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Ukridge #2.1
Las disparatadas aventuras de Ukridge
The ten stories in Ukridge revolve around Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge's none-too-successful schemes to make some money.
286 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1924
77 people are currently reading
717 people want to read
About the author
P.G. Wodehouse
1,680 books6,927 followersSir 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).
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).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 187 reviews
December 8, 2021
I enjoyed this way more than the first time I read it. Here's my previous review from 2008:
This early Wodehouse work is much better than some of his sappy, drippy rom-com stuff, but it didn't quite meet the mark of some of his prime, later work.
"Ukridge" is a handful of short stories about a three-named English toff trying to swindle folks out of their brass. I feel like Wodehouse was toying with his model story here, working to create the perfect mould. He's got the plot thing sussed, but his characters need work. A few of them become recurring characters in his Jeeves & Wooster and Blandings work. It was fun to see early versions of Aunt Julia and Corky.
However, the fact of the matter is, the titular character, Ukridge, is a jerk. Maybe that's a bit harsh, but I just can't warm to him the way I did with Bertie Wooster. He's an ass and a nasty ass, while Bertie is merely a silly ass. Being a silly-ass is better than being a nasty ass.
When writing comedy, you usually want your reading public to like your main character or have them at least empathize with them on some level. Wodehouse probably figured that out soon after this was published.
As you can see I didn't really like this back then. I've changed my opinion. Ukridge isn't Wodehouse's best work, but it's quite good, especially for his early period. Much of the clever narrative he was known for can be found scattered about these pages. I snort-laughed about a half dozen times before I finished.
This early Wodehouse work is much better than some of his sappy, drippy rom-com stuff, but it didn't quite meet the mark of some of his prime, later work.
"Ukridge" is a handful of short stories about a three-named English toff trying to swindle folks out of their brass. I feel like Wodehouse was toying with his model story here, working to create the perfect mould. He's got the plot thing sussed, but his characters need work. A few of them become recurring characters in his Jeeves & Wooster and Blandings work. It was fun to see early versions of Aunt Julia and Corky.
However, the fact of the matter is, the titular character, Ukridge, is a jerk. Maybe that's a bit harsh, but I just can't warm to him the way I did with Bertie Wooster. He's an ass and a nasty ass, while Bertie is merely a silly ass. Being a silly-ass is better than being a nasty ass.
When writing comedy, you usually want your reading public to like your main character or have them at least empathize with them on some level. Wodehouse probably figured that out soon after this was published.
As you can see I didn't really like this back then. I've changed my opinion. Ukridge isn't Wodehouse's best work, but it's quite good, especially for his early period. Much of the clever narrative he was known for can be found scattered about these pages. I snort-laughed about a half dozen times before I finished.
March 28, 2020
Could it be that Wodehouse's craft had not really evolved by the time he created the character Ukridge ?
Ukridge is not particularly funny,nor is he all that likeable. He does not even appear to be the work of the same author who created Bertie Wooster,Jeeves and Blandings Castle.
Even die-hard Wodehouse fans can give this a miss.
Ukridge is not particularly funny,nor is he all that likeable. He does not even appear to be the work of the same author who created Bertie Wooster,Jeeves and Blandings Castle.
Even die-hard Wodehouse fans can give this a miss.
April 14, 2020
An amusing collection of 10 short stories about the hapless Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge, told by his school boy and long-suffering friend, the writer "Corky" Corcoran.
Ukridge is a quick witted scoundrel always on the lookout for quick rich schemes and dragging his friend Corky into his chaos. He gives con men a bad name. We see him in his mustard yellow overcoat try a dog training college, a syndicate for insuring a friend to be paid out if he has an accident to his boxing matches with Battling Billson. Always ending with Ukridge losing his money aside from one adventure.
All the stories will bring a smile to your day and you have to admire the tenacity, optimism and enthusiasm of the comical Ukridge.
