#1962Club: Gambit by Rex Stout

 

Rex Stout wrote 33 novels and 41 novellas about the private detective Nero Wolfe and his assistant, Archie Goodwin. The novellas were published in 14 books; each book has two, three or four novellas.  The books are narrated by Archie. The series began in 1934 and the last book in the series, A Family Affair, was published in 1975, shortly before Stout's death. Over the forty plus years in which this series was published, the protagonists did not age at all, but they were always placed within the context of the time that the book was written. 

I read Gambit for the 1962 Club hosted by Simon at Stuck in a Book and Karen at Kaggsy's Bookish Ramblings. This is a reread. I have read all of the books in the Nero Wolfe series multiple times. 

A man has been murdered at a chess club, during a special event. Paul Jerin, a chess maven, was playing chess games against multiple players at the same time. The men playing against him were in one room and he was in a room by himself. Matthew Blount arranged the event, and four men, friends of his, were messengers supplying each opponent's moves to Jerin. Shortly after the event begins, Jerin begins feeling ill. Soon he is taken to the hospital and ultimately he dies of poisoning. Blount, an important business man, is arrested for the crime because all the evidence points towards him. 

Sally Blount, 22-year-old daughter of the accused man, hires Wolfe to clear him because she doesn't believe that his lawyer can do the job. She has to scrape together her own money to hire Wolfe because her family doesn't want Wolfe involved.

The Nero Wolfe series is fun to read because Wolfe has so many quirks. He hates to leave his home, thus he needs Archie Goodwin to do the legwork for him. He has a strict routine every day, including four hours each day (9am-11am) and (4pm-6pm) in his plant rooms on the top floor of his brownstone caring for his orchids. He never discusses business when eating. And eating and good food are very important to him. He has a cook (who also keeps the house clean) and a full-time expert in charge of the orchids. But his biggest quirk is that he does not like to work and only takes a case when he needs the money. Part of Archie's job is to prod him into accepting cases and make sure they keep an adequate balance in the bank to live on and pay his employees.

However, this book has one of the most straightforward plots of the 33 novels that Rex Stout wrote. Less of the quirks are evident or emphasized. The plotting is intricate and the mystery is especially challenging.

One of the many things I love about the Nero Wolfe novels is the beginnings. Usually the first paragraph or two provides a very good introduction. In this case, Wolfe is burning a dictionary in the front room; a prospective client (with an appointment) shows up but Wolfe doesn't want to be interrupted. He is burning the dictionary because he strongly objects to some of the definitions. The dictionary being burned is Webster's New International Dictionary, Unabridged (Third Edition), published in 1961. This third edition did cause some controversy when it first appeared, so I guess that Stout was commenting on that. I am sure that I was a bit dismayed by the thought of burning a book even when I first read the book in my teens or twenties, but Wolfe explains to Archie that he is allowed to burn his own personal copy.

There are often literary references in the books. In most of the Nero Wolfe novels, Wolfe is reading a book, usually a recently published book. In this book it is African Genesis by Robert Ardrey, published in 1961. I remember reading that book, but I probably read it in the early 70s. Because Sally stays in an extra room at Wolfe's brownstone for a few days due to friction with her family, Wolfe allows Sally to read any book off his shelves, and she picks a book by Voltaire. Twice, during a meal, Wolfe and Sally discuss topics involving Voltaire, his writing and his life. 

All in all, Gambit by Rex Stout was an exceptionally good read, as I expected. It is entertaining, and funny at times, but towards the end it gets darker as Wolfe and Archie close in on the murderer. Even knowing who did it, I did not remember how Wolfe fulfills his mission to clear Matthew Blount. And I have only scratched the surface of this plot, even though the book is short, around 150 pages.