Sunday, July 20, 2008

Love Among the Chickens by P. G. Wodehouse

This is my first experience of Wodehouse via an audio book. (Courtesy Librivox) It's the story of Jeremy Garnett, aspiring author, and his adventures running a chicken farm with his enterprising but unscrupulous friend Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge.
The bottom line: this was Wodehouse's first attempt at a novel for adults. So if you're new to him, start with one of his better works, such as any of the Jeeves stories. Because Love Among the Chickens has none of the zip, verve or punch I've come to expect from him.
Interestingly, P.G. Wodehouse later rewrote and republished this 1906 novel nearly 20 years later. I'm not sure which text was used on the Librivox recording, as at first glance I saw no dates on the Project Gutenberg entry .

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