Ukridge is a quick witted scoundrel always on the lookout for quick rich schemes and dragging his friend Corky into his chaos. He gives con men a bad name. We see him in his mustard yellow overcoat try a dog training college, a syndicate for insuring a friend to be paid out if he has an accident to his boxing matches with Battling Billson. Always ending with Ukridge losing his money aside from one adventure.
All the stories will bring a smile to your day and you have to admire the tenacity, optimism and enthusiasm of the comical Ukridge.
March 11, 2015
A quick glance through the ratings suggests that I may be in the minority in finding Ukridge unabashedly hilarious - albeit in a slightly horrifying way. Ukridge is an amoral scoundrel, but he's a somewhat likable scoundrel. There is an innocence, rather than a sense of evil, about his character. He's personable and likeable; he's just lazy and has no compunction about lying or stealing if it's convenient.
Rather than actually working for a living, Ukridge comes up with a succession of schemes to make money. Most go horribly awry, but about one in five works, to some extent. And that's about right - you don't want someone like Ukridge to win, usually, but he's likable enough that you want things to work out for him every once in a while.
These stories, narrated by Ukridge's more respectable friend Corky, are almost all meat. They're tightly woven, and have few or none of the romantic subplots found in other Wodehouse stories. The stories are interwoven to some extent - Battling Billson, that ill-fated boxer whom Ukridge took a stab at managing, appears in three of them, and Ukridge's rich aunt Julia shows up several times, even though she disowns her nephew pretty early in the proceedings. Again, many folks don't like these stories as much as the Jeeves or Blandings Castle stories, but I consider them first-rate Wodehouse.
Rather than actually working for a living, Ukridge comes up with a succession of schemes to make money. Most go horribly awry, but about one in five works, to some extent. And that's about right - you don't want someone like Ukridge to win, usually, but he's likable enough that you want things to work out for him every once in a while.
These stories, narrated by Ukridge's more respectable friend Corky, are almost all meat. They're tightly woven, and have few or none of the romantic subplots found in other Wodehouse stories. The stories are interwoven to some extent - Battling Billson, that ill-fated boxer whom Ukridge took a stab at managing, appears in three of them, and Ukridge's rich aunt Julia shows up several times, even though she disowns her nephew pretty early in the proceedings. Again, many folks don't like these stories as much as the Jeeves or Blandings Castle stories, but I consider them first-rate Wodehouse.
July 19, 2017
You know what? Wodehouse's writing is actually quite exquisite. That's the word for it. I notice that so many reviews of his work on goodreads start with a sort of apology: "it's a light read, but..."
Don't apologise for Wodehouse, people! One page of his "light entertainment" is more beautifully written than most things you will read this year.
I am new to this stuff, and having chosen two books at random to introduce myself, I can only surmise that this man was some kind of once in a century genius. I think this may be the start of a beautiful relationship...
Don't apologise for Wodehouse, people! One page of his "light entertainment" is more beautifully written than most things you will read this year.
I am new to this stuff, and having chosen two books at random to introduce myself, I can only surmise that this man was some kind of once in a century genius. I think this may be the start of a beautiful relationship...
October 25, 2007
‘Ukridge‘ was somewhat bizarrely published in America as ‘He Rather Enjoyed It’ and very enjoyable it is to, although it is not necessarily enjoyable to be a friend of Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge which is one of the most efficient ways to be separated from any money you may happen to have on you. Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge is conclusive proof that there is such a thing as a free lunch, he has been known to enjoy a number of them.
We first met Ukridge in ‘Love Among the Chickens’ when the recently married Ukridge was keen to make his fortune from a Chicken farm, this collection of short stories is set sometime before ‘Love Among the Chickens’ when Ukridge is single and culminates with his courtship of Millie who became his wife. Rather than be narrated by Jeremy Garnet this collection is written in the voice of Corky Corcoran who again is a writer of newspaper articles. Corky and Ukridge are school friends, old Wrykinian men of previous Wodehouse fame. Also present throughout the stories are George Tupper who is generally good for a couple of pounds and the spectre of Ukridge’s Aunt Julia who hangs over Ukridge’s every action; should he fail she will give him refuse and make him wear a stiff collar, ‘It’s rather thick for a fellow with a broad and flexible outlook’ as Ukridge would have it.
