I love the Golden Age of detective fiction. Wikipedia tells me it was the era of murder mystery novels written between 1920 and 1940, with the Second World War bringing an end to the lighthearted whodunnit. While writers may not be writing them as much, and publishers aren’t buying them as much, I’m thankful that it was such a prolific time in literary history.
The books go fast, and there’s still more than I can read in a lifetime.
While the British authors, like Dorothy Sayers, are wonderful, it’s the Americans who attract me most. S.S. Van Dine, Ellery Queen, Erle Stanley Gardner, Raymond Chandler, and of course Rex Stout, have huge bibliographies to which I return again and again. Stout is a particular favorite, as he didn’t let a world war spoil his fun. While society, technology, and times changed, his detective duo never aged.
Nero Wolfe resists change, and even time submits to his indomitable character.
The novels were written between 1934 and 1975, which was an era of major upheaval, yet the routine in the old brownstone on West 35th street remained more or less unaffected. So the 44th novel, Death of a Dude (1969), is unique for several reasons. It’s a little more of its time, with some acknowledgment of late 60’s turmoil, which was a sour note for me. Fortunately, it was only scene dressing and not part of the plot.
Speaking of the plot…
That too is unusual, as the story takes place entirely away from Wolfe’s domain, and I don’t just mean the brownstone. The story opens with Archie on a Montana vacation that’s just been spoiled by a murder. The primary suspect is something of a friend-of-a-friend, and the local law isn’t interested in looking any further, so Archie writes Wolfe to say he’ll be late coming home. This, of course, is intolerable. To everyone’s shock (and the readers’ delight), Wolfe gets on a plane.
“The mountain,” Archie’s ladyfriend Lily Rowan observes, “has come to Mohammad.”
Not only has Wolfe abandoned his domicile and strict routine, but he’s also forced into a culture where handshakes are required and the food is far from gourmet. But with 15 potential murderers to vet, there’s no way he can conduct an investigation from his yellow armchair. While he’d never admit it, there’s every indication that he finds some pleasure in this “working vacation.”
Author Rex Stout is also forced to try new things.
Since the novels are written in first person from Archie’s point of view and Wolfe often prefers to keep in him the dark, Stout often has Archie pursue wild geese or get tangled up with the cops. But this story requires a little more than that in order to be true to the western setting. This time, Archie ends up in the local jail for an entire weekend and Wolfe is forced to rely on what he can control.
Of course, it all works out in the end.
One of the things I appreciate most about murder mysteries, and especially the Wolfe stories, is the sense of stability. There may be chaos outside my door in or my Twitter feed, but for a few hours I can step into Rex Stout’s well-drawn world. There’s the peace that comes with rhythm. Every fan knows Wolfe’s rules and routine, and if we could we would make them our own. Yet for there to be a story there must be conflict. Murder is one of the greatest offenses to the social order and chaos usually erupts in Wolfe’s office at some point, but these things will be brought to bear.
What happens when we take Wolfe away from his home?
It’s a testament to Stout’s skill that he still maintains the sense of calm throughout the story. There are long descriptions of meals (maybe that’s the true reason why I love these books so much). Archie gets plenty angry, but never worried. Wolfe maintains his dignity in the midst of numerous affronts, which is a lesson to us all. Even everyone, characters, audience, and author, are removed from the status quo, we can all remain true to ourselves.
Death of a Dude is great fun for the familiar fans.
If you’ve never read a Nero Wolfe mystery, I wouldn’t start here. I think the first one I read was The Silent Speaker, which seems like as good a place as any to dive in. The first novel, Fer-de-Lance, features characters that aren’t quite fully formed, and Wolfe, well, he isn’t quite himself. But if you’re looking for a soothing, light, distinctly American murder mystery series, you really can’t do much better.
