Review of THE INIMITABLE JEEVES
Where has P.G. Wodehouse been in my life?
The Inimitable Jeeves is my first P.G. Wodehouse novel. It was given to me by a very literate son-in-law not prone to hyperbole or simplistic thinking. He is keeping afloat in the swirling waters of a start-up and a new family. Wodehouse was a tonic for him – a gin & tonic – as each busy day came to a close. That was enough for me …
I too often find “humorous” novels not very funny. There is a reason that truly comic films are the rarest of movies. Comedy has a short shelf life. Perfect for sitcoms and the night club, it too often disappears or is too forced in a novel. There are exceptions but this is a case of the exception proving the rule. Too often a John Irving or Joseph Heller ignores the uniqueness, the lightening in a bottle moment of an utterly original and often first novel like The World According to Garp or a Catch-22. They will spend a lifetime trying to recapture an uncapturable moment lodged in their literary past. Unlike many literate comic writers, Wodehouse wrote short books with short chapters and tons of fast paced dialogue. They have an Agatha Christie formulaic feel to them. At least, not being an Agatha Christie fan, that was how I dismissed Wodehouse over the years
To be wrong for so long! The joy of Wodehouse was just the antidote to Mr. Toad’s wild Christmas ride. I wanted it to be longer. I wanted the chapters to be longer. Like my son-in-law, I laughed out loud - something I almost never do when reading. I kept asking myself, what is the secret sauce to this simple story set in a bygone world. I soon realized that Wodehouse is a fountain of irony – all kinds of recognized and unrecognized irony. Irony is the fizz in a gin and tonic. We live in a fizz free world of shrieks, complaints, and cynicism – all the cheapest forms of entertainment. Memes occasionally offer up a dose of irony and The New Yorker cartoons remain her most steadfast guardian. But, overall, we are a pretty pedantic bunch these days. Wodehouse, however, proves to be just the right aspirin for the cultural headache that is 21st century America.
Thank you son-in-law … what took me so long?
The Inimitable Jeeves
P.G. Wodehouse
1915 (terrific reissued 2021 edition) 192 pages