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Christmas with Dull People
If you’ve ever stayed with dull people during what is alleged to be the festive season, you’ll know a good dose of Saki is the only cure.
These Christmas stories present Saki at his inimitable, satirical best as he addresses the most perilous aspects of the holiday period: visiting dull relatives, tolerating Christmas Eve merriment, receiving unwanted gifts, and writing ecstatic thank-you cards for those aforementioned gifts.
‘Reginald’s Christmas Revel’ and ‘Reginald on Christmas Presents’ provide us with fabulously droll wit and wisdom from one of Saki’s best-loved characters. In ‘Bertie’s Christmas Eve’ the Steffink family is served some Yuletide revenge by young cousin Bertie, while in ‘Down Pens’ Egbert and Janetta conceive of an ingenious way to never write another thank-you letter again.
The undisputed master of the English short story, never is Saki’s satire sharper than when dissecting the customs of the upper classes at Christmas. These are four tales guaranteed to delight and disturb any Christmas gathering.
‘Saki is like a perfect martini but with absinthe stirred in . . . heady, delicious and dangerous.’ – Stephen Fry
‘The best of his stories are still better than the best of just about every other writer around.’ – Roald Dahl
‘Saki was irreplaceable and unreplaced.’ London Review of Books
‘His stories are cut-glass beauties, pitiless and hard-edged and constantly poking fun at the pretensions of the middle and upper classes.’ – Naomi Alderman
‘I took it up to my bedroom, opened it casually and was unable to go to sleep until I had finished it’ – Noël Coward
48 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2017
10 people are currently reading
233 people want to read
About the author
Saki
1,669 books589 followersBritish writer Hector Hugh Munro under pen name Saki published his witty and sometimes bitter short stories in collections, such as
The Chronicles of Clovis
(1911).
His sometimes macabre satirized Edwardian society and culture. People consider him a master and often compare him to William Sydney Porter and Dorothy Rothschild Parker. His tales feature delicately drawn characters and finely judged narratives. "The Open Window," perhaps his most famous, closes with the line, "Romance at short notice was her specialty," which thus entered the lexicon. Newspapers first and then several volumes published him as the custom of the time.
His works include
* a full-length play, The Watched Pot , in collaboration with Charles Maude;
* two one-act plays;
* a historical study, The Rise of the Russian Empire , the only book under his own name;
* a short novel, The Unbearable Bassington ;
* the episodic The Westminster Alice , a parliamentary parody of Alice in Wonderland ;
* and When William Came: A Story of London under the Hohenzollerns , an early alternate history.
Oscar Wilde, Lewis Carroll, and Joseph Rudyard Kipling, influenced Munro, who in turn influenced A. A. Milne, and Pelham Grenville Wodehouse.
His sometimes macabre satirized Edwardian society and culture. People consider him a master and often compare him to William Sydney Porter and Dorothy Rothschild Parker. His tales feature delicately drawn characters and finely judged narratives. "The Open Window," perhaps his most famous, closes with the line, "Romance at short notice was her specialty," which thus entered the lexicon. Newspapers first and then several volumes published him as the custom of the time.
His works include
* a full-length play, The Watched Pot , in collaboration with Charles Maude;
* two one-act plays;
* a historical study, The Rise of the Russian Empire , the only book under his own name;
* a short novel, The Unbearable Bassington ;
* the episodic The Westminster Alice , a parliamentary parody of Alice in Wonderland ;
* and When William Came: A Story of London under the Hohenzollerns , an early alternate history.
Oscar Wilde, Lewis Carroll, and Joseph Rudyard Kipling, influenced Munro, who in turn influenced A. A. Milne, and Pelham Grenville Wodehouse.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
December 20, 2024
Don’t read Saki for warm fuzzies of joy and goodwill to all, not even when badged as Christmas stories. Read him for deliciously manipulative characters and waspish wit, in an upper middle class Edwardian setting.
These four very short Christmas tales have his usual sharp wordplay, and animals feature in one, and a prank in a couple, but none have the dark, almost supernatural edge of some of his stories.
