Epoch Booklist: Recommended Reading for Jan. 6–12

This week, we feature a close look at how species are named, a legendary (fictional) detective’s first case, and the brilliant history of a World War II code.

Fiction

Nero Wolfe Begins

‘Fer-de-Lance’ By Rex Stout

There’s so much pleasure that comes from experiencing a detective’s first case. This is what you get with “Fer-de-Lance,” a story involving a deadly snake—the first case in the successful Nero Wolfe series that set the standard for the famous armchair detective.