Writing more than 90 novels and 300 short stories, PG Wodehouse, that great chronicler of Englishness, has left a legacy that is plentiful and the fruits are rich. This year marks the 100th anniversary of Something Fresh, the first in Wodehouse’s series of Blandings novels, in which we’re introduced to the “fluffy-headed” Lord Emsworth, his son, the Hon Freddie Threepwood, and their butler, Beach.
Something Fresh has all the trademarks of a Wodehouse classic: there’s mistaken identity, a human imitation of a cat fight, a last-minute elopement and a strange episode where Baxter believes he’s come across a tongue without a body attached. All of which defy one character’s belief that “Romance was dead, and the Unexpected no longer happened.”
These larger-than-life characters are caught up in a larger-than-life intrigue, revolving around the acquisition (or reacquisition) of an Egyptian scarab. Lord Emsworth believes this prized artefact was a gift. Or was it stolen? Freddie, as usual, hasn’t a clue. This is a novel about life, love, chivalry and, of course, it’s an education in laughter that will transport you back to Edwardian England.
At the start of the novel, Wodehouse sets the scene: “It was one of those happy mornings.” At its conclusion, we come back to another. Read this, and I can guarantee you will have one, too. Tip-top.
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Something Fresh by PG Wodehouse, Hutchinson, 285pp, £12.99. To buy this book for £11.69, visit thetimes.co.uk/bookshop or call 0845 2712134