Nero Wolfe’s New York, the Brownstone Detectives (In-person)

Nero Wolfe’s New York, the Brownstone Detectives (In-person)

Spring (9 - 13 hours) | Available (Membership Required)

One Court Street Lebanon, NH 03766 United States
Room 2A-2nd Flr-Sute 250
4/7/2025-5/5/2025
9:30 AM-11:30 AM EST on Mon
Download iCalendar
$70.00

Nero Wolfe’s New York, the Brownstone Detectives (In-person)

Spring (9 - 13 hours) | Available (Membership Required)

Detective fiction is fun, intriguing, and satisfying. It’s fun because you get to know some unusual characters, such as Archie Goodwin. You will be intrigued as you exercise your observation and reasoning skills to anticipate the detective’s solution. At the end, a good detective story is satisfying. If the author has done their job well, you finish the story with a feeling that the world has been restored to a calm and safe equilibrium.

In this course, we will read and discuss a selection of detective stories and essays from the English-speaking world. The focus will be on the Nero Wolfe canon written by Rex Stout in the years 1935 to 1969. We will use a selection of the Wolfe stories, a couple early post WWI stories, and an essay to learn about the evolution of the detective story and American culture in that era.

We will read and discuss two novels, three novellas, two short stories, and an essay. I expect everyone to share his or her reactions to the readings. It would be helpful to also have some familiarity with classic detectives such as Sherlock Holmes, Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, and Lord Peter Wimsey.

This course will consist of discussions among the Study Leader and participants.


  • Required Books:

    • Death Times Three - Rex Stout (ISBN-13: 978-0553763058)
    • And Be a Villain - Rex Stout (ISBN-13: 978-0553239317)
    • The Doorbell Rang - Rex Stout (ISBN-13: 978-0553237214)

     

    Study Leader will provide additional reading materials online.


Angwin, George
George Angwin

George Angwin earned a PhD in mathematics from the University of Chicago. He has been an electronics technician on a US Navy destroyer, college mathematics professor, and, for most of his career, a Silicon Valley engineer. He now handles editing, publishing, distribution, and collecting royalties for his wife’s books. George also likes to learn about new things, his most recent inquiries are bitcoin (and thus money) and killer sudoku puzzles.