Image: Edwardian Christmas tree, Treasurer’s House, York (Source.)
Reginald’s Christmas Revel, 3*
A tiresome gathering with uninteresting people is livened up by a really nasty practical joke.
I assume this is the story that inspired the title of this collection, though I don’t think it one of Saki’s best stories.
“Mrs Babwold… never been known to smile, even when saying disagreeable things.”
Reginald tells of festivities with the Babwolds and an assortment of Characters. They are a bit boring and annoying, but in Reginald’s telling, their dullness becomes amusing, conveyed by his studied vagueness about who was who, and who said and did what:
“There was a Major Somebody who had shot things in Lapland, or somewhere of that sort. I forget what they were but it wasn’t for want of reminding.”
It’s also seasoned with the artful oxymorons that Saki does so well:
“The hall... was decorated with Japanese fans and Chinese lanterns, which gave it a very Old English effect.”
Reginald on Christmas Presents, 4*
Reginald pontificates on “the science of present-giving” and exactly what he would, and more importantly, would not like to be given.
I reviewed this last Christmas, HERE.
Image: Fireplace of presents in Great Hall, Treasurer’s House, York (Source.)
Bertie’s Christmas Eve, 4*
Christmas can bring out the worst in people: cooped up in a stuffy house with the nearest but not necessarily dearest, overfed, maybe drinking too much, and trying to calm noisy over-excited pets and children. One can try to relax and retreat mentally, or actively ensure one’s own amusement, regardless of others.
Bertie is Luke Steffink’s 20-year old ne’er-do-well nephew, staying for Christmas, before being despatched to yet another bit of the empire to try to make something of himself. The house party is generous and jolly, “aglow with the amiability and random mirth which the occasion demanded”, but Bertie is not an endearing fellow, nor even an endeared one.
After a somewhat scandalous joke:
“Everybody ate raisins and almonds with the nervous industry of sheep feeding during threatening weather.”
On the sort of whim people have on such occasions, they decide to visit the cowshed (Luke is “complacently proud” of his two suburban cows) to see if cattle really do talk at midnight on Christmas Eve, as Russian peasants allegedly believe. And that presents an opportunity which, when taken, provokes ungentlemanly language from one of those on the receiving end.
“Luke uncorked an expletive which, like brandy in a temperance household, was only used on rare emergencies.”
Down Pens, 5*
Froplinson. What a wonderful name. If I were to change my surname, I’d be tempted to pick that for the sound and rhythm of it, though not for the characters themselves, who are inadvertently causing a problem for Egbert and Janetta.
Image: A young woman writing a letter. Charles Dana Gibson, c1900 (Source.)
They’re wrestling with the relatably frustrating chore that rubs the shine off post-Christmas reveries. Egbert and Janetta are writing thank you letters that “express surprise and gratitude” with “servile amiability” for gifts that are, with a few exceptions, pointless, unwanted, and forgettable. Too much enthusiasm might elicit a similar present next year, but too little is rude.
“Colonel Chuttle knows that we are grateful for the Stilton, without having to be told so, and the Froplinsons know that we are bored with their calendar, whatever we may say to the contrary.”
Egbert decides to write to the newspapers, suggesting a solution. But that doesn’t solve their immediate problem: plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
More Saki
As well as these four stories, I’ve reviewed ten other Saki stories under The Best of Saki, HERE.
You can find his stories, free, on Gutenberg. For example, HERE. Most are very short.
These four very short Christmas tales have his usual sharp wordplay, and animals feature in one, and a prank in a couple, but none have the dark, almost supernatural edge of some of his stories.
Image: Edwardian Christmas tree, Treasurer’s House, York (Source.)
Reginald’s Christmas Revel, 3*
A tiresome gathering with uninteresting people is livened up by a really nasty practical joke.
I assume this is the story that inspired the title of this collection, though I don’t think it one of Saki’s best stories.
“Mrs Babwold… never been known to smile, even when saying disagreeable things.”
