About: The President Vanishes

The President Vanishes is a political novel by Rex Stout that was published in 1934. It was written after, but published before, Fer-de-Lance, the first Nero Wolfe novel. "The President Vanishes was published anonymously," wrote Stout's authorized biographer John McAleer. "Rex had recalled the widespread speculative curiosity anonymity had engendered when, in 1880, Henry Adams concealed his authorship of Democracy (the prototypical novel in that genre which probes the Washington scene) and wanted to see what it would do for his book. As he had hoped, rumor circulated that the book was a roman a clef written by someone high in the nation's counsels. Sales were good. ... Not until 1939, when he began to take an active role in national affairs, did Rex acknowledge The President Vanishes as hi