Background

Rex Stout has been translated and published in most major languages in the world.

  • In 1972 the count of Nero Wolfe books published in foreign languages was 25: view Rex Stout's own typed list of foreign printings of Wolfe.
  • In 2018 the count of Nero Wolfe books published in foreign countries was 19: view the list of countries with Wolfe titles
    Cover scans of foreign printings, most of which have been sent to us by fans, are located on the page of the original American title. Thus, the cover art page for And Be A Villain contains images for a variety of foreign printings, including the British title, More Deaths than One.

Russian Printings of Two Wolfe Books

Russian Wolfe Book

From a Wolfe Pack Discussion Group:
Translations of some French titles

Ici, Radio New-York = And Be a Villain

Un Roman a Tue = Murder by the Book

Ca Arrive Dans les Meilleurs Familles  =  In the Best Families

Trois Femmes et un Homme  =  Prisoner's Base

La Voix du Mort =  The Silent Speaker

Double Piege =  Not Quite Dead Enough

Les Compagnons de la Peur =  The League of Frightened Men
La Cassette Rouge =  The Red Box

Dans la Plus Stricte Intimite =  contains  "Omit Flowers" from Three Doors to Death and "Instead of Evidence" from Trouble in Triplicate.

The French version turns  the two separate stories into one continuous whole.

FOR YOUR AMUSEMENT: The probable literal translation of some French titles:

1. ICI, RADIO NEW-YORK = Welcome to the Howard Stern Show, or icky NY radio

2. LES COMPAGNONS DE LA PEUR = The Mushrooms of the Poor

3. LA CASSETTE ROUGE = The Red-Tape Player

4. DOUBLE PIEGE = Two Pages (of Trouble)

5. LA VOIX DU MORT = The Devil Made Me Say It

6. LA SECONDE CONFESSION = (If I Told You Once,) I've Told You Twice

7. CA ARRIVE DANS LES MEILLEURES FAMILLES = That Darn Dan Arrived with the Miller's Family

8. UN ROMAN A TUE = If This Is Rome, It Must Be Tuesday

9. TROIS FEMME ET UN HOMME = The distaff version of "Three Men and a Baby"

10. DANS LA PLUS STRICTE INTIMITE = Strictly Intimate but only with Dan