Reginald tells of festivities with the Babwolds and an assortment of Characters. They are a bit boring and annoying, but in Reginald’s telling, their dullness becomes amusing, conveyed by his studied vagueness about who was who, and who said and did what:
“There was a Major Somebody who had shot things in Lapland, or somewhere of that sort. I forget what they were but it wasn’t for want of reminding.”
It’s also seasoned with the artful oxymorons that Saki does so well:
“The hall... was decorated with Japanese fans and Chinese lanterns, which gave it a very Old English effect.”
Reginald on Christmas Presents, 4*
Reginald pontificates on “the science of present-giving” and exactly what he would, and more importantly, would not like to be given.
I reviewed this last Christmas, HERE.
Image: Fireplace of presents in Great Hall, Treasurer’s House, York (Source.)
Bertie’s Christmas Eve, 4*
Christmas can bring out the worst in people: cooped up in a stuffy house with the nearest but not necessarily dearest, overfed, maybe drinking too much, and trying to calm noisy over-excited pets and children. One can try to relax and retreat mentally, or actively ensure one’s own amusement, regardless of others.
Bertie is Luke Steffink’s 20-year old ne’er-do-well nephew, staying for Christmas, before being despatched to yet another bit of the empire to try to make something of himself. The house party is generous and jolly, “aglow with the amiability and random mirth which the occasion demanded”, but Bertie is not an endearing fellow, nor even an endeared one.
After a somewhat scandalous joke:
“Everybody ate raisins and almonds with the nervous industry of sheep feeding during threatening weather.”
On the sort of whim people have on such occasions, they decide to visit the cowshed (Luke is “complacently proud” of his two suburban cows) to see if cattle really do talk at midnight on Christmas Eve, as Russian peasants allegedly believe. And that presents an opportunity which, when taken, provokes ungentlemanly language from one of those on the receiving end.
“Luke uncorked an expletive which, like brandy in a temperance household, was only used on rare emergencies.”
Down Pens, 5*
Froplinson. What a wonderful name. If I were to change my surname, I’d be tempted to pick that for the sound and rhythm of it, though not for the characters themselves, who are inadvertently causing a problem for Egbert and Janetta.
Image: A young woman writing a letter. Charles Dana Gibson, c1900 (Source.)
They’re wrestling with the relatably frustrating chore that rubs the shine off post-Christmas reveries. Egbert and Janetta are writing thank you letters that “express surprise and gratitude” with “servile amiability” for gifts that are, with a few exceptions, pointless, unwanted, and forgettable. Too much enthusiasm might elicit a similar present next year, but too little is rude.
“Colonel Chuttle knows that we are grateful for the Stilton, without having to be told so, and the Froplinsons know that we are bored with their calendar, whatever we may say to the contrary.”
Egbert decides to write to the newspapers, suggesting a solution. But that doesn’t solve their immediate problem: plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose.
More Saki
As well as these four stories, I’ve reviewed ten other Saki stories under The Best of Saki, HERE.
You can find his stories, free, on Gutenberg. For example, HERE. Most are very short.
December 2, 2022
The stories in this volume were irreverent and great fun, as Saki's usually tend to be. I sped through the book spread-eagled on the living room couch while my flatmates were jollying up our Christmas tree, then put it to rest on the mantlepiece above our obviously fake fireplace.
December 20, 2022
The creativity of authors is a blessing, and yet surely their ingenuity is surpassed by that of publishers—such as those who would target the Christmas market with the sharp piercing wit of a notoriously irreverent writer such as Saki (H.H. Munro).
This volume collects four of Saki's stories, intended perhaps as a palate cleanser, something astringent and bracing to refresh the taste buds after a seasonal overdose of the saccharine, the too-wholesome, and the overly sentimental.
I've reviewed Bertie's Christmas Eve separately; this collection also has two stories featuring "Reginald", and another ("Down Pens") with the delightful "Egbert and Janetta" discussing the meaninglessness of oft-performed rituals.
Saki is the literary lovechild of Dorothy Parker and Edgar Allan Poe; he is the spawn of Oscar Wilde while in turn hatching Noel Coward. His stories are intimate little jewels, deceptively simple but glittering with a many-faceted hardness. I can always count on Saki to make me guffaw. His stories are anything but dull.