Ukridge’s Adventures take him from trying to start a school for dogs, kidnapping parrots, to managing Willie ‘Battling’ Billson (a pugilist of some skill but very little intelligence) and each venture generally fails except in managing to entertain and amuse. At last a Wodehouse hero not troubled by the old noblesse obliqe, ‘A capital fellow in many respects, but not a man lightly to be allowed at large’, fantastic.
We first met Ukridge in ‘Love Among the Chickens’ when the recently married Ukridge was keen to make his fortune from a Chicken farm, this collection of short stories is set sometime before ‘Love Among the Chickens’ when Ukridge is single and culminates with his courtship of Millie who became his wife. Rather than be narrated by Jeremy Garnet this collection is written in the voice of Corky Corcoran who again is a writer of newspaper articles. Corky and Ukridge are school friends, old Wrykinian men of previous Wodehouse fame. Also present throughout the stories are George Tupper who is generally good for a couple of pounds and the spectre of Ukridge’s Aunt Julia who hangs over Ukridge’s every action; should he fail she will give him refuse and make him wear a stiff collar, ‘It’s rather thick for a fellow with a broad and flexible outlook’ as Ukridge would have it.
Ukridge’s Adventures take him from trying to start a school for dogs, kidnapping parrots, to managing Willie ‘Battling’ Billson (a pugilist of some skill but very little intelligence) and each venture generally fails except in managing to entertain and amuse. At last a Wodehouse hero not troubled by the old noblesse obliqe, ‘A capital fellow in many respects, but not a man lightly to be allowed at large’, fantastic.
August 29, 2020
Ukridge – Uck!
This book received the ultimate and rare distinction of an abandoned book. Up to page 80, roughly 30% was all I could stand. And I am a fan of Wodehouse!
The narrator, “Corky” Corcoran cannot stop getting involved with Ukridge (a former classmate, albeit one who was expelled) and his schemes to get rich, or to at least relieve anyone, especially family and friends, of large sums of money. He also leaches, “borrows,” and takes advantage of anyone, and especially from the sap Corky. The harebrained plots Ukbridge devises usually telegraph the disaster they become. (dog college, boxing star)
Of course it’s funny that Corky would “help out a fellow,” as young upper class gentlemen generally do, even if that “fellow” is a scoundrel whose plans are unethical, dishonest, and even unlawful. Maybe it’s funny that Corky is too weak or too much of a gentleman (?) to get rid of him or to say No when the lout has trashed his home and taken his last pair of socks. Pip pip!
So this reader found two characters difficult to like (one, impossible), schemes that set teeth in the “grit” position, and all that was left was the wonderful prose and happy sentences that Wodehouse writes.
Back to Jeeves and Wooster!
This book received the ultimate and rare distinction of an abandoned book. Up to page 80, roughly 30% was all I could stand. And I am a fan of Wodehouse!
The narrator, “Corky” Corcoran cannot stop getting involved with Ukridge (a former classmate, albeit one who was expelled) and his schemes to get rich, or to at least relieve anyone, especially family and friends, of large sums of money. He also leaches, “borrows,” and takes advantage of anyone, and especially from the sap Corky. The harebrained plots Ukbridge devises usually telegraph the disaster they become. (dog college, boxing star)
Of course it’s funny that Corky would “help out a fellow,” as young upper class gentlemen generally do, even if that “fellow” is a scoundrel whose plans are unethical, dishonest, and even unlawful. Maybe it’s funny that Corky is too weak or too much of a gentleman (?) to get rid of him or to say No when the lout has trashed his home and taken his last pair of socks. Pip pip!
So this reader found two characters difficult to like (one, impossible), schemes that set teeth in the “grit” position, and all that was left was the wonderful prose and happy sentences that Wodehouse writes.
Back to Jeeves and Wooster!
