Agatha gets no respect?

This BBC article puzzled me as much as it did the reporter, I think. Agatha Christie’s a billion-copy seller so…how is she being ignored? But since it is Agatha Christie Week, I suppose her supporters need to flog this baby as much as they could:

on the 75th anniversary of one of her most famous
creations, Miss Marple, the Devon-born novelist and playwright, who
died in 1976, is being relaunched in the UK by Chorion, which owns her
brand and estate.

A week of Agatha Christie celebrations is under way with
a debate on her legacy at the British Library and a campaign to include
her on the national curriculum. New television and theatre adaptations
are in production.

But is this inflating the importance of what some
consider merely a good read? What can modern readers learn from a world
where an eccentric private detective unmasks a killer, in a genteel
society with a sinister underbelly?

They can be thrilled, challenged and educated, says
Tamsen Harward, crime business manager at Chorion. The aim of the
campaign, she says, is not to add to the two billion worldwide book
sales but to challenge misconceptions about her worth.

“How come this British woman, whose stories are
excellent at gripping the reader, motivating reluctant readers and
suitably challenging precocious readers, is not studied in the UK?” she
says.

But noted crime writer Robert Barnard thinks people might be taking this a bit far:

Christie may be a great writer but having her studied in schools is taking it too far, says crime writer Robert Barnard.

“I’m dubious about this. We have been fleeing from the
19th and early 20th Century texts in education. Christie is a fine
read. Read her when you’re 13 but then forget about her and read Great
Expectations. She doesn’t stretch them as far as language or
psychological complexity is concerned.”

A crime novel will never rival Rushdie or McEwan
because it doesn’t have the depth but Christie’s lack of artistry makes
the reader trust her like a newspaper report, he says. And the
“beautiful simplicity” of the characters means they are more easily
identifiable in other countries.

Whatever the case, there’s no denying her popularity and staying power, and if you’re around the UK, there are a ton of events celebrating her legacy all week.