This volume collects four of Saki's stories, intended perhaps as a palate cleanser, something astringent and bracing to refresh the taste buds after a seasonal overdose of the saccharine, the too-wholesome, and the overly sentimental.
I've reviewed Bertie's Christmas Eve separately; this collection also has two stories featuring "Reginald", and another ("Down Pens") with the delightful "Egbert and Janetta" discussing the meaninglessness of oft-performed rituals.
Saki is the literary lovechild of Dorothy Parker and Edgar Allan Poe; he is the spawn of Oscar Wilde while in turn hatching Noel Coward. His stories are intimate little jewels, deceptively simple but glittering with a many-faceted hardness. I can always count on Saki to make me guffaw. His stories are anything but dull.
December 24, 2025
A brilliant little book, in which Saki skewers some of the traditions/expectations of the Christmas season, but with a real fondness under-girding the satire. Perfect, as always.
(As an aside, only the Kindle version is listed on Goodreads, but I read this in the beautiful little paperback edition - with white and gilt gold cover - that I picked up in Hodges Figgis while doing a spot of Christmas shopping. E-readers are incapable of facilitating the experience of serendipitously stumbling on a book you didn't know you wanted in a bookshop. Rant over.)
(As an aside, only the Kindle version is listed on Goodreads, but I read this in the beautiful little paperback edition - with white and gilt gold cover - that I picked up in Hodges Figgis while doing a spot of Christmas shopping. E-readers are incapable of facilitating the experience of serendipitously stumbling on a book you didn't know you wanted in a bookshop. Rant over.)
January 1, 2023
Literally a 48-page book read out of desperation because I was afraid I wouldn't finish my reading challenge. I'm not proud of it, but Katherine bought it and it was there and I was desperate and I did what I had to do. Font was 36pt.
It's like four stories about Christmas, with general Grinch-vibes. It was funny in the way that a lot of Victorian books are—written extremely directly, and poking fun at social conventions from the time or people with strange manners. My favorite story was probably the last, which was about how ridiculous thank-you notes and courtesy gifts are. Thrilling stuff!
The question I was left with was, why? Why publish this? Why write this? Why was the writer targeting Christmas? Certainly enjoyable, but was it necessary like at all? Who greenlit this? Why is it still being published? What?
It's like four stories about Christmas, with general Grinch-vibes. It was funny in the way that a lot of Victorian books are—written extremely directly, and poking fun at social conventions from the time or people with strange manners. My favorite story was probably the last, which was about how ridiculous thank-you notes and courtesy gifts are. Thrilling stuff!
The question I was left with was, why? Why publish this? Why write this? Why was the writer targeting Christmas? Certainly enjoyable, but was it necessary like at all? Who greenlit this? Why is it still being published? What?
December 31, 2025
23.12.2025
No change in rating.
5.12.2021
Although I said two years ago that these stories aren't Saki's best, they can handle another read (and the gorgeous white and gold cover is just too pretty to be left on the shelf forever). Not warm Christmas stories that are usually suitable for this time of year, but instead, they're funny, witty, mischievous, and cheeky, but never in a mean and nasty sort of way. They're like fluffy meringue you have after a heavy meal or something you dive into between festive chores.
17.12.2019
I already own a book that contains all of Saki's short stories, but Daunt Books's festive white and gold edition, which I knew would be juxtaposed with sly and witty humor, was too beautiful to disregard. Not his best, but the dealing with dull relatives, the complicated logic of how to write thank you notes etc. were a great accompaniment for listening to Christmas carols and eating cider pears with whipped cream.
No change in rating.
5.12.2021
Although I said two years ago that these stories aren't Saki's best, they can handle another read (and the gorgeous white and gold cover is just too pretty to be left on the shelf forever). Not warm Christmas stories that are usually suitable for this time of year, but instead, they're funny, witty, mischievous, and cheeky, but never in a mean and nasty sort of way. They're like fluffy meringue you have after a heavy meal or something you dive into between festive chores.
