Customer Reviews

The Golden Ball and Other Stories

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A collection of 15 short stories, none of which feature any of Christie's recurring characters, not even the small fry like Ariadne Oliver. Although the code of ettiquette that she and her fellow writers such as Dorothy L. Sayers followed for mysteries forbade any supernatural elements, Christie could and did occasionally dabble in such stories outside the mystery format. Several of the stories here have such elements; specifically, those from THE HOUND OF DEATH AND OTHER STORIES. Others are more conventional; several of these feature men who 'seize the golden ball of opportunity' and get something out of their adventures, if only some self-respect. They are sorted by the original publication dates in magazines or story collections.

"The Hound of Death", "The Gipsy", "The Lamp", "The Strange Case of Sir Andrew Carmichael", and "The Call of Wings" are all taken from an earlier collection, THE HOUND OF DEATH AND OTHER STORIES (see). Properly speaking, by the way, "The Strange Case of Sir Andrew Carmichael" is really "The Strange Case of Sir Arthur Carmichael" - it isn't often that the *title* of a story is the subject of a widespread printer's error.

"The Girl in the Train", "Jane in Search of a Job", "The Manhood of Edward Robinson", "The Listerdale Mystery", "The Rajah's Emerald", "Swan Song", "A Fruitful Sunday" - taken from an earlier collection, THE LISTERDALE MYSTERY (see its reviews for details of each). "The Girl on the Train" is essentially similar to "The Golden Ball", although the settings differ. "Jane in Search of a Job" and "The Listerdale Mystery" each involve a woman - one young, one middle-aged - in desperate financial straits answering an advertisement that's too good to be true. "The Manhood of Edward Robinson" and "The Rajah's Emerald" each involve a young man with a girlfriend who's tiresome about money (one is bossy and prudent, the other likes to live higher than her boyfriend can afford) who accidentally gets hold of stolen gemstones and must think quickly to avoid wrongful arrest. "A Fruitful Sunday" starts out on a similar tack, but with a sympathetic girlfriend who *isn't* keen on giving the stones back. "Swan Song", the only story not featuring someone who's struggling, concerns a soprano with a fiendish 'temperament' and her final, definitive performance of _Tosca_.

"Magnolia Blossom" (March 1926) Theodora Darrell and Vincent Easton had fallen in love under the branches of the magnolia tree at her home in London, and now, 2 weeks later, she's prepared to run away with him to his home in the Transvaal - until she sees a newspaper account of the collapse of her husband's firm. She can't leave, today of all days. Then Richard Darrell (who hasn't got a clue) asks her to persuade a man into giving her the evidence of his own criminal conduct: Vincent Easton.

"The Golden Ball" (1934) Nothing to do with the fairy tale of the same name. George Dundas, like George Rowland (see above) has just been fired by his uncle, for taking an unscheduled day off in the middle of the week, and been read a lecture about 'seizing the golden ball of opportunity'. When he encounters society beauty Mary Montressor on the street outside the office, he's in a mood to take whatever adventure comes to him...

"Next to a Dog" - Joyce, left widowed by a beloved husband whose only flaw was that he gambled, is too proud to sponge, but can't take just any kind of job, because she's still got someone to care for: her beloved, half-blind old terrier, Terry, a gift from her late husband. Governesses and companions can't have such dogs; what can she do to keep their heads above water?

This is early Christie and definitely a product of its time. Much more personal than her regular mystery stories, these exude '20s style and mysticism. The first half of the book seems devoted to young people and adventure, with a great deal of attention to the recurring motif of the car representing freedom and the jewels imbuing their wearers with special traits.

In the second half, Christie delves deeper and deeper into the occult, going from Atlantis theories to reincarnation to "the gift" to metamorphosis to the ghostly sobbing of dead children. Even as I reject the pushiness of the occult aspects of these stories, I am thoroughly entertained by Christie's writing style. Her dialogue is simply enchanting, and even though I recognize the flaws in this collection, I find myself often drawn to re-reading it to escape into a whole different world.