March 11, 2012
This is another of genius works of Wodehouse. Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge is a man with absolutely a non-existent job and keeps on devising outrageous plans to make a fortune. He is very optimistic as he starts dreaming of owning a fortune when he gets the slightest scent of money coming his way. His plans no doubt show no sign of pragmatism, but he always manages his friend Corky Corcoran to help him. He puts Corky in a situation and somehow convinces to help him, though Corky is almost very sure about the inanes of his plans. This book contains ten hilarious stories which will entertain the reader and will make one appreciate Wodehouse humour. Who on earth could come up something called a "Dog College"? :)
August 16, 2014
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2023
ENGLISH: I was not aware of having read before this collection of stories with Ukridge as main character, but when I started reading it now, I found I knew what was going to happen in some of the stories. That makes me surmise that I had read it many years ago and forgot to take a note. Sometimes this happens :-( Let's look at a few quotes that made me laugh:
"I've been reading your book... It's immense, laddie... I've been crying like a child." "It is supposed to be a humorous novel," I pointed out coldly. "Crying with laughter," explained Ukridge hurriedly.
...she didn't want his looks spoiled... His looks!... he hasn't got any looks. There isn't any possible manner in which you could treat that man's face without improving it.
Alf Todd... has about as much chance as a one-armed blind man in a dark room trying to shove a pound of melted butter into a wildcat's left ear with a red-hot needle."
"Ukridge rounds a nasty corner" is interesting, for we learn in this story how Ukridge got married to Millie. They are already married at the beginning of Love Among the Chickens, which was published first and I have read six times.
ESPAÑOL: No recordaba haber leído antes esta colección de cuentos con Ukridge como personaje principal, pero cuando empecé a leerla descubrí que a veces podía predecir lo que iba a ocurrir después. Esto me hace pensar que la había leído hace muchos años, pero olvidé tomar nota. No sería la primera vez :-( Veamos unas pocas citas que me hicieron reír:
"He estado leyendo tu libro... Es inmenso, muchacho... He llorado como un niño". "Se supone que es una novela de humor", señalé con frialdad. "Lloré de risa", explicó Ukridge apresuradamente.
...ella no quería que estropearan su aspecto... ¡Su aspecto!... No hay forma de tratar el rostro de ese hombre sin que mejore de aspecto.
Alf Todd... tiene tantas posibilidades como un ciego manco en una habitación oscura tratando de meter una libra de mantequilla derretida en la oreja izquierda de un gato montés con una aguja al rojo vivo".
"Ukridge escapa de una situación desagradable" es interesante, porque en este cuento nos enteramos de cómo Ukridge llegó a casarse con Millie. Ya están casados al principio de Amor y gallinas, que se publicó antes y que he leído seis veces.
"I've been reading your book... It's immense, laddie... I've been crying like a child." "It is supposed to be a humorous novel," I pointed out coldly. "Crying with laughter," explained Ukridge hurriedly.
...she didn't want his looks spoiled... His looks!... he hasn't got any looks. There isn't any possible manner in which you could treat that man's face without improving it.
Alf Todd... has about as much chance as a one-armed blind man in a dark room trying to shove a pound of melted butter into a wildcat's left ear with a red-hot needle."
"Ukridge rounds a nasty corner" is interesting, for we learn in this story how Ukridge got married to Millie. They are already married at the beginning of Love Among the Chickens, which was published first and I have read six times.
ESPAÑOL: No recordaba haber leído antes esta colección de cuentos con Ukridge como personaje principal, pero cuando empecé a leerla descubrí que a veces podía predecir lo que iba a ocurrir después. Esto me hace pensar que la había leído hace muchos años, pero olvidé tomar nota. No sería la primera vez :-( Veamos unas pocas citas que me hicieron reír:
"He estado leyendo tu libro... Es inmenso, muchacho... He llorado como un niño". "Se supone que es una novela de humor", señalé con frialdad. "Lloré de risa", explicó Ukridge apresuradamente.
...ella no quería que estropearan su aspecto... ¡Su aspecto!... No hay forma de tratar el rostro de ese hombre sin que mejore de aspecto.
