Poirot tells of the case where his reward was shares in a mine in Burma. Not one of the best Poirot short stories. ( )

This early Hercule Poirot story was first published in the UK (The Sketch magazine) on November 21, 1923. Publication in the US followed in The Blue Book magazine in April 1925.

Poirot relates to Captain Hastings how a murder investigation earned him 14,000 shares in a mine in Burma. Poirot uses the story to not only toot his own horn about his fabulous grey cells...but also to caution Hastings about speculative investments.

I enjoyed this story. Not only was it an interesting short mystery, but it gave some cute insight into Poirot's personality. His bank balance is.... 444 pounds, four, and fourpence. Symmetrical. :) I love reading stories about Poirot's investigations, but I think if I ever met anybody so strangely fastidious I would dislike them immensely. :)

Agatha Christie's Poirot adapted this story for television (Season 2, episode 4). Some major changes were made to the characters, but the basic plot follows the original story. David Suchet does a wonderful job playing Poirot as usual. I think Agatha Christie would have enjoyed his portrayal of her detective....he really seems to fit her descriptions.

I'm enjoying reading all of these early Poirot short stories. For some reason, I always concentrated on Christie's novels, and never read any of her shorter mysteries. Fun to read them now! Always fun to discover a new story by a favorite author!

On to the next story: The Cornish Mystery! ( )