17.12.2019
I already own a book that contains all of Saki's short stories, but Daunt Books's festive white and gold edition, which I knew would be juxtaposed with sly and witty humor, was too beautiful to disregard. Not his best, but the dealing with dull relatives, the complicated logic of how to write thank you notes etc. were a great accompaniment for listening to Christmas carols and eating cider pears with whipped cream.
"Thank you very much for the ham; not such a good flavour as the one you sent last year, which itself was not a particularly good one. Hams are not what they used to be."
December 28, 2023
Two of the six stories in this short book concern Saki’s early character Reginald, a snappily dressed young man who fancies his chances with any young women he meets. He appears quite frequently in early Saki stories.
In ‘Christmas Revel’, Reginald is spending the holiday with some distant relations of his father’s, the Babwolds. The festivities are quite typical, parlour games, extended trivial conversation and Reginald’s attempts to escape from it all. He mischievously manages to escape, but that entails him travelling on Boxing Day.
In the following story Reginald shares his thoughts on Christmas presents..
It’s a welcome diversion, not just from the usual Christmas short story fare, but also as an excuse to get away from the sort of interactions with relatives the stories concern.
In ‘Christmas Revel’, Reginald is spending the holiday with some distant relations of his father’s, the Babwolds. The festivities are quite typical, parlour games, extended trivial conversation and Reginald’s attempts to escape from it all. He mischievously manages to escape, but that entails him travelling on Boxing Day.
Mrs Babwold wears a rather solemn personality, and has never been known to smile, even when saying disagreeable things to her friends. She takes her pleasures sadly. Her husband gardens in all weathers. When a man goes out in the pouring rain to brush caterpillars off rose trees, I generally imagine his life indoors leaves something to be desired; anyway, it must be very unsettling for the caterpillars.
In the following story Reginald shares his thoughts on Christmas presents..
There ought to be technical education classes on the science of present-giving. No one seems to have the faintest notion of what anyone else wants, and the prevalent ideas on the subject are not creditable to a civilised community.
It’s a welcome diversion, not just from the usual Christmas short story fare, but also as an excuse to get away from the sort of interactions with relatives the stories concern.
December 29, 2021
I have to confess that short story collections aren't really my jam. They usually seem to be a mixed bag. I appreciated Saki's dry wit that was especially present in Bertie’s Christmas Eve. However, not really having a background in Edwardian history or the upper classes who inhabited English country estates, I felt I was missing a lot of the nuance threaded throughout the stories.
January 11, 2021
Não compreendo como é que Saki não é tão conhecido como Wilde. Estas histórias mostram que tinha um humor incisivo e irresistível.
December 1, 2021
2.5/5
A tiny book, super quick to read, with an easy style.
The topic of Edwardian Christmases in well-off families is very light and quite forgettable to me, but I wasn't bored, I just wasn't invested either.
A tiny book, super quick to read, with an easy style.
The topic of Edwardian Christmases in well-off families is very light and quite forgettable to me, but I wasn't bored, I just wasn't invested either.
December 18, 2021
Mlle Alice, pouvez-vous nous raconter votre rencontre avec Christmas with Dull People ?
"Dès que les fêtes approchent, je répertorie inlassablement tout les titres qui comportent les mots "Noël, hiver ou neige" afin de me constituer une PAL pour l'occasion. Et celui-ci, en plus de sa jolie couverture, m'a beaucoup fait rire."
Dites-nous en un peu plus sur son histoire...
"Il s'agit de quatre très courtes nouvelles de l'auteur Saki, satiriques à souhait, sur Noël, les membres de sa famille, les cadeaux que l'on reçoit et autres désagréments..."
Mais que s'est-il exactement passé entre vous ?
"Je me suis régalée de bout en bout, c'est exactement l'humour que j'aime, à l'anglaise, plein de satire et d'ironie. Je ne connaissais pas l'auteur et je le regrette mais j'ai bien l'intention de réparer cela. Moi qui ne suis pas friande de nouvelles pourtant, j'ai trouvé celles-ci parfaites, surtout les deux premières autour du personnage de Reginald. Et ce qu'il dit est tellement juste en plus... J'ai ri à plusieurs reprises d'y retrouver des pensées ou des évènements de mes propres Noël."
