And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

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And Then There Were None
by Agatha Christie
(Audio)

Ten little Indian boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self and then there were nine.
Nine little Indian boys sat up very late;
One overslept himself and then there were eight.
Eight little Indian boys travelling in Devon;
One said he'd stay there and then there were seven.
Seven little Indian boys chopping up sticks;
One chopped himself in halves and then there were six.
Six little Indian boys playing with a hive;
A bumblebee stung one and then there were five.
Five little Indian boys going in for law;
One got in Chancery and then there were four.
Four little Indian boys going out to sea;
A red herring swallowed one and then there were three.
Three little Indian boys walking in the zoo;
A big bear hugged one and then there were two.
Two little Indian boys playing in the sun;
One got all frizzled up and then there was one.
One little Indian boy left all alone;
He went out and hanged himself and then there were none.
When I was younger, I read a lot of Agatha Christie, but mostly Poirot mysteries. I'd heard about this book, but I'd never read it. My first exposure to this storyline was a Mathnet mystery as part of Square One Television where people who'd been on trial for crimes had been invited to an old house and then started disappearing, one by one. I didn't realize how similar it was to this book until I finally read it. Except in the book, of course people are murdered not kidnapped and there's no clever detective who figures it out in time.

In fact, no one really figures it out at all. Which is beautiful. Even the characters who think they've figured it out (as it turns out) didn't actually get it right. There are several hidden layers. There are twists I didn't see coming. And there are plenty of interesting characters who are guilty of something to one degree or another.

I really enjoyed this story and I watched the 1943 movie adaptation... over which I became angry at the happy hollywood ending! That level of anger at the changed ending definitely means I loved the book :-) Agatha Christie is a master of suspense and mystery, and this book is such a great example of why. Clever!