> Which author's books have sold two billion copies, including some under thepseudonym Mary Westmacott?And the answer: Agatha Christie.Photo credit: Biography.comBorn in 1890, English author Agatha Christie is bestknown for her 78 crime novels, including Murder on the Orient Express. She alsowrote 19 plays and six romance novels. She holds the Guinness World Record forthe best-selling author for fiction, having sold a billion copies of her novelsin English and a billion in translation.Agatha Christie was one of the most prolific, celebrated authors of her time. Asthe only crime novelist to achieve equal and international fame as a dramatist,Christie enjoyed great success throughout her life that she dedicated to mysteryand crime novels. From a young age, Christie was attracted to writing. In her early years,Christie was educated at home by her mother and a succession of governessesrather than attending school. It was there that her sister and mother instilledin young Christie the need to create. However, her career began with a quickstint into the studies of music and performance – an endeavor that ultimatelywas unable to get off the ground due to her intense stage fright. Turning to writing, Christie experienced many setbacks on her path to success.The young author received six rejection letters before one publisher, finally,admitted her story The Mysterious Affair at Styles to print. This publicationintroduced the world to one of Christie's most famous characters: HerculePoirot.1926 marked a turning point for the author. Following the death of her mother,Christie's husband announced his desire for divorce, as he was having an affairwith a younger woman. Overwhelmed with the plethora of news, Christiedisappeared. Christie was later discovered to be hiding out in the Swan Hotelunder the name of her husband's mistress. Afterward, Christie never spoke of herdisappearance. While the second World War raged, Christie signed up to work as a pharmacist ata hospital in London. Interestingly, this short-lived career benefited herwriting greatly: Christie was able to learn about potentially legal poisons,many of which were present in later works. Christie later remarried an anthropologist who took her along on worldlytravels. These excursions inspired many of her future novels, most notably Murder on the Orient Express. Learn more about the famed author and playwright here[https://www.agathachristie.com/about-christie#christies-life].