Blandings Castle and Elsewhere: (Blandings Castle)

Description

'You don't analyse such sunlit perfection, you just bask in its warmth and splendour.' Stephen Fry 'I love his writing, it's so clever and funny, so deft.' Alan Titchmarsh's 6 Best Books choice (Daily Express) A Blandings collection The ivied walls of Blandings Castle have seldom glowed as sunnily as in these wonderful stories - but there are snakes in the rolling parkland ready to nip Clarence, the absent-minded Ninth Earl of Emsworth, when he least expects it. For a start the Empress of Blandings, in the running for her first prize in the Fat Pigs Class at the Shropshire Agricultural Show, is off her food -- and can only be coaxed back to the trough by a call in her own language. Then there is the feud with Head Gardener McAllister, aided by Clarence's sister, the terrifying Lady Constance, and the horrible prospect of the summer fate - twin problems solved by the arrival of a delightfully rebellious little girl from London. But first of all there is the vexed matter of the custody of the pumpkin. Skipping an ocean and a continent, Wodehouse also treats us to some unputdownable stories of excess from the monstrous Golden Age of Hollywood.

P. G. Wodehouse (1881-1975) is widely regarded as the greatest comic writer of the 20th century. Wodehouse wrote more than 70 novels and 200 short stories, creating numerous much-loved characters - the inimitable Jeeves and Wooster, Lord Emsworth and his beloved Empress of Blandings, Mr Mulliner, Ukridge, and Psmith. His humorous articles were published in more than 80 magazines, including Punch, over six decades. He was also a highly successful music lyricist, once with over five musicals running on Broadway simultaneously. P.G. Wodehouse was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for 'an outstanding and lasting contribution to the happiness of the world'.

It's dangerous to use the word genius to describe a writer, but I'll risk it with him -- John Humphrys For as long as I'm immersed in a P.G. Wodehouse book, it's possible to keep the real world at bay and live in a far, far nicer, funnier one where happy endings are the order of the day -- Marian Keyes Wodehouse always lifts your spirits, no matter how high they happen to be already -- Lynne Truss The incomparable and timeless genius - perfect for readers of all ages, shapes and sizes! -- Kate Mosse Not only the funniest English novelist who ever wrote but one of our finest stylists -- Susan Hill