Wolfe periodically employs Saul Panzer, an independent PI and several others to assist Archie with the leg work. Wolfe wants to save Archie for the most important parts of the investigation.
One of the truly brilliant skills of Rex Stout's writing is that his formula appears fresh with each new book. This is also a series that you do not need to read from front to back. You can read them in any order and with the exception of a very few references which date the works, they could all be set in 1998 and with very few exceptions, no book refers ro any other book.
Wolfe enjoys beer as much as he enjoys his food. He keeps track of the number of bottles he has consumed each day by keeping the bottle caps in his desk drawer. Although Wolfe would allow Archie to join in the beer drinking, Archie prefers milk. When Wolfe rings Fritz for beer, he also brings a glass of milk for Archie.
The majority of the action takes place on the first floor of the house which contains the kitchen, dining room, front room (where those awaiting an audience with Wolfe cool their heels) and the office. The office contains two desks - one for Wolfe, and one for Archie, as well as a red chair and a yellow couch. Wolfe appears not to be as obsessive about his interior decorating as he is about his food and the orchids. There is also an elevator used exclusively by Wolfe to travel from floor to floor because his monumental girth could not take the strain of the stairs.
