Category: Guest Posts

Pieces by other writers who share the Plumtopian vision that a life injected with a little Wodehouse is a better life.

Guest Posts, Jeeves & Wooster, The Great RomancesLeave a comment

The romances of Bingo Little: Charlotte Corday Rowbotham (by Ken Clevenger)

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‘Oh, Great Scott!’ I said. ‘Don’t tell me you’re in love again.’ He seemed aggrieved. ‘What do you mean– again?’ ‘Well, to my certain knowledge you’ve been in love with at least half a dozen girls since the spring, and it’s only July now. There was that waitress and Honoria Glossop and–‘ ‘Oh, tush! Not to say pish! Those girls? Mere passing fancies. This is the real thing.’ ‘Where did you meet her?’ ‘On top of a bus. Her name is Charlotte Corday Rowbotham. ‘ ‘My God!’ ‘It’s not her fault, poor child. Her father had her christened that because … Continue reading The romances of Bingo Little: Charlotte Corday Rowbotham (by Ken Clevenger)

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Guest Posts, Jeeves & Wooster, The Great Romances2 Comments

More Great Wodehouse Romances: Mrs Spottsworth and Captain Biggar (by Ashok Bhatia)

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Plumtopia’s annual celebration of the romances of P.G. Wodehouse (to mark the anniversary of the author’s death on St Valentine’s day 1975) would not be complete without a contribution from Mr Ashok Bhatia. One of the things I particularly enjoy about Mr Bhatia’s musings on the subject is his choice of ‘seasoned’ couples, well beyond the first blooms of youth. For nobody in Wodehouse’s world is too old, too irascible, or too wide of girth, to find love. And that’s just as it should be. Ashok Bhatia’s latest instalment delves into the romantic adventures of the widow Mrs Rosalinda Banks Bessemer Spottsworth and … Continue reading More Great Wodehouse Romances: Mrs Spottsworth and Captain Biggar (by Ashok Bhatia)

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Guest Posts, Hidden Gems, Novels, The Great Romances5 Comments

Money in the Bank (review by John Lagrue)

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John Lagrue’s timely review of P.G. Wodehouse’s Money in the Bank (1942) touches on another great Wodehouse romance –that of Anne Benedick and Jeff Miller. John also proposes Anne Benedick as Wodehouse’s finest heroine. It’s a proposal worth taking seriously from a Wodehouse lover of John’s calibre. I certainly recall Anne being a good egg, but I’ve never ranked her among my own favourites. Have I missed something? It has been a while since I’ve read Money in the Bank, but it’s one of Wodehouse’s hidden gem and I look forward to re-reading and pondering John’s suggestion. As I said in my post last … Continue reading Money in the Bank (review by John Lagrue)

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Guest Posts, Psmith, The Great Romances10 Comments

A note on the Psmith-Halliday romance by K.V.K. Murthy

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This February’s Great Wodehouse romances series continues with another guest author, K.V.K. Murthy, known to Facebook friends as James Joyce.  His piece takes us on a walk through romantic literary history with Psmith and Eve Halliday (Leave it to Psmith). A note on the Psmith-Halliday romance by K.V.K. Murthy The question of favourites is mostly subjective, and Wodehouse’s vast canvas of miniature romances doubtless provides for each taste. The Gussie-Bassett, Tuppy-Angela, Bingo-Banks and others too numerous to mention are all miniatures :a concatenation (to use Jeeves’ word) of comical situation, Edwardian silly-assness and a bit of fat-headedness thrown in for seasoning. They … Continue reading A note on the Psmith-Halliday romance by K.V.K. Murthy

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Guest Posts, Hidden Gems, Novels, The Great Romances, Wodehouse Women7 Comments

Mostly Sally (The Adventures of Sally)

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Sally stopped and drew a deep breath. Ginger Kemp did not reply for a moment. He seemed greatly impressed. “When you talk quick,” he said at length, in a serious meditative voice, “your nose sort of goes all squiggly. Ripping, it looks!” Sally uttered an indignant cry. “Do you mean to say you haven’t been listening to a word I’ve been saying,” she demanded. “Oh, rather! Oh, by Jove, yes.” “Well, what did I say?” “You… er… And your eyes sort of shine, too.” “Never mind my eyes. What did I say?” “You told me,” said Ginger, on reflection, “to … Continue reading Mostly Sally (The Adventures of Sally)

