Poirot Huge

Here are some more information for Poirot Huge:

I love reading Mysteries. They are written puzzles, searching through mazes to find the clues, assembling a full picture and discovering Who Did It!

Mysteries, in one form or another, have been around since the time of the Ancient Greeks. As long as people are curious - mysteries will be with us. The First Published Mystery was written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1841 and to this day has remained one of his finest works "The Murders In The Rue Morgue". His main character was C. Auguste Dupin, who would appear in two other Poe works "The Mystery of Marie Roget" (1842) and "The Purloined Letter" (1844). At that time the term "Detective" had not been used and therefore Dupin was the First Detective. It has been suggested that Dupin could imply "duping" or "deception".

With the creation of "The Murders in the Rue Morgue", other Authors became inspired to write books of this genre. One of the most famous authors being Sir Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes.

The 1920s ushered in such remarkable works as Agatha Christie's Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot. These books have been in print and enjoyed by millions ever since. The 20s also introduced the Nancy Drew series, The Hardy Boys and Ellery Queen. This was the beginning of the first Radio shows based on detectives.

In the 1950s, mysteries had become so popular, that shows were created for television. Two of the most famous being Perry Mason and Alfred Hitchcock. During World War II, Hollywood created Film Noir. Short, dark movies loaded with dark corners and shadows. To this day, these films have a huge following.

Mysteries usually fell into two categories: Open and Closed.

An "Open" mystery is a story that shows the crime being committed. You know who did it and the reader follows the lead character as he or she unravels the chain of events to catch the villain. The Television series Columbo was an Open mystery.

A "Closed" mystery is probably the more popular and most chosen style of writing. Quite simply - Whodunits. You must read on to the end to discover who committed the crime.

Authors, today, are continually reinventing the mystery. Adding various slants to add more depth and suspense to their novels. Well known author Susan R. Sloan wrote an in depth mystery "Isolated Incident". The slant is the psychology of her characters. None of which are particularly likable people. Read more about Isolated Incident on my blog. You might just want to read on!

The History of the Mystery Book To learn more about the author please visit http://books.ellenthorp.com/ Find Book Reviews and Featured Books. If you are Interested in Good Quality Remainder books, please visit http://books.ellenthorp.com/1/remainder-books/

To Your Success, Ellen Thorp

Ton Top Kids' Board Games

Article from: My Family UK

Board games are fun for all the family and a perfect way to spend a television-free afternoon. Plus, the kids will be ecstatic if they triumph over Mum and Dad, so encourage some competitive spirit with one of our top ten.

1) Snakes and Ladders

2 or more players; ages 3+

In the original Indian version of the game, the snakes and ladders had moral overtones representing vices and virtues that would bring you down or lead you to success. Nowadays, they are entertaining ways to race to the end of the board.

2) Mouse Trap

2-4 players; ages 3+

This game has been popular with kids since the first version came out in 1963. To win, players must build an elaborate mousetrap to trap their opponents’ mice.

3) Ludo

2-4 players; ges 4+

The winner is the first to get all their counters round the board, and back 'home'. Based on the more complex Indian game Pachisi, Ludo means “I play” in Latin.

4) Hungry Hippos

2-4 players; ages 4+

Players use hippos around the edge of a board to 'eat' as many marbles as they can. Whoever eats the most, when all are gone, is the winner. Hungry Hippos appear to have become less hungry over time – from eating all those marbles, presumably – as the game was originally called Hungry Hungry Hippos when it was introduced in 1978.

5) Monopoly

2-8 players; ages 8+

Players compete to become the richest property magnates in the game, buying and selling property, building houses, avoiding jail and collecting chance and community chest cards. Monopoly is the best-selling board game in the world and is available in 103 countries.

6) Pictionary

4 or more players; ages 8+

Leading to much hilarity – and often much cheating – players need to guess the word their teammate is attempting to draw within a time limit. They can then throw the die and try to reach the end of the board first.

7) Cluedo

2 or 3-6 players; ages 8+

For the budding Poirots and Miss Marples among us. Players collect clues and try to work out which of the characters is the murderer.

Scrabble

2-4 players; ages 8+

Over 100 million sets of Scrabble have been sold in 29 different languages, making this, the most popular word game around. Players score points by using letter tiles to make words on the board.

9) Risk

2-6 players; ages 10+

The original version of Risk was invented by the French film director, Albert Lamorisse, in 1957. Since then, millions have competed to defeat their opponents’ armies on the board, and take over the world.

10) Cranium

4 or more players; ages 12+

Combining elements of other well-known games, teams compete to get round the board first, completing a variety of tasks involving language, trivia, artistic and performance skills. After it was released in 1997, Cranium became the fastest-selling independent board game in history.

Further Information

For further information, and for more great ways to have fun with your family, log on to www.myfamilyuk.com. With a huge collection of articles covering everything from child safety to rainy day activities, you'll find all the help, guidance and entertainment you need to be a great parent. Go now!

About the Author

My Family UK is a brand new website that is turning the online focus back onto families. We're dedicated to supporting you and your family live the life you choose to the full, with games, tips, offers and articles on all aspects of parenting. If your family means the world to you, check out www.myfamilyuk.com.

Why would you want to move to the UK?

Wondering why there are so many Americans wanting to move to the UK (particularly England), I know part of the attraction is probably that we speak the same language (well nearly) but having lived in both countries I find it hard to understand why "lamb shanks" would want to move from a huge country with seemingly endless opportunities, to a overcrowded, cold, damp, grey little island like ours. Are they influenced by programs they see on TV, the likes of Miss Marple, Poirot and films like Love Actually, Bridget Jones etc, people and their lives are not like that.
FT, The question was not a moan about life in the UK as such but more of a question about why Americans would WANT to come over here when there's so much on offer over there and is their judgment influenced by what they see/hear in films/TV etc.
BTW, I have live in other countries besides England/USA, also lived in Malta, Singapore and Iran.

The U.K. has beautiful countryside, BBC Radio, excellent public transport not withstanding Brits habit of complaining about it, so you can live almost anywhere without a car. Our big cities have an abundance of theatre, music venues and art galleries and museums

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