Et comment cela s'est-il fini ?
"Bien sûr que c'était trop court, bien sûr qu'il y en avait trop peu. Juste ce qu'il faut pour me mettre l'eau à la bouche... C'est le cadeau parfait à glisser dans les chaussettes de Noël de vos amis et de votre famille, à condition qu'ils aient un peu d'humour, évidemment..."
http://booksaremywonderland.hautetfor...
"Dès que les fêtes approchent, je répertorie inlassablement tout les titres qui comportent les mots "Noël, hiver ou neige" afin de me constituer une PAL pour l'occasion. Et celui-ci, en plus de sa jolie couverture, m'a beaucoup fait rire."
Dites-nous en un peu plus sur son histoire...
"Il s'agit de quatre très courtes nouvelles de l'auteur Saki, satiriques à souhait, sur Noël, les membres de sa famille, les cadeaux que l'on reçoit et autres désagréments..."
Mais que s'est-il exactement passé entre vous ?
"Je me suis régalée de bout en bout, c'est exactement l'humour que j'aime, à l'anglaise, plein de satire et d'ironie. Je ne connaissais pas l'auteur et je le regrette mais j'ai bien l'intention de réparer cela. Moi qui ne suis pas friande de nouvelles pourtant, j'ai trouvé celles-ci parfaites, surtout les deux premières autour du personnage de Reginald. Et ce qu'il dit est tellement juste en plus... J'ai ri à plusieurs reprises d'y retrouver des pensées ou des évènements de mes propres Noël."
Et comment cela s'est-il fini ?
"Bien sûr que c'était trop court, bien sûr qu'il y en avait trop peu. Juste ce qu'il faut pour me mettre l'eau à la bouche... C'est le cadeau parfait à glisser dans les chaussettes de Noël de vos amis et de votre famille, à condition qu'ils aient un peu d'humour, évidemment..."
http://booksaremywonderland.hautetfor...
December 25, 2025
3.44⭐
in these four Christmastime stories Saki mocks the dullness of obligatory family gatherings. He highlights the ridiculousness of unwanted presents and forced gratitude. The stories lampoon the upper-class customs of Edwardian England, exposing their pretentiousness and lack of joy. Despite being written over a century ago, the wit still resonates with modern readers who find holiday traditions tiresome.
Reginald’s Christmas Revel 3.25⭐
Reginald on Christmas Presents 3.5⭐
Bertie’s Christmas Eve 3.5⭐
Down Pens 3.5⭐
in these four Christmastime stories Saki mocks the dullness of obligatory family gatherings. He highlights the ridiculousness of unwanted presents and forced gratitude. The stories lampoon the upper-class customs of Edwardian England, exposing their pretentiousness and lack of joy. Despite being written over a century ago, the wit still resonates with modern readers who find holiday traditions tiresome.
Reginald’s Christmas Revel 3.25⭐
Reginald on Christmas Presents 3.5⭐
Bertie’s Christmas Eve 3.5⭐
Down Pens 3.5⭐
December 25, 2025
Literalmente yo.
Me encantan sus comentarios, es exactamente como me he sentido esta semana.
Mi ranking de historias:
#4: La más relatable.
#2: Escoger regalos y que te escojan es el infierno.
#1: Todos queremos huir.
#3: Meh, supongo que tenía más gracia en su momento.
Me encantan sus comentarios, es exactamente como me he sentido esta semana.
Mi ranking de historias:
#4: La más relatable.
#2: Escoger regalos y que te escojan es el infierno.
#1: Todos queremos huir.
#3: Meh, supongo que tenía más gracia en su momento.
December 17, 2017
A slip of a book and nothing to write home about. But if you don’t want to break your reading habit on a really busy Christmas Day, this will keep you entertained for 30 minutes.
July 5, 2022
A very small book, but an enjoyable read. A total of just 48 pages and very quirky. Five short stories provide more than a few laughs.
