Very Good, Jeeves!

Funny, but overstays its welcome with stupid plot elements that could be solved in each case by saying "no thanks." Abandoned. ( )

Very Good, Jeeves is the best of the Jeeves and Wooster short story collections - and also the last. Published in 1930 (when Wodehouse was about to turn 50), this collection represents something of a turning point. The narrative voice is more assured, the supporting characters many and varied, and the irony falls thicker and faster. They remain rich gems; only one or two are required to fill up. But there is something increasingly formulaic, so that it's not hard to see why the master decided it was time to shift his characters into novels from here on out.

(Rather than purchasing this volume, track down the omnibus The World of Jeeves which collects all the Jeeves and Wooster short stories in one.) ( )

Brilliant, quotable, hilarious . . . I am starting to sound like a dotty old aunt raving about her favorite nephew/Pekinese, but there you have it, Pelham Greenville has done it again. Strongly recommended. ( )

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Title: Very Good, Jeeves
Series: Jeeves Omnibus #3.3
Author: P.G. Wodehouse
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars
Genre: Humor
Pages: 273
Format: Digital Edition

Synopsis:

Another collection of short stories about Bertie Wooster and his fish-fed super-brainy man-servant, Jeeves.

Whether it is potential marital status change for Bertie (who seems to be afraid of said status), or a friend being forced to eat nothing but vegetables because of his wife's friend, or an Aunt forcing Bertie to something he doesn't want to (like pay off a waitress who Bertie's Uncle George wants to marry), Bertie is always in a maelstrom of chaos. Thankfully, with Jeeves guiding the good ship Wooster, the apparently inevitable crash upon the rocks never happens and it is smooth sailing, until the next adventure.

My Thoughts:

The only complaint I have about short story collections is that it is wicked hard to synopsize each and every one. So as I've written before, and I'm sure you may have noticed, I simply don't. Of course, I also have to complain about these omnibus editions, yet again. This book was the 3rd book published by Wodehouse and yet it is the 9th book in these collections. It also has no relationship in time to the previous book or two. What phracking idiot curated these anyway? I'd like to make them walk the plank, after I've tied them to the mast and given them a taste of the cat'o'nine tails!

Staying on the nautical theme, this was a boatload of fun. Captain Wodehouse excels in navigating the reader through a funny story that has a beginning, a middle and an end all within 10-40 pages. For the most part, Wodehouse's humor tickles my fancy so even if the particulars of a story doesn't really interest me, the humorous shenanigans do and that keeps me reading. I experienced no doldrums while on this pleasure cruise and what's more, none of the offerings gave me food poisoning or led me to being sick.

Good times!

★★★★☆ ( )

Classic! Very enjoyable to read - and to compare to the TV series w/ Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. ( )