Wodehouse: A Life - Hardcover

McCrum, Robert

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0393051595 ISBN 13: 9780393051599

Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc, 2004

Synopsis

An affectionate portrait of the prolific twentieth-century comic writer discusses his creation of such characters as Jeeves, Psmith, and the Empress of Blandings; describes his contributions to Broadway and the London stage; details his internment in Berlin during World War II; and reveals a following of literary figures who are among his top fans. 15,000 first printing.

About this title

About the Author:

Robert McCrum is the author of six novels and two works of nonfiction: The Story of English and My Year Off. He is the literary editor of the Observer and lives in London.

From Publishers Weekly:

In his authoritative biography of P.G. Wodehouse (1881–1975), British author McCrum (My Year Off), literary editor of the Observer, rightly identifies the crisis over the great, if naïve, English humorist's 1941 radio broadcasts from Germany (which led to accusations of his being a "Nazi stooge") as "the defining moment of Wodehouse's life." While the broadcasts and their aftermath get the most scrutiny, McCrum ably surveys a 75-year writing career that began in 1900 and ended only with Wodehouse's death at 93. He succinctly covers all the major topics—Wodehouse's creation of the immortal Jeeves and Wooster; his triumphs as a lyricist for the musical theater; his frustrating stints as a scriptwriter in Hollywood; his tax troubles; his love of animals; his post-WWII U.S. exile; his long and successful, if apparently sexless, marriage. McCrum is franker on this latter subject than previous biographers and also dispels a myth or two. While Wodehouse largely left his financial affairs to his wife, Ethel, "in important literary business Wodehouse was always clinically decisive." When his new literary agent, Paul Reynolds Jr., wasn't successful, he fired him. Earlier studies have tended to be partisan or personal and stronger on some aspects of Wodehouse's varied life than others. For balance and readability, this popular biography, like Jeeves, stands alone. 16 pages of illus. not seen by PW.
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About this edition

• Publisher: W W Norton & Co Inc
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0393051595
• ISBN 13: 9780393051599
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 530