To say Teresa Peschel loves Agatha Christie would be an understatement. The Hershey-based author spent almost three years watching every Christie film ever made - all 201 of them - and reviewing them and publishing a book called "Agatha Christie, She Watched: One Woman's Plot to Watch 201 Agatha Christie Movies Without Murdering the Director, Screenwriter, Cast, or Her Husband."

She and her husband, Bill, who, together own the publishing company Peschel Press, will discuss their labor of love at the Milanof-Schock Library, 1184 Anderson Ferry Road, Mount Joy, on Saturday, May 18, at 1 p.m.

As Teresa recalls, the project was not pre-planned. "In July of 2020, I brought home the DVD of 'Crooked House' from the library," she said. "We watched it and enjoyed it." She reviewed it, and Bill published it on the couple's book-focused website. A few weeks later, while working on annotations for "The Complete, Annotated Secret of Chimneys" by Christie, she investigated whether a film adaptation existed. It did, so they watched it as well. It was terrible, Teresa shared, but it prompted her to watch more films in the library's DVD collection.

"That's when Bill made the fateful statement, 'If we watch all the movies, you can review them, and I'll make your reviews into a book,'" Teresa said with a laugh.

At the library, Teresa will discuss Agatha Christie's two most famous detectives, Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, and how they're portrayed on film. "I have 13 Poirots and seven Miss Marples in all," she commented. "I illustrate each detective with a film clip so you can see the variety of actors and actresses portraying them."

Teresa's literary accomplishment is so impressive that she was invited to participate in the International Agatha Christie Festival in England this fall. "I was invited because I'm the only person to watch every Agatha Christie film and review them, publishing my reviews online and in book form," she said. "I've been invited to numerous podcasts, which helped bring me to their attention. ... Bill will come along with me because I can't do it without him."

Teresa said she loves Agatha Christie because the author is so versatile. "She is very readable. She offers dozens of entry points for any reader. She writes far more widely than most people realize. She can be quite funny in a sly, dry manner," she said. "She'll fool you completely, and she makes it look easy."

When she's not writing (or reviewing films), Teresa enjoys gardening and spending time with Bill, their three children and their four rescued cats. She also writes science fiction romances under the pen name Odessa Moon. "I want people to know that I didn't start writing until I was about age 53," she said. "I'm 64 now. It's never too late."

Stephanie Funk, operations coordinator for the library, said Teresa and Bill have spoken at the library in the past, and both are very entertaining speakers. "They're engaging and passionate about what they are sharing," she stated. "If you're an Agatha Christie fan or are just dipping your toes into the extensive Agatha Christie world, you'll want to come to this program."

To register for this event, visit https://mslibrary.org. For more information on the Peschels, visit https://peschelpress.com.