December 20, 2025
3.5 - witty, yet cynical, short xmas stories, quite fun and very quick read
November 6, 2021
This was a quick and fun read, and made me laugh. A collection of satirical short stories about Christmas’ obligations and social traditions.
December 22, 2020
CHRISTMAS WITH DULL PEOPLE is a slip of a book containing four Christmas short-stories. The title is programmatic, here’s the gist of what happens:
1. Charades with Mrs Babworld and Major Something … so dull!
2. Selecting presents … the ennui, pfui!
3. Playing pranks on guests … slightly less boring, but still!
4. Writing thank you notes … excessively tedious!
At 48 pages a quick literary snack – and such an enjoyable one! Saki portrayed the Ennui Extravaganzas of the Edwardian English Elite (alliteration alert!) with sly and witty humour reminiscient of Jeeves and Wooster – there were strong Bertie vibes all around.
1. Charades with Mrs Babworld and Major Something … so dull!
2. Selecting presents … the ennui, pfui!
3. Playing pranks on guests … slightly less boring, but still!
4. Writing thank you notes … excessively tedious!
At 48 pages a quick literary snack – and such an enjoyable one! Saki portrayed the Ennui Extravaganzas of the Edwardian English Elite (alliteration alert!) with sly and witty humour reminiscient of Jeeves and Wooster – there were strong Bertie vibes all around.
July 2, 2019
As it turns out, the perfect size (and level of intellectual demandingness) for reading between being shown memes by your daughter on a trip to and from Oxford Street to buy Christmas presents. Only gets three because it is so small and I need to start a tag in Goodreads called #whydidipaysomuchforlessthananhiursworthofreading
December 25, 2018
I did chuckle while Reading this book.However, I don't think I'll remembre a single story this time next year. Hell, I'm having trouble remembering them now and it's been just 2 weeks since I read them.
December 16, 2025
This is such a story that leaves behind an aftertaste—not bitterness, but recognition.
The brilliance here lies in tone. Nothing overtly cruel happens. Instead, the narrative suffocates under niceness.
Saki understands that dullness, when sanctified by tradition, becomes tyrannical. Politeness traps the characters in a ritual where escape would be impolite and therefore unthinkable.
Postmodern in spirit, the story recognises performance fatigue. Everyone knows the script. Everyone resents it.
No one admits this. Saki mines the comedy of repression, showing how celebration can hollow itself out through repetition and expectation.
The humour is quiet, observational, and merciless. Saki does not exaggerate; he narrows the frame. The claustrophobia emerges organically. What should be warm becomes stifling. What should be meaningful becomes mechanical.
Read today, the story feels painfully contemporary. It anticipates the modern dread of obligatory happiness, curated gatherings, and performative belonging.
Saki reminds us that dullness is not a lack of intelligence but a refusal of curiosity.
This story reads like a social hostage situation disguised as holiday cheer. Saki captures the unique horror of enforced festivity—the way joy becomes obligation, and boredom acquires moral authority.
An exceptional read. Try it out.
The brilliance here lies in tone. Nothing overtly cruel happens. Instead, the narrative suffocates under niceness.
Saki understands that dullness, when sanctified by tradition, becomes tyrannical. Politeness traps the characters in a ritual where escape would be impolite and therefore unthinkable.
Postmodern in spirit, the story recognises performance fatigue. Everyone knows the script. Everyone resents it.
No one admits this. Saki mines the comedy of repression, showing how celebration can hollow itself out through repetition and expectation.
The humour is quiet, observational, and merciless. Saki does not exaggerate; he narrows the frame. The claustrophobia emerges organically. What should be warm becomes stifling. What should be meaningful becomes mechanical.
Read today, the story feels painfully contemporary. It anticipates the modern dread of obligatory happiness, curated gatherings, and performative belonging.
Saki reminds us that dullness is not a lack of intelligence but a refusal of curiosity.
This story reads like a social hostage situation disguised as holiday cheer. Saki captures the unique horror of enforced festivity—the way joy becomes obligation, and boredom acquires moral authority.
An exceptional read. Try it out.
