10 Modern Retellings of Classical Lore You Should Explore — theculturetrip.com

A short story collection starring Christie’s infamous detective Hercule Poirot, the collection is a light and exuberant tribute to Poirot’s namesake, Hercules. Here, her vertically-challenged detective indulges in the egomaniacal whim of retiring once he has taken on twelve cases that are comparable to the twelve his namesake underwent as penance. Though the links between the tasks themselves and the cases are occasionally tenuous (as with the first case, The Nemean Lion), there are some truly clever twists within (with notable favourites being The Cretan Bull and The Stymphalean Birds), which have a surprisingly modern attitude that warns against prejudices, rapaciousness, and revenge. Its quirkiness and its clever adaption of the ancient into the modern make it exciting and well worth reading.

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