Alf Todd... tiene tantas posibilidades como un ciego manco en una habitación oscura tratando de meter una libra de mantequilla derretida en la oreja izquierda de un gato montés con una aguja al rojo vivo".
"Ukridge escapa de una situación desagradable" es interesante, porque en este cuento nos enteramos de cómo Ukridge llegó a casarse con Millie. Ya están casados al principio de Amor y gallinas, que se publicó antes y que he leído seis veces.
August 4, 2015
Ukridge is as light as English Tea. The book assumes no grandeur nor does it pack any melodrama and makes for a perfect simple read.
Stanley Featherstonebough Ukridge - has more character in his name than in real life. He always has some outrageous scheme to make money and ever inclined to borrow money or pinch a favor from his friends. His friend Corky Corcoran bears the brunt of Ukridge's plans. The other characters such as wrestler Billson, Aunt Julia and his successful friends are people your heart goes out to.
The book contains 10 light chapters that narrate each venture starting from a dog university to bookies. Some of them are ingenious and laced with Ukridge's optimism seem like the perfect plan only for Murphy to strike. The humor of PG Wodehouse is subtle and springs at you through lines out of nowhere. One of the easy light reads.
Stanley Featherstonebough Ukridge - has more character in his name than in real life. He always has some outrageous scheme to make money and ever inclined to borrow money or pinch a favor from his friends. His friend Corky Corcoran bears the brunt of Ukridge's plans. The other characters such as wrestler Billson, Aunt Julia and his successful friends are people your heart goes out to.
The book contains 10 light chapters that narrate each venture starting from a dog university to bookies. Some of them are ingenious and laced with Ukridge's optimism seem like the perfect plan only for Murphy to strike. The humor of PG Wodehouse is subtle and springs at you through lines out of nowhere. One of the easy light reads.
January 3, 2011
Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge is one of those characters always on the lookout for a fast buck, and even though his schemes are leakier than a boat made of Swiss cheese, he is incorrigible. This is probably because the consequences of the nutty ventures are borne not by Ukrdige but tend to fall on the unknowing friends whom he's roped into the racket.
Ukridge is probably Wodehouse's most unlikable protagonist and I only put up with a whole volume of stories involving his crackpot money-spinners because of Corky Corcoran, Ukridge's old school chum and only ally and the narrator of the stories. That, and it's Wodehouse, and even substandard Wodehouse is superior in turn of phrase and humour than most.
Ukridge is probably Wodehouse's most unlikable protagonist and I only put up with a whole volume of stories involving his crackpot money-spinners because of Corky Corcoran, Ukridge's old school chum and only ally and the narrator of the stories. That, and it's Wodehouse, and even substandard Wodehouse is superior in turn of phrase and humour than most.
October 16, 2022
At first I found Ukridge to be extremely annoying. I did not like how people let him get away with his irresponsibility and he seemed to be a sociopathic con artist. As I continued reading, I become amazed how he was able to get what he wanted and realized that his behavior and the results were starting to seem totally hilarious and then I appreciated Wodehouse even more.
September 7, 2017
3.5* for the book, rounded up to 4* due to Jonathan Cecil's narration.
While having a friend like Ukridge would make life interesting, I am sure glad that I don't have such a friend!
While having a friend like Ukridge would make life interesting, I am sure glad that I don't have such a friend!
May 24, 2024
'Ukridge' by P.G. Wodehouse.
Rating: 4.5/5.
Review:
Ukridge, a collection of ten short stories featuring the titular character, was first published in the United Kingdom in 1924. Almost a century later, in 2024, I had the golden opportunity to read my first-ever P.G. Wodehouse works in the form of this short story collection. Regrettably, I should have picked it up sooner for as soon as I started reading this book, it transported me to a different place and a different time, far away from the worries and stress of the modern world.
Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge, an irresponsible lad, is always bursting with bright ideas to earn some quick money. Alas, his efforts always end up in some misfortunes, much to the chagrin of his close friends and associates who have somehow unwittingly been part of his fantastical plans. The Ukridge collection contains ten similar outrageous misadventures of Stanley Ukridge and his associates. Although these short stories can be read individually, I do recommend reading them back-to-back and in order since they form a nice continuity when read in that manner.
