Mary Roberts Rinehart 
A Poor Wise Man 

Mary Roberts Rinehart was a prolific writer that is often referred to as the American Agatha Christie.  Rinehart’s mystery novels are still treasured by millions of readers today and she is the source of the famous phrase ‘The butler did it.’  Rinehart’s most famous books include The Circular Staircase, The Bat, The Case of Jennie Brice, and The Door.










A Poor Wise Man, published in 1920, is a novel set in Pennsylvania after the Armistice of 1918.  The book centers around the young heiress Lily Cardew who returns home after World War II.