by David A. Jasen ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 15, 1974
A most judicious and tasteful tribute to the genius of P.G. (""Plum"") Wodehouse, among the most gifted and diligent craftsmen ever in the field of popular humor. With a chivalrous delicacy paralleling his subject's own gentle ""a-worldly neutrality,"" Jasen never pokes around for chinks in Plum's walled private garden. Instead he settles on the truly essential Wodehouse -- with generous use of letters to and from Plum and friends, scattered interviews and a beautifully balanced chronology of that infinite magnitude of novels, articles, stories, theater books and song lyrics. ""From my earliest years,"" said Wodehouse, ""I always wanted to be a writer. . . I knew I was good."" Beginning with pleasant public-school years in England, through early proliferation in the magazines' heyday, trans-Atlantic commutations, theater work, Mulliner-Jeeves-Psmith, etc., etc., Wodehouse pursued and continues to pursue at ninety that stylistic excellence which has earned him his unique audience of both uncritical devotees and serious critics who recognize Wodehouse's technical brilliance: story construction of contrapuntal, multi-thematic perfection; a comic language built on spacious idiom and efficient hyperbole; and a fictional world as fragile and entire as an egg. Jasen touches on Plum's cruel humiliations during World War II and follows the Wodehouse menages through' ceaseless moves -- but this is mainly a study of a life within a craft. A treat for writers, and for those who place the porcine splendors of the Empress of Blandings above the shoddy claims of Josephine. Just fine.
Pub Date: Nov. 15, 1974
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: Mason & Lipscomb
Review Posted Online: N/A
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1974
Categories: NONFICTION
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Hey there, book lover.
We’re glad you found a book that interests you!
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Don’t fret. We’ll find you.