Although most of these stories are simplistic and have low stakes involved, there is a certain magic contained within Wodehouse's writing that makes the story captivating to the readers. The rich prose and the matter-of-fact humour add a spark to the slice-of-life elements of the story. I was enamoured by Wodehouse's prose by the time I had finished the first short story contained within this book. I was so much in love with these stories that if it were up to me, I would have written individual reviews for these short stories on Goodreads, but unfortunately, barring the first two short stories, Goodreads didn't have separate sections for the remaining stories. Alas, I shall have to make do with writing a review for the entire short story collection instead!
Although Ukridge has some insane ideas on earning quick cash that, more often than not, usually borders on fraud or cheating of some sort, Wodehouse's writing is such that it makes you root for him. By the end of the third short story, I was just as exasperated by his antics as his old friend (and the narrator of these stories), James "Corky" Corcoran. And, as the stories progressed, my sympathies sided with Corky because he often ended up being one of the casualties of Ukridge's misfortunes. Nonetheless, the writing still made me root for Ukridge and Corky's plight as the events unfolded, and to my great delight, the final story wrapped up the collection in a satisfactory manner.
I have been informed that since Ukridge was one of P.G. Wodehouse's earliest works, it isn't one of his best. However, since I was completely mesmerized by his prose, humour, and storytelling abilities, merely by sampling the Ukridge collection, I can't wait to see what else his much more popular books have to offer when I decide to tackle them next.
I was silent for a moment, conscious of a feeling almost of reverence. This man was undoubtedly spacious. There had always been something about Ukridge that dulled the moral sense.
Rating: 4.5/5.
Review:
Ukridge, a collection of ten short stories featuring the titular character, was first published in the United Kingdom in 1924. Almost a century later, in 2024, I had the golden opportunity to read my first-ever P.G. Wodehouse works in the form of this short story collection. Regrettably, I should have picked it up sooner for as soon as I started reading this book, it transported me to a different place and a different time, far away from the worries and stress of the modern world.
Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge, an irresponsible lad, is always bursting with bright ideas to earn some quick money. Alas, his efforts always end up in some misfortunes, much to the chagrin of his close friends and associates who have somehow unwittingly been part of his fantastical plans. The Ukridge collection contains ten similar outrageous misadventures of Stanley Ukridge and his associates. Although these short stories can be read individually, I do recommend reading them back-to-back and in order since they form a nice continuity when read in that manner.
Although most of these stories are simplistic and have low stakes involved, there is a certain magic contained within Wodehouse's writing that makes the story captivating to the readers. The rich prose and the matter-of-fact humour add a spark to the slice-of-life elements of the story. I was enamoured by Wodehouse's prose by the time I had finished the first short story contained within this book. I was so much in love with these stories that if it were up to me, I would have written individual reviews for these short stories on Goodreads, but unfortunately, barring the first two short stories, Goodreads didn't have separate sections for the remaining stories. Alas, I shall have to make do with writing a review for the entire short story collection instead!
Although Ukridge has some insane ideas on earning quick cash that, more often than not, usually borders on fraud or cheating of some sort, Wodehouse's writing is such that it makes you root for him. By the end of the third short story, I was just as exasperated by his antics as his old friend (and the narrator of these stories), James "Corky" Corcoran. And, as the stories progressed, my sympathies sided with Corky because he often ended up being one of the casualties of Ukridge's misfortunes. Nonetheless, the writing still made me root for Ukridge and Corky's plight as the events unfolded, and to my great delight, the final story wrapped up the collection in a satisfactory manner.
I have been informed that since Ukridge was one of P.G. Wodehouse's earliest works, it isn't one of his best. However, since I was completely mesmerized by his prose, humour, and storytelling abilities, merely by sampling the Ukridge collection, I can't wait to see what else his much more popular books have to offer when I decide to tackle them next.