January 5, 2025
So surprised on finishing this to read in the brief bio at the end that Saki was killed in World War I. His humour still feels fresh and modern and distinctly Wodehouseian. There are sprinklings of difficult aunts and undesirable neckties as well as a young bounder named Bertie. This line in particular could have been lifted from the pages of a Jeeves and Wooster novel: “the watchers in the cow house were treated to a highly unauthorised rendering of ‘Good King Wenceslas’ in which the adjective ‘good’ appeared to be very carelessly applied.” At first I thought a story about the ennui of writing thank you letters for Christmas gifts was funny enough but so far out of current social mores that it had no relevance today. However, the solution that Egbert proposes sounds rather similar to the way we now exchange greetings on social media. Will definitely look for more Saki!
December 27, 2018
3.5 stars
A lovely little collection of short Christmas stories. I've never read anything by Saki before, but was fairly prepared for his style and I got exactly what I expected. As always with such a small volume, I wouldn't have minded if it were longer, but given that I read it on the train on my way to celebrate Christmas with family it was actually the perfect length. The shortness, however, also meant that there was not enough content to manage to blow me away before it was over again. I smiled and was entertained and am now looking forward to reading my other collection by Saki, Improper Stories.
A lovely little collection of short Christmas stories. I've never read anything by Saki before, but was fairly prepared for his style and I got exactly what I expected. As always with such a small volume, I wouldn't have minded if it were longer, but given that I read it on the train on my way to celebrate Christmas with family it was actually the perfect length. The shortness, however, also meant that there was not enough content to manage to blow me away before it was over again. I smiled and was entertained and am now looking forward to reading my other collection by Saki, Improper Stories.
December 30, 2020
Spared a Christmas with any dull people this year, the fine folks at Daunt Books reminded me to revisit years past with this short but sweet little book from Saki, England’s “finest short stories writer”. If David Sedaris were born at the turn of the 20th century, he would have been Saki. Wry, witty, not one word extraneous or out of place. Some might describe his writing as depressing but I think humor writing always has some hope in it. There’s hope to be found in shenanigans and jokes—lots of it—especially at Christmas.
January 11, 2024
I bought this because I loved the title and knew anything written by Saki would be good . He really is the master of short stories .’Reginald on Christmas Presents’ is one of the finest satirical skewering of the upper classes I’ve read .’Down Pens’ is also so good at how we all buy presents for people we don’t like to receive gifts back we don’t need ! The whole ridiculousness of Christmas is brilliantly exposed .
December 10, 2025
This is a tiny gem of a book, easy to motor through in an hour. The first chapter had me rolling around on the floor, laughing uncontrollably. It’s that good! Perfection, in fact.
The other chapters hadn’t time travelled quite so well - lots of talk of presents from Edwardian aunts, locking relations in a cattle shed, and a chapter about writing identical waffle to say thank you to each gift giver. But that first chapter - read it!
The other chapters hadn’t time travelled quite so well - lots of talk of presents from Edwardian aunts, locking relations in a cattle shed, and a chapter about writing identical waffle to say thank you to each gift giver. But that first chapter - read it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 7, 2020
This little book was a joy to read out loud and laugh out loud over. I would never have guessed it was written before the first world war. The stories were immediately engaging and as witty and funny on English life and society as P.G. Wodehouse. I look forward to finding a bigger collection of his work.
December 27, 2019
Whizzed through this one in an hour... certainly a light read, literary Prosecco, perhaps. I enjoyed the Wodehouse-esque references to aunts, cousins, nephews etc, and the corresponding sharp wit and absurd storylines. Especially liked the thank-you letters farce, still pertinent today. Thank goodness my Christmas involved no boring people!
January 10, 2020
This was a 48-page collection of four short, sharp stories satirising Edwardian social norms around Christmas. I don't think I've read any Saki before and enjoyed his cutting wit. I enjoyed the last story, which concerned the writing of thank you letters, the most.
November 16, 2017
A lovely little paperback gift book - a perfect stocking filler - though so slight you can read it in 10 minutes. Saki's sly wit remains a pleasure.
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