by Agatha Christie
I'm way behind on #ReadChristie2026. I'm currently still working on May's assignment, The Labors of Hercules, a series of short stories where Hercule Poirot accepts cases based on the Greek legend. Here are the introduction and first three cases:
Introduction:
Dr. Burton expresses surprise that Hercule Poirot has not spent time studying classic literature and the discussion prompts Poirot to dive into Greek mythology. He isn't impressed, but it does give him the idea to devote the rest of his career to cases that correspond symbolically to the actual Labours of Hercules.
1. "The Nemean Lion"
Hercules: Tasked with and succeeded in slaying a lion in spite of it having fur that was impervious to arrows.
Poirot: Sir Joseph Hoggin asks Poirot to look into the case of his wife's stolen Pekingese (Pekinese in the story) dog. The dog has been returned safely after a two hundred pound ransom had been paid, but Hoggin is angry at the fact that his wife paid it without consulting him and he wants his money back. Poirot discovers that this dog isn't the only stolen and ransomed Pekinese.
This is one of the cleverest short stories I've ever read. There's actually two cases at the end and the way Christie sprinkled clues and red herrings throughout was so not obvious, but when Poirot solves the case everything falls into place perfectly. It's a master class on how to do that. There's a reason she's referred to as the queen of mystery. There was an extra twist at the end that was just brilliant. This story was a great start to the series.
Symbolic relationship: One of the characters refers to the breed's origin myth, "...according to the legend, Pekinese were lions once. And they still have the hearts of lions!" Apparently during Christie's time period the Peke was a favorite of rich women, which makes them potential targets for ransom.
2. "The Lernean Hydra" (Lernaean in the myth)
Hercules: Tasked with slaying the multi-headed Hydra, a task complicated by the fact that every time he cuts off a head, two new heads grow back.
Poirot: A year earlier and after some years as an invalid, Dr. Charles Oldfield's wife passed away, since then he has been beset by local gossip that he poisoned his wife. He feels helpless to refute the rumors due to the sheer volume and being outnumbered. He also doesn't think the police can't help him and so approaches Poirot as a last resort.
Poirot believes a jealous woman is involved and Dr. Oldfield finally admits that his relationship with his demanding invalid wife had been strained, and also to being romantically involved with his much younger pharmaceutical dispenser, Jean Moncrieffe. And while the guilty party was telegraphed a little more than usual for Christie, it was still, as always, fascinating to see how Poirot finally identified the murderer, and how he exploited the very town gossips that plagued Dr. Oldfield to solve the case.
Symbolic relationship: As Poirot describes it, "Rumour is indeed the nine-headed Hydra of Lernea which cannot be exterminated because as fast as one head is chopped off, two grow in its place." Poirot solved the dilemma by explaining, "...my task, like that of my namesake Hercules, was to reach the first - the original head." In other words, "Who had started the rumour?"
3. "The Arcadian Deer" (Ceryneian Hind in the myth)
Hercules: Tasked with capturing the Ceryneian Hind, a stag-like creature sporting golden horns that is so swift of foot it can outrun arrows shot at it. Hercules captures it alive by throwing a net over it as it sleeps. After he presents it to King Eurystheus (who gave him with the task in the hopes it would cause him to run afould of the goddess Artemis), Hercules thwarts the king by returning the beast to Artemis rather than letting him keep it for himself, angering the king and pacifying the goddess.
Poirot: Hercules Poirot's car breaks down in a small country village, where the handsome young mechanic who is repairing the car requests the great detective's help in finding the lady's maid of a Russian ballerina who was visiting a local estate, but who mysteriously disappeared seemingly without a trace.
The young mechanic, Ted Williamson, is described as, "...one of the handsomest specimens of humanity he (Poirot) had ever seen, a simple young man with the outward semblance of a Greek god." And this sweet, simple young man is desperately in love with the young lady's maid, in spite of only meeting her a couple of times. He doesn't even know her last name, just her first: Nita. Poirot takes pity on Ted and goes above and beyond the call of duty to track down the missing girl. When he does, we learn that Nita was no lady's maid, but someone putting on a performance.
Symbolic relationship: The obvious tie of Ted being described as a Greek god. Poirot having once seen the ballerina dance the role of a hunted hind. Nita's golden hair being described as flipping up on each side of her face "like wings" (the Hind's golden horns). At the end there is also the hope that "Nita" might return to Ted as the Ceryneian Hind was returned to Artemis, with Poirot suggesting, "And why should you not be the wife of a garage hand in a country village? And have children as beautiful as gods, and with feet, perhaps, that will dance as you once danced."
I have to say that although (at least so far) these stories have been pretty short, quick reads, Christie packs an amazing amount of information and red herrings in them. This is really the first time I've read her short stories and in addition to her amazing novels, she was also a gifted short story author. The woman really could do it all. Looking forward to the next batch of Poirot's labors.
