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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
I prefer listening to the Jeeves and Wooster stories in audio book form, but I tend to be listening at night while my husband is asleep. Just as with all the others, the bed shook with my attempt to stifle uproarious laughter. But even when reading the books, I still struggle to be quiet. Best enjoyed alone lest you have to explain your laughter!
The quintessential Jeeves novel to me (even if my actual favorite is The Mating Season). I’ve read it many times so the beats and lines are very familiar, but I still find something new to enjoy each time. Definitely contains some of my favorite gags and characters. Just a comforting reread :)
The Code of the Woosters is one of the few novel-length works about "intellectually negligible" young aristocrat Bertie Wooster and his titan of a valet Jeeves. I found this novel somewhat entertaining, though about two-thirds of the way through it starts to drag and all in all left me unimpressed.
Summarising the setup of the novel would be difficult, but it begins with a battle over a cow-shaped creamer. The cow creamer is desired by Bertie's Aunt Dahlia and Uncle Tom, but is bought instead by Sir Watkyn Bassett, the retired magistrate who once fined Bertie five pounds for stealing a policeman's helmet. Aunt Dahlia gives Bertie a choice between infiltrating Bassett's house and stealing the cow creamer, or never again tasting the wonderful meals of her French chef Anatole. Two related problems are the engagements of Bassett's niece Stephanie "Stiffy" Byng and Bertie's school chum Harold "Stinker" Pinker, and Basset's daughter Madelaine and Wooster friend Gussie Fink-Nottle. There's also Roderick Spode, Watkyn's menacing associate and the leader of a fascist group called the Saviours of Britain. The book was published in 1937, and through the character of Spode, Wodehouse makes a few jabs against Hitler and Mussolini.
In spite of its observation of human social interactions which really are often zany, the novel does seem somewhat far-fetched. A character hears a major revelation but reacts too tamely, the plot's resultion in the last couple of pages seems like an easy way out of a book starting to run out of steam.
There are a few moments in The Code of the Woosters which made me laugh out loud, and therefore I do cautiously recommend the book. However, it is a somewhat insubstantial novel, and falls into a three-star rating. If you've never read Wodehouse before, you might want to try one of his many short stories before tackling an entire novel.
Summarising the setup of the novel would be difficult, but it begins with a battle over a cow-shaped creamer. The cow creamer is desired by Bertie's Aunt Dahlia and Uncle Tom, but is bought instead by Sir Watkyn Bassett, the retired magistrate who once fined Bertie five pounds for stealing a policeman's helmet. Aunt Dahlia gives Bertie a choice between infiltrating Bassett's house and stealing the cow creamer, or never again tasting the wonderful meals of her French chef Anatole. Two related problems are the engagements of Bassett's niece Stephanie "Stiffy" Byng and Bertie's school chum Harold "Stinker" Pinker, and Basset's daughter Madelaine and Wooster friend Gussie Fink-Nottle. There's also Roderick Spode, Watkyn's menacing associate and the leader of a fascist group called the Saviours of Britain. The book was published in 1937, and through the character of Spode, Wodehouse makes a few jabs against Hitler and Mussolini.
In spite of its observation of human social interactions which really are often zany, the novel does seem somewhat far-fetched. A character hears a major revelation but reacts too tamely, the plot's resultion in the last couple of pages seems like an easy way out of a book starting to run out of steam.
There are a few moments in The Code of the Woosters which made me laugh out loud, and therefore I do cautiously recommend the book. However, it is a somewhat insubstantial novel, and falls into a three-star rating. If you've never read Wodehouse before, you might want to try one of his many short stories before tackling an entire novel.
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
The good Wooster/Jeeves novels are simply some of the funniest goddamn things ever written.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read The Code Of The Woosters as part of a Best Of Wodehouse anthology. I was already very familiar with this particular outing with Jeeves & Wooster. Yet, it had been a while…
I used to turn to Wodehouse’s work as a teen for some funny, light, summertime reading, and was also a fan of the ITV adaptation starring Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie.
The Code Of The Woosters is regarded as being one of the best Bertie Wooster tales, and for good reason. It encapsulates everything that makes him such a great comedy character.
He always manages to bumble his way into sticky situations, such as being accused of theft by Old Basset. He assumed that Bertie is a bag-snatcher because he had once tried to snatch a policeman’s helmet.
The main plot of this story is Bertie being implored to help with a plot to steal a cow-creamer.
Of course, if any theft occurs, Bertie will get the blame… But will he be able to talk his way out of it?
However, the real star of each story is Jeeves. He is the brains behind every operation, he has the cunning and wit to pull Bertie out of these, often disastrous, situations.
Wodehouse’s stories have a unique humour to them. If you are familiar with, or take a liking to, his style then you shall love this one.
I used to turn to Wodehouse’s work as a teen for some funny, light, summertime reading, and was also a fan of the ITV adaptation starring Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie.
The Code Of The Woosters is regarded as being one of the best Bertie Wooster tales, and for good reason. It encapsulates everything that makes him such a great comedy character.
He always manages to bumble his way into sticky situations, such as being accused of theft by Old Basset. He assumed that Bertie is a bag-snatcher because he had once tried to snatch a policeman’s helmet.
