I’ve only read one of his books, but it was one widely regarded to be his “funniest” (The Code of the Woosters.) I wouldn’t call it a slog, but it didn’t exactly fly by. Most of my favorite books are comic novels, and it’s not like I can’t laugh at more benign comedy (I love Charles Portis), but Wodehouse’s brand of kooky similes left me almost completely stone-faced. I see people quote “convulsed like a Pekingese taking a pill” and other lines like it as if they were the most hilarious creations to ever be conjured by the human mind, and maybe they are. But I never laughed, I barely even smirked if I’m being honest.
With a lot of authors, I would just assume one particular book didn’t click with me. But Wodehouse, from what I understand, wrote almost 100 books that are more or less functionally the same. Maybe it was a mistake starting with a novel instead of his short stories, although the Psmith books seem the most interesting to me.
Is it worth bothering with any more of his books, though?
Whenever anybody asks “am I the only one,” they are never the only one.
That wasn’t the way I originally phrased the post. My first title was something like “is Wodehouse worth reading if I didn’t like this one book” or something, but that doesn’t fall under the rules apparently.
That wasn’t the way I originally phrased the post. My first title was something like “is Wodehouse worth reading if I didn’t like this one book” or something, but that doesn’t fall under the rules apparently.