited by the author, and concepts such as beauty and time. Some of her poetry is easy flowing and charming, while others are not very emotionally filled.

Star Over Bethlehem

Mrs. Christie even published a children's book, of religious nature, titled Star Over Bethlehem in 1965. Max Mallowan called this volume "perhaps her most charming and among the most original of her works." This book contains six stories and five poems, which were accompanied by drawings. Three of the stories are set in modern times, while the other three dealt with the shepherds, the travels of Mary and Joseph, the visit of the Wise Men, and even a story about the resurrected Christ meeting with the apostle and disciple John the Beloved. Not only are these religious, but sentimental. Mrs. Christie wrote Star Over Bethlehem really to please herself, and had stated that writing these stories "were rather fun to do." More than anything, this volume shows of what she thought of Christianity and her religion.