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Thirteen for Luck! A Selection of Mystery Stories for Young Readers (as printed, 13 for Luck!) is a short story collection published by Dodd, Mead and Company in the US in 1961 probably around September.[1] Collins published the title in the UK in 1966 but with slightly different content. It appears care was exercised to ensure that only those stories which had already been published in a collection for that particular market were included.

Content comparison (Dodd Mead 1961 vs Collins 1966)[]

Dodd Mead 1961 Original Collection (US) Collins 1966 Original Collection (UK)
The Veiled Lady Poirot Investigates, US edition only -- --
The Nemean Lion The Labours of Hercules The Nemean Lion The Labours of Hercules
The Girdle of Hippolyta The Labours of Hercules The Girdle of Hippolyta The Labours of Hercules
The Market Basing Mystery The Under Dog and Other Stories The Market Basing Mystery Not previously anthologised
Tape-Measure Murder Three Blind Mice and Other Stories -- --
The Blue Geranium The Thirteen Problems The Blue Geranium The Thirteen Problems
The Four Suspects The Thirteen Problems The Four Suspects The Thirteen Problems
-- -- Greenshaw's Folly The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding and a Selection of Entrées
The Face of Helen The Mysterious Mr. Quin The Face of Helen The Mysterious Mr. Quin
The Bird with the Broken Wing The Mysterious Mr. Quin The Bird with the Broken Wing The Mysterious Mr. Quin
The Regatta Mystery The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories -- --
Problem at Pollensa Bay The Regatta Mystery and Other Stories -- --
The Unbreakable Alibi Partners in Crime The Unbreakable Alibi Partners in Crime
-- -- The Witness for the Prosecution The Hound of Death and Other Stories
-- -- Where There's a Will The Hound of Death and Other Stories
-- -- The Mystery of the Spanish Shawl The Listerdale Mystery (short story collection)
Accident The Witness for the Prosecution and Other Stories Accident The Listerdale Mystery (short story collection)

Veiled Lady and Problem at Pollensa Bay (and also a version of Regatta Mystery had previously appeared in a collection in the UK but only in the rare and small print run Poirot Lends a Hand. J. C. Bernthal suggests that perhaps Christie or Edmund Cork had forgotten about this. In any case, it was a small run edition not by Collins.[2] Perhaps Christie wanted to reserve these stories for a hardbound collection. Market Basing had not been anthologized in the UK before and yet it appeared in the UK version. Bernthal suggests that this might have been an oversight.[3]

References[]

  1. The earliest Amercian newspaper reviews show up around 3 Sep 1961
  2. J. C. Bernthal, Agatha Christie: A Companion to the Mystery Fiction (Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2022), 908, ebook edition.
  3. J. C. Bernthal, Agatha Christie: A Companion to the Mystery Fiction (Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2022), 907-908, ebook edition.
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