Reading Skills. Agata Christie's Miss Marple

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Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple

Imagine you’re on a train. Sitting opposite you is a white-haired lady with china blue eyes. As the lady glances round the train to the window, her hands are busy knitting something in the softest pink wool. Knitting, however, isn’t her only hobby – another is solving crimes! Introducing Miss Marple …

Miss Marple is an amateur detective and one of the famous British writer Agatha Christie’s most popular character. She lives quietly in a pretty village, knitting, gardening and people watching. Every so often, however, Miss Marple puts her knitting aside and turns her attention to solving crimes. Agatha Christie had already been writing for 12 years when, in 1932, Miss Marple appeared in The Thirteen Problems. Who was the inspiration behind the character?

A recent discovery made by her grandson, Mathew Prichard, has shad light on how the author created Miss Marple. Prichard had been clearing out a cupboard in his grandmother’s former home when he stumbled upon a dusty cardboard box. Opening it, Mathew found 27 audio tapes with recordings Christie had made while writing her autobiography.

When Mathew played the tapes, he was amazed to hear his grandmother’s strong, distinctive voice once again. Speaking into her dictaphone, Christie revealed she had based Miss Marple on her mother’s mother. As the author said, “Although a cheerful person, she was expected the worst of anyone and anything. And with almost frightening accuracy, she was usually right.”

Miss Marple has the same keen intuition. She is observant, her sharp eye picks up the smallest but most important of details. She also relates the past to the present, drawing on past experiences to make sense of present-day puzzles. All of this, combined with her knowledge of village life, helps to solve any mystery.

Christie hadn’t intended to make Miss Marple a permanent character, but in her determined way, the white-haired detective became a success! Christie wrote 12 Marple mysteries including, The Body in the Library, They Do It with Mirrors and A Caribbean Mystery. The character has appeared on film and in TV series worldwide.

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Miss Marple works for the police.

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Her house is in the countryside.

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She was Christie’s first detective character.

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Prichard wrote his grandmother’s biography.

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Christie’s grandmother was the inspiration for creating Miss Marple.

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Miss Marple ignores small details.

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Miss Marple became a favourite character among readers.

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Miss Marple has appeared on stage.

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What was Miss Marple hobbies?

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What stories were included in 12 Marple mysteries?

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The detective _______ on his experiences of previous crimes to solve the mystery.

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Let me ________ you to the officer dealing with the case.

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She _________ at me, smiled and returned to her knitting.

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The author _________ her most famous character on a family member.

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The latest news article _________ light on new aspects of the crime.

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The detective ___________ his attention to the builder and started asking him questions.

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The police have not __________ the identity of the victim yet.

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As I was cleaning my room, I _________ upon my favourite detective novel!

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Detectives ___________ crimes for a living.

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The police inspector ___________ up on a clue everyone else had missed.