The main plot of this story is Bertie being implored to help with a plot to steal a cow-creamer.
Of course, if any theft occurs, Bertie will get the blame… But will he be able to talk his way out of it?
However, the real star of each story is Jeeves. He is the brains behind every operation, he has the cunning and wit to pull Bertie out of these, often disastrous, situations.
Wodehouse’s stories have a unique humour to them. If you are familiar with, or take a liking to, his style then you shall love this one.
Amazing! An actual plot!! A couple of amusing characters! A satirical portrait of Oswald Mosley!
Shame he went on to work for (and, as has recently been revealed, be PAYED BY) the NAZIS!
But, of course, he had "no understanding of contemporary politics" and it was "just a silly public schoolboy mistake" and his friends who considered him "a good egg" made sure he wasn't prosecuted, was able to move to America, and even eventually get a knighthood, so that's all fine then apparently.
Except...
To quote the Independent article from when his MI5 file was declassified a decade ago
"the documents dispel the widely held notion of Wodehouse as vain but harmless. His MI5 file reveals a more sinister character, with extreme right-wing views and even Nazi sympathies, who had also secretly worked for a Berlin film company that produced propaganda."
Despite his claims he lived of savings from the sales of his books in Germany, he was payed £150 a month by the Nazi government, lived in luxury accommodation in Berlin and occupied Paris, help the German Propaganda department, and lied about his actions to the Allied authorities after the Liberation of Paris, and despite his friends in high places would have definitely been tried for treason if he returned to Britain. (And probably hung.)
He "considered" himself an American - and wanted to keep them out of the war - despite not being a US citizen at the time, he said he would have happily lived under German rule for the rest of his life (if they won the war), and was only living in France when war broke out because he didn't want to pay UK tax.
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
So I think I m not going to bother with anymore of his claptrap.
(By the way, all this information is easily accessible and has been well reported over the last 10 years - just oddly not on his Wikipedia page, which seems to be moderated by people who are a hair's breadth away from going "pip pip tally ho!" in the explanation of every edit.)
Shame he went on to work for (and, as has recently been revealed, be PAYED BY) the NAZIS!
But, of course, he had "no understanding of contemporary politics" and it was "just a silly public schoolboy mistake" and his friends who considered him "a good egg" made sure he wasn't prosecuted, was able to move to America, and even eventually get a knighthood, so that's all fine then apparently.
Except...
To quote the Independent article from when his MI5 file was declassified a decade ago
"the documents dispel the widely held notion of Wodehouse as vain but harmless. His MI5 file reveals a more sinister character, with extreme right-wing views and even Nazi sympathies, who had also secretly worked for a Berlin film company that produced propaganda."
Despite his claims he lived of savings from the sales of his books in Germany, he was payed £150 a month by the Nazi government, lived in luxury accommodation in Berlin and occupied Paris, help the German Propaganda department, and lied about his actions to the Allied authorities after the Liberation of Paris, and despite his friends in high places would have definitely been tried for treason if he returned to Britain. (And probably hung.)
He "considered" himself an American - and wanted to keep them out of the war - despite not being a US citizen at the time, he said he would have happily lived under German rule for the rest of his life (if they won the war), and was only living in France when war broke out because he didn't want to pay UK tax.
Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
So I think I m not going to bother with anymore of his claptrap.
(By the way, all this information is easily accessible and has been well reported over the last 10 years - just oddly not on his Wikipedia page, which seems to be moderated by people who are a hair's breadth away from going "pip pip tally ho!" in the explanation of every edit.)
I think everyone should have a Jeeves in their life.
This is the one in which Berie Wooster is duped/blackmailed by his 'good and deserving' Aunt Dahlia into travelling and staying at Totleigh Towers, all in pursuit of an 18th century Cow-creamer that she wants her husband to sucessfully purchase (for reasons that are to complicated to go into here), and that sees Bertie's friends Gussie Fink-Nottle, the rev Harold 'stinker' Pinker fall into and out of favour with their respective (and prospective) other half's - one of whom (Madeline Bassett) believes Bertie Wooster to be madly and deeply in love with her.
Throw in the would-be fascist Dictator Roderick Spode, and the fact that Sir Watkyn Bassett (who owns Totleigh Towers) believes Bertie Wooster to be a kleptomaniac, and we have all the necessary ingredients for another convoluted set of scenarios, which only Jeeves is able to unravel to everybody's satisfaction.
This is the one in which Berie Wooster is duped/blackmailed by his 'good and deserving' Aunt Dahlia into travelling and staying at Totleigh Towers, all in pursuit of an 18th century Cow-creamer that she wants her husband to sucessfully purchase (for reasons that are to complicated to go into here), and that sees Bertie's friends Gussie Fink-Nottle, the rev Harold 'stinker' Pinker fall into and out of favour with their respective (and prospective) other half's - one of whom (Madeline Bassett) believes Bertie Wooster to be madly and deeply in love with her.
Throw in the would-be fascist Dictator Roderick Spode, and the fact that Sir Watkyn Bassett (who owns Totleigh Towers) believes Bertie Wooster to be a kleptomaniac, and we have all the necessary ingredients for another convoluted set of scenarios, which only Jeeves is able to unravel to everybody's satisfaction.