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Guest Posts, Hidden Gems, Novels, The Great Romances12 Comments

When Ginger met Sally

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Today’s post continues the Great Wodehouse Romances series, exploring The Adventures of Sally , courtesy of guest author Jon Brierley. If you missed the first instalment, you can catch up here. The Adventures of Sally A Romance (continued…) All caught up? Spiffing. Let us consider our principals. Here comes Sally now – if we take up an unobtrusive position behind a newspaper we shall be able to observe her closely. Sally Nicholas is a young, cheerful, intelligent, attractive and sparky all-American girl of twenty-one, and feeling especially cheerful just now as she has just had a substantial inheritance. She will be able … Continue reading When Ginger met Sally

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Guest Posts, Hidden Gems, Novels, The Great Romances, World of Wodehouse14 Comments

The Great Wodehouse Romances: The Adventures of Sally (by Jon Brierley)

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Every February Plumtopia celebrates the romances, great and small, in the work of P.G. Wodehouse, to mark the anniversary of his death on St Valentine’s Day, 1975. Guest contributions are warmly welcomed, and this year I’m thrilled to share a series by guest author Jon Brierley on the 1921 Wodehouse novel, The Adventures of Sally. Jon is sound on Wodehouse and has written wonderfully in the Wodehouse style at his blog, Sloopjonb: Writing Wibble (try his Jeeves’ Christmas Carol). Jon is currently putting the finishing touches on his first novel and would love feedback from beta readers. Please do visit … Continue reading The Great Wodehouse Romances: The Adventures of Sally (by Jon Brierley)

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Criticism, Guest Posts9 Comments

P.G. Wodehouse and the First World War — Great War Fiction

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Yesterday I shared ‘A partial book review of Middlebrow Wodehouse’. Today I’m sharing a response from George Simmers. George writes about Wodehouse often at his blog, and contributed a piece for Middlebrow Wodehouse on Wodehouse and the First World War. All this leaves me even more determined to fork out the advertised price of the volume and read it for myself. HP A while ago I wrote a chapter on Wodehouse and the War for a collection, Middlebrow Wodehouse, that tried to locate PGW in the context of his times, and of popular literature. The book appeared, and seems to have sunk without … Continue reading P.G. Wodehouse and the First World War — Great War Fiction

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Criticism, Guest Posts2 Comments

A Partial Book Review: Middlebrow Wodehouse: P. G. Wodehouse’s Work in Context ed. Professor Ann Rea (2016) — Moulders Lane

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Rather like looking for a word in Chambers, running a Google search means you never know what odd thing you’re going to discover. The latest piece of flotsam to strike my bemused gaze is a new book on Wodehouse: Middlebrow Wodehouse: P. G. Wodehouse’s Work in Context published in January of this year and written […] via A Partial Book Review: Middlebrow Wodehouse: P. G. Wodehouse’s Work in Context ed. Professor Ann Rea (2016) — Moulders Lane Continue reading A Partial Book Review: Middlebrow Wodehouse: P. G. Wodehouse’s Work in Context ed. Professor Ann Rea (2016) — Moulders Lane

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Guest Posts, Letters, P.G. Wodehouse6 Comments

P.G. Wodehouse – A Life in Letters edited by Sophie Ratcliffe

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Originally posted on The Aroma of Books:
//published 2011// As soon as I heard about this book, I knew that I wanted to not just read it, but to own it, so that I could savor it whenever I wished.  I haven’t regretted investing in this hefty tome (especially since I got it used, hardcover, for only $5!), even though it has taken me months to wade through it. ? While, on the whole, I’m not someone who enjoys delving into the personal lives of individuals whose art I enjoy, there are some exceptions to the rule.  Agatha Christie’s autobiography… Continue reading P.G. Wodehouse – A Life in Letters edited by Sophie Ratcliffe

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