December 9, 2019
You're shaking your head with bitter laughter as you mark the page with your index finger in Ukridge. And yet there's nothing cynical in it. In these stories the humor is knowing and humane, even if the laughter comes at our own expense. Thank you Wodehouse for making me laugh about what a dumbass I truly am, all the while raising the bar and using language the way it was meant to be used. Here laughter comes from those places where wobbly hopes and dreams intersect, and are eventually dashed, by the locomotion of reality. Pretty much our everyday human condition. Wodehouse sets it up so that you can see it coming round the bend... and yet you laugh about it while the crazy dream dies, and you get to win anyway.
Oh yeah, it's so,so dated. And still so, so good. This kind of humor works not because of clever one-liners (there are actually plenty of them despite the century or more of jetlag) but because of the way the characters and the stories are built. It's an architectural humor. When excellent writing is not about "look at how clever I am" but about achieving an unexpected effect, the goal of which is to make you laugh out loud and have people give you dirty looks on the bus or in the library or wherever.
Usually it’s the other way around, we’re crying as our dreams, or other people’s dreams, are crushed.
So thanks P.G. ... speaking for humanity... we needed that.
Oh yeah, it's so,so dated. And still so, so good. This kind of humor works not because of clever one-liners (there are actually plenty of them despite the century or more of jetlag) but because of the way the characters and the stories are built. It's an architectural humor. When excellent writing is not about "look at how clever I am" but about achieving an unexpected effect, the goal of which is to make you laugh out loud and have people give you dirty looks on the bus or in the library or wherever.
Usually it’s the other way around, we’re crying as our dreams, or other people’s dreams, are crushed.
So thanks P.G. ... speaking for humanity... we needed that.
October 17, 2021
“There had always been something about Ukridge that dulled the moral sense”
I believe I read once that Ukridge, in addition to being Plum's longest-running character, was also his favorite. He's so much more a bounder than Plum's other regulars - one can imagine he is as enormously fun to write as he is delightful to read.
I am surprised Ealing Studios never got their hands on Ukridge, there are several stories that seem tailor-made for their dark & sanguine style.
(Ukridge’s Accident Syndicate numbers among the best of Wodehouse's short stories.)
I believe I read once that Ukridge, in addition to being Plum's longest-running character, was also his favorite. He's so much more a bounder than Plum's other regulars - one can imagine he is as enormously fun to write as he is delightful to read.
I am surprised Ealing Studios never got their hands on Ukridge, there are several stories that seem tailor-made for their dark & sanguine style.
(Ukridge’s Accident Syndicate numbers among the best of Wodehouse's short stories.)
December 2, 2020
Ok suffices. The accident syndicate was easily the best part of this book, but the rest mostly became an exercise in waiting for the inevitable trainwrecks. I enjoyed this book more than my first go, so perhaps lowered expectations matter.
March 4, 2022
“You know me, old horse,” said Ukridge, sipping luxuriously. “Keen, alert, far-sighted. Brain never still. Always getting ideas – bing – like a flash.”
That, in essence, is Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge for you. One of the characters Wodehouse crafted early in his long writing career.
Despite having read Ukridge’s escapades in Wodehouse’s other short story collections, I never did take a liking for him. Until, of course, I picked up this collection of ten short stories titled Ukridge. At the end of this collection, I find myself genuinely fond of the blighter. Ukridge is like beer… you may dislike it initially, but you certainly develop a taste for it. And the more you consume, the more you appreciate the nuances of the brew. He may not have you laughing in stitches, but he will keep a smile on your face, as you wonder what kind of hairbrained scheme he will come up with next.
The second short story in this collection, Ukridge’s Accident Syndicate was included in Wodehouse on Crime. At that time, I had rated that story a 3. In retrospect, the story merits more than that. As do the remaining nine in this collection.
That, in essence, is Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge for you. One of the characters Wodehouse crafted early in his long writing career.