Agatha Christie wrote some astonishing and superb mystery books -- this is not one of them.

Here we have a compendium of "Christie Crumbs," short pieces which never blossomed into larger mystery stories. Herein, you'll find elements of and thoughts from Christie's larger works but none of them seem to manifest into anything significant. A number of the endings just sort of hang you out, reminiscent of some of the stories that you might encounter in "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine," only not so entertaining as those great little, well-edited tales.

This book would be okay to take along for the morning bus ride or to the doctor's office. But unless you are a totally devoted Christie fan and must read everything that she wrote, I'd take a pass on this one and go with one of her more renowned works.

The fifteen stories gathered in "The Golden Ball" by Agatha Christie are far from her typical mystery stories. Rather they are tales about seeking adventure and finding romance, almost every non-mystery story summed up with a happy ending. Yet even with these more mundane stories, Christie managed to craft some unique twists into her traditional plot lines.

Some of the standouts of this collection are "The Lamp" which is the story of a woman unafraid to purchase a supposedly haunted house, until her young son speaks of seeing a lonely little boy looking for a playmate. Her fears come to a head when her son becomes ill and it seems as if nothing can be done for him. "The Strange Case of Sir Andrew Carmichael" is a doctor's recollection of a unique case of amnesia of sorts, where a young man has suddenly lost his memory and behaves in the strangest of manners. The doctor is convinced that Andrew's stepmother has something to do with his condition, as well as the ghostly gray cat he keeps hearing at night. "Jane in Search of a Job" is a delightful adventure romp through 1920s England and "Swan Song" lights up a darker side of the grudges that people can carry as an opera singer puts on a show no one will ever forget.

There are a few somewhat lackluster stories in the collection, ones that feel more like the Mary Westmacott side of Agatha Christie. Others that deal with strange supernatural beliefs seem a bit dated for our time. However, it is interesting to see the non-mystery side of Christie every once in a while, if only to prove that she was a first rate writer no matter the subject.

The short stories in this collections all follow the same theme - penniless but good natured girl/guy is cast out into the world by death of family/meanspirited uncle/society but manages to find good fortune in 10 pages or less. There are a couple diamonds in the rough here (title story is one), but this book is more for a Christie collector, not for a mystery reader.

Each of these short stories is gripping, leaping into unique times and places and situations with rapidity and color and few wasted words. I enjoyed every story in the collection, in spite of the occasionally semi-tiresome occult dabbling, and I retain only admiration for Agatha Christie as a writer. But, as I have written elsewhere, I do wonder what in the heck motivated her. To me I would find it extremely dull to be a mystery writer. Occasionally reading mystery, however, is a whole different thing. It's like being spoon-fed good chocolate; from time to time it's a good balm for the soul. Helps me relax. That doesn't mean I'd want to spoon-feed others, though. What led her to be so focused and obsessed. The mystery of Agatha Christie...

One wee criticism: I think the book would be well-served by adding a little italicized intro to each story. Tell what year it was written, where it was written, where it was first published, and any other little tidbits about it. Just a single paragraph. Give more context, flavor.

I thought I would love this, but like an earlier reviewer said, the supernatural mysteries were a bit disappointing. When I read a Christie mystery, I want to find out who did it in the end. When she writes the supernatural ones, the ending is left a bit unexplained, which I found aggravating. Also, some stories have a sad ending, which seems unusual compared with her other works.

Very good collection of stories. Lots of fun to read in short snippets.

"The Golden Ball and Other Stories" is a wonderful collection of stories by Dame Christie. Full of charm and written with twists reminiscent of O. Henry, this book is great for anyone who loves Christie's work or anyone who loves a well-crafted short story.

Some of Agatha's most insightful, penetrating writing. The varying tales run the gamut from hilarious, playful, romantic to downright spooky in places. Plus two of them in particular are heart breaking. (I won't reveal which ones.) A really nice addition to her heavy collection, these pieces will stick with you long after you put them down. And yes: one of them even brought me to tears. Here's strong evidence Christie was more than just a one note author. The stories could very well be classified as literary gems.