Product Description

Andrew Eames, an adventurous, insightful and sympathetic observer, sets out to travel from London to Baghdad by train, following the route of the old Orient Express and an identical journey made by Agatha Christie in 1928. Agatha's journey was to change her life completely and led to her spending thirty seasons on archaeological digs in the deserts of Syria and Iraq. Eames' own journey reveals fascinating details of this little known but exotic chapter in the life of the world's most widely read author. The journey from London to Baghdad by train today is actually far harder than it was in Agatha's day. Many of the countries Eames passes through, from the Balkans to the Middle East, have been deeply troubled in recent years. Eventually he arrives at the Iraqi border at the same time as the UN weapons inspectors. As the book approaches its final destination the shadow of war looms increasingly large. A compelling read, merging literary biography with travel adventure, The 8.55 to Baghdad is the journey of a lifetime...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #26332 in Books
• Published on: 2005-06-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 289 pages

Review
" 'If there ever was a lesson in how to construct a travel book, this is it. Eames has the acute eye and polished pen of an outstanding observer... Eames came up with an idea to die for and in an air raid nearly did. It is good that he didn't, for this is a splendid read' - The Daily Telegraph 'Two terrific subjects...the surprisingly adventurous life of Agatha Christie and the major hotspots of current world politics' - Daily Mail 'Vivid and atmospheric...Eames has succeeded in the difficult task of closing an entertaining travel narrative with the brutal conclusions of modern history' - Independent 'A thoroughly enjoyable read that combines an Agatha-centric travelogue with a thought-provoking journey through a benighted land' - Geographical Magazine"

The Independent, 9 July 2004
Eames' journey becomes absorbing in its own right... He gives vivid and atmospheric accounts.

Geographical Magazine, August 2004
The 8.55 to Baghdad is a thoroughly enjoyable read... a thought-provoking journey through a benighted land.

Customer Reviews

A fantastic journey
This book is really two stories; Agatha Christie's life-changing journery to Iraq, and a modern-day odyssey through some of the world's most talked-about troublespots. Andrew Eames writes with great style and compassion about the many characters that he meets en route, as he traces Agatha Christie's footsteps (or rather railway lines) across Europe to the Middle East. It certainly brings into perspective the news that we hear everyday about the Balkans or Iraq, and shows that people are just people, wherever they are. Every politician should be required to read this.

Christie and the Orient Express
After her marriage broke up, Agatha Christie made a trip to Iraq to see some archeologist friends, taking the Orient Express most of the way. For a single woman to make that trip on her own in the 1920s was adventurous and fairly unusual. At the end of her journey she met her second husband, Max Mallowan, an archeologist. Almost 80 years later, Eames retraces her journey from England through Western Europe, the Balkans, Turkey and the Middle East, staying--whenever he could--in the hotels she stayed in. When Christie travelled to Iraq, it was still a protectorate of the English. When Eames made his journey, the US was threatening to bomb Iraq and the Balkans had been through a vicious war. It's a fascinating travelogue, full of contrasts and links between the past and the present, which Eames weaves seamlessly together.

Not just about Agatha
Someone gave me this book, and I didnt expect to like it because i'm not a fan of Agatha christie. But actually there's a lot of great stuff in here and all the Christie bits are a bit of an excuse, really. I now understand the whole Yugoslavia disintegration - well I think I do. And Iraq in the last months before war sounds so different to what we hear about at the moment.