Agatha Christie has stated her opinion that the opening of

is the best one she ever wrote. In it, Mrs. Bantry of Gossington Hall wakes up from a strange dream into a waking nightmare one September morning. Her servant informs her that there is the dead body of a young woman in the library of the house, and Colonel Arthur Bantry goes to check. Neither of them has any idea who the girl is nor how she got to be in their library, all blue and swollen, evidently strangled to death. Thinking of the implications of this discovery in her house, after calling the local police, Mrs. Bantry calls her friend Miss Jane Marple. Although it is considered rather early in the morning to call, Miss Marple is a good friend, and moreover she is very experienced with murders.

The dead

1605 words

Citation: Lee, Amy. "The Body in the Library". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 September 2003 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=1424, accessed 25 November 2024.]