Yours, Plum The Letters of P.G. Wodehouse

by P.G. Wodehouse, Frances Donaldson (Editor)

In addition to his immense published output, P.G. Wodehouse always found time to write letters, and this volume, edited and introduced by the author of his authorised biography, Frances Donaldson, is his last great work. Selected from a vast collection, hugely funny and delightfully readable, they are full of the richest Wodehousian expressions and show a new perspective on Plum's shy, reclusive, innocent yet uniquely gifted personality. If ever letters were a joy to read, these are.

Every aspect of Wodehouse's career is covered, including his experiences during the war over the Berlin Broadcasts and his subsequent dealings with Cassandra, who so unfairly attacked him. Included are fascinating letters to his friends Bill Townend, Guy Bolton and Dennis Mackail, about his working and domestic life and his attitudes to other writers; but at the centre, and most revealing of his real nature are his remarkable letters to his stepdaughter Leonora, which have an incomparable biographical value because they were addressed to someone he loved and trusted completely. As Frances Donaldson writes, these letters 'were written by a master of English prose. Full of charm, humour and eccentricities, they are clearly a valuable addition to the published work.'

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Biography Memoir

269 pages, Hardcover

First published November 15, 1990

About the author

Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, KBE, was a comic writer who enjoyed enormous popular success during a career of more than seventy years and continues to be widely read over 40 years after his death. Despite the political and social upheavals that occurred during his life, much of which was spent in France and the United States, Wodehouse's main canvas remained that of prewar English upper-class society, reflecting his birth, education, and youthful writing career.

An acknowledged master of English prose, Wodehouse has been admired both by contemporaries such as Hilaire Belloc, Evelyn Waugh and Rudyard Kipling and by more recent writers such as Douglas Adams, Salman Rushdie and Terry Pratchett. Sean O'Casey famously called him "English literature's performing flea", a description that Wodehouse used as the title of a collection of his letters to a friend, Bill Townend.

Best known today for the Jeeves and Blandings Castle novels and short stories, Wodehouse was also a talented playwright and lyricist who was part author and writer of fifteen plays and of 250 lyrics for some thirty musical comedies. He worked with Cole Porter on the musical Anything Goes (1934) and frequently collaborated with Jerome Kern and Guy Bolton. He wrote the lyrics for the hit song Bill in Kern's Show Boat (1927), wrote the lyrics for the Gershwin/Romberg musical Rosalie (1928), and collaborated with Rudolf Friml on a musical version of The Three Musketeers (1928).

Reviews

[mehg-hen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is for the Wodehouse nerds.

He liked pekeignese dogs and cats and was so lovely to his stepdaughter and all of his buddies. I like you, PG.

Still, it's not gripping and feels like research. So. I would like him to be my friend.

[nadine]

technically i did not finish this, but im not exactly dnf-ing it. i just wanted to read his letters to his daughter and his wife, which i did and that was that.
(stopped at 68% and might return but who knows)

[Jay Dewey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd love to be able to write such witty letters. They were fun to read and informative, not only about Wodehouse but of that era -- from a small and highly guarded corner.

[Gerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must for all Wodehouse fans. It is undoubtedly a valuable addition to his works of fiction.

The letters give a definitive account of how he worked and how he thought out his novels and how he sometimes relied on others, notably Guy Bolton, to give him ideas and confirm that those he had thought up were acceptable.

He also writes moving letters to his stepdaughter, Leonora, and gives many accounts of his cats and dogs, which played a big part in his everyday life.

He writes of his wartime experiences, particularly his Berlin broadcasts that led to Cassandra, William Connor, castigating him in the UK press. This very nearly led to trouble much later when Evelyn Waugh was going to attack Cassandra and defend Wodehouse on the television. By that time, 1961, Wodehouse and Connor were big friends and the former had to make sure that Waugh was stopped from broadcasting such views.

Interestingly Wodehouse also writes about other authors and his views are certainly entertaining - 'I met John Buchan the other day. Nice chap, but I can't read his stuff, can you?' (what about The Thirty-Nine Steps, Plum?); 'Curious method of writing [J.B.] Priestley has'; 'I read some of those Dorothy Parker stories ... I don't like her stuff much' and 'What is it that's wrong with Coward's [books]. I admire his courage in facing those audiences when he had those two flops, but somehow I don't find myself liking him' [No???]!

A delightful read that gives a good view of Wodehouse the man and always there to dip into again because, as with most of his material, there are plenty of humourous gems amongst the letters.

[Martin Grunseit · Rating 3 out of 5]

P.G Wodehouse is one of my all-time favourite authors. Although some of his very early books based on school days are nothing special, once he got his eye in and was writing about Mr Mulliner, The Oldest Member, a varied cast of aunts, and, of course the incomparable team of Bertie and Jeeves, his seemingly inconsequential stories penned in his masterfully droll manner have made him a deserved icon of 20th C lit.
I still have dozens of his books and also his 3 volume autobiography, Wodehouse on Wodehouse, many read multiple times, but this book of letters has sat untouched on the shelf for decades. Sadly, although it is lightly flavoured with his famous style, it is clear that his most minutely crafted work went into his books, as you would expect, and the letters could be somewhat of a letdown for other Plum fans as well, and really only for the tragic who cannot get enough.
It was touching to see the letters to his step-child, and illuminating to see how troubled he was by reviews (both bad and good!), but - full disclosure - I wasn't able to read more than a cursory selection, whereas his novels, short stories, and autobiog were all devoured with relish , cover to cover.
Just to be sure that I somehow hadn't overrated him in my youth, I pulled out "Very Good, Jeeves" and was chuckling pretty much from the off, as well as just plain marvelling at his inimitable turn of phrase. Unless you are particularly keen to know him better, you would probably be better off doing likewise and revisiting any one of the dozens of masterpieces in his back catalogue.

[Réka · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my most loved author.I read most of his books and I can recommend any,the Dude is simply fantastic.Funny and inventive with the words. Upon reading his privet lettering you can realise he really talked like that as he wrote in his books.Brilliant! Would have loved knowing him.

[Paul Doody · Rating 5 out of 5]

The letters of the great P.G. Wodehouse give us a unique insight into the life of the man who created Jeeves, Wooster, Lord Emsworth and a host of other glorious characters.

[Denise Bonham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting read.
A great insight to a great Author