My Man Jeeves

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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This is a collection of eight short stories – half of them starring Jeeves and Wooster, the other half featuring Reggie Pepper (who is basically Wooster without Jeeves). Like the rest of the books featuring Jeeves and Wooster, this is frequently hailed as a comedic classic, a masterpiece, and has no dearth of fans – highbrow and lowbrow alike.

I am not one of them. Wooster and Pepper are vapid, privileged aristocrats – vain, insipid, too wealthy and seeming incapable of narrating – or conversing – in coherent sentences. Jeeves is a frequently (but not infallibly) conniving and tricky valet, who seemingly knows more than anyone else around him. I honestly don't know if I'd want him working for me, he's too nosy, too duplicitous for my taste. All the characters get into farcical situations that are complicated and entirely of their own devices. If they could just be upfront and honest with others (including each other), their lives would be far less complicated.

Prebble did a fine job, I think. Yeah, I had no patience for any of the narrators of the stories – but that's not on him. That's totally on the characters. I think he grabbed the personalities perfectly. I just don't see why anyone would bother.

I'm primarily posting about this experience as a reminder to myself: Just give up, HC. You and Wodehouse are just not compatible. You may have friends (Internet-based and Real Life) that love him, but you just don't understand the appeal.

Not funny. Not amusing. Not charming. Pretty much a waste of time. Just can't recommend this to anyone.