I'd never read any of the Nero Wolfe mysteries before this book, but had enjoyed the A&E TV series based on them. After reading this book (which includes three stories, each in the 50-60 page range) the biggest thing that comes across is how dead perfect the casting of the three major characters (Wolfe, Goodwin, Cramer) was in the TV show. They just nailed it.

As for the stories, while they will never be mistaken for classic literature they're fun (if formulaic) "hard-boiled" detective stories with distinctive characters and a good deal of humor. I'm looking forward to reading more of Stout's Nero Wolfe stories.