Agatha Christie's "Pet Hates".

While Agatha Christie's novel Postern of Fate is acknowledged as the last novel she wrote, is it possible she wrote something after that novel that was also published? If so, that item would be the last published work of hers. Postern of Fate was published in October 1973 but was likely written in late 1972 and early 1973. Later novels such as Curtain and Sleeping Murder were all written decades earlier. Well one small item has surfaced that was likely written after she completed Postern of Fate and it can be found in the rather uniquely titled My Pet Hates.

In the early 1970s contributions of ‘pet hates’ were collected from well-known personalities to be compiled into a book to benefit the Save The Children Fund.  Requests were sent out by Lord Gore-Booth, the then Chairman of the Fund, in late 1972 through the summer of 1973. From the contributions received, 33 were selected for publication, each accompanied by a small line art drawing.  

Titled My Pet Hates, the book was published in 1974 by Routledge & Kegan Paul, London and sold for £1.50 with all royalties from the book going to the Fund.

The introduction is by Her Royal Highness The Princess Anne who was then President of the Fund. In it she expresses thanks that so many of the contributors expressed their support for the mission and work of the charity.

One of these contributors is Agatha Christie. While it is unclear exactly when she wrote her contribution, it is was written no earlier than late 1972 nor later than the autumn of 1973. We see from the contributions that several requests for contributions had gone out between late 1972 and the summer of 1973. Of the responses shown from contributors they are all dated between March and July 1973 - though one 'non-response' from Germaine Greer's secretary is dated October 1972 (see below). I expect the latter was an immediate reply to the request letter.

As such, it is highly likely that Agatha Christie's contribution was the last item she wrote that received publication. More importantly, what she wrote provides a fun insight into her personality.

Examples of the Contributions.

Ernie Wise’s pet hates was to be ‘Invited to a party and given a warm gin and tonic’.

Germaine Greer refused to provide a contribution. Instead her secretary replied in a long letter that one of her pet hates was “receiving impossible requests through Her Majesty’s Post”.

Laurence Olivier’s pet hate was ‘wire coat-hangers’.

 Agatha Christie's Contribution.

Below is an image of Christie's contribution with the line drawing of a mousetrap. For those who may find it hard to read in the image I've also retyped the text.

‘Long Vehicle’, on the back of lorries on the road, - (rousing immediate fury on the part of the driver behind them).

Marmalade pudding.

Cockroaches.

Having to watch interviews on television.

Too much correspondence, mainly from school girls in the U.S.A. who have ‘projects’ to write, - apparently arranged by their teachers – on the author of their choice. They seem to expect the author in question practically to write their project or thesis for them, or at any rate to give them full information about the author’s private life. For this I blame not the girls, but the teachers, who should know better. If this is the literary class, which it appears to be, their project or thesis should be about the literary efforts of the author, not what might be described as an interview in disguise.

-          Agatha Christie.

Summary.

I find these remarks funny but insightful. The first few appear fairly casual and flippant. I was not even familiar with 'marmalade pudding'. Apparantly I've been fortunate to avoid eating it all these years. A quick online search implies marmalade pudding it is a traditional British dessert (how have I avoided it!) akin to a small steamed fruit pudding made with marmalade, and often served with custard or cream. I welcome reader feedback from those more familiar whether this really is a 'marmite' dessert or not (i.e. love it or hate it)!

Her last, and more detailed, hate is certainly the most interesting for me to read. One can only imagine how many requests like this she must have received over the years. For all of us who enjoy parsing over her works and striving to provide fresh insights, it is meaningful to note that Christie clearly would prefer us to study her literary efforts than her personal life.

Similar to her 1961 Celebrity Cooking book, this reminds us that there are these rather fun collectibles out there that Christie contributed to beyond her fictional novels and short stories, that both inform us about her and amuse us.

As always, I welcome any of your thoughts, insights, corrections etc. Just contact me at: collectchristie@gmail.com .

Value & Scarcity.

This book is not valuable, but solely difficult to find. I do not believe it was ever reprinted so the 1974 edition is the first, and only, edition. While I have seen an copy for sale online at an exorbitant price, a patient buyer may just as likely find one in a charity shop or at a boot sale for 50p. However, a fair price today for a Christie completist who wants a copy of everything she wrote would be up to £30. Patience and a lot of online searching will likely reward you.

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Happy Hunting!