Despite having read Ukridge’s escapades in Wodehouse’s other short story collections, I never did take a liking for him. Until, of course, I picked up this collection of ten short stories titled Ukridge. At the end of this collection, I find myself genuinely fond of the blighter. Ukridge is like beer… you may dislike it initially, but you certainly develop a taste for it. And the more you consume, the more you appreciate the nuances of the brew. He may not have you laughing in stitches, but he will keep a smile on your face, as you wonder what kind of hairbrained scheme he will come up with next.
The second short story in this collection, Ukridge’s Accident Syndicate was included in Wodehouse on Crime. At that time, I had rated that story a 3. In retrospect, the story merits more than that. As do the remaining nine in this collection.
December 9, 2018
Plum’s detailed study of entrepreneurial capitalism in industries such as dog training and boxing.
April 14, 2023
Oh, Ukridge. Yes, the basic storyline is the same, but the execution remains peerless. Wodehouse grows rather fond of Stanley by the end, and (no thanks to his own schemes, mind you) allows him a happy ending or two.
If I had to choose a standout, Battling Billson vs. the Welsh revival really speaks to me. It has the big, broad, flexible outlook.
If I had to choose a standout, Battling Billson vs. the Welsh revival really speaks to me. It has the big, broad, flexible outlook.
November 8, 2017
This audiobook offers a collection of humorous short stories featuring the contrived exploits of Stanley Featherstonehaugh Ukridge and how his complicated plots were usually foiled by happenstance.
December 12, 2018
First time reading a book about Ukridge. Not as laugh-out-loud as Jeeves and Wooster
January 8, 2022
Stanley Featherstone Ukridge is a different kind of hero than the more famous P G Wodehouse figures. Bertie Wooster, Jeeves and Sir Galahad may engage in certain questionable activities, but they are essentially bound by a code of honour. Ukridge is marked by a broader outlook on life. In other words, he’s a crook.
Doubtless this is why Wodehouse is so fond of him, and perhaps why other characters are more indulgent towards Ukridge than they should be. His friend, the writer James ‘Corky’ Corcoran is the most critical of Ukridge’s friends, and yet he writes the stories up, and always allows himself to be dragged into Ukridge’s schemes.
Beyond that there is the butler-turned-landlord , Bowles, an otherwise frosty figure who has a fatherly regard for Ukridge,. There is also George Tupper, a stuffy but kind mutual friend of Corky and Ukridge, who often unwisely lends a little support to Ukridge’s schemes in the misguided belief that the rascal will settle down.
We have always had a certain sneaking affection for the more cheeky members of the criminal classes, especially those we meet in fiction – the conmen, the shysters, the gentlemen burglars, even bank robbers and gangsters. We would be less happy with these characters if they were taking our money, but there is something glamorous or fun about those who live outside the system – the true individuals in a world of uniformity.
Ukridge is a comparatively minor crook. He engages in a few dishonest transactions without qualms, but his only real concern is trying to make money and an honest method will do just as well if it suits his purposes.
It is necessary that Ukridge’s schemes will come to nothing. If he succeeded, then the dynamic would change, and he would not be a penniless cadger and cheat. On the whole most of the stories are fairly predictable, but I will not spoil the fun by giving away the ending, as part of the fun is guessing.
The stories are a little like whodunits in that respect, but here it is more of a game of ‘What happens next?’ However while the various moneymaking scams will fail, they observe the basic rule of fiction, which is that you never simply use your experience from that failure to do the same thing again in a better way.
If a plan to train dogs to perform tricks falls through, why not get more dogs? If a syndicate chooses a member to injure himself so they can all claim accident insurance, and he lets them down, why not get another member of the syndicate to do it?
If I was a psychoanalyst, I would suggest that Ukridge does not really want his plans to work, as this would change his life and make him dull and respectable. (Obviously the real reason is simpler – it would be a poor collection of stories if Ukridge did the same thing again and again.)
The exception here is the three stories concerning Battling Billson, a boxer that Ukridge tries to manage. Unfortunately the temperamental pugilist alternates between soft sentimentality and fierce fighting, always engaging in one when he should be doing the other.
Given that this scheme depends on a fickle character who is more likely to let Ukridge down than anyone in Ukridge’s other schemes, we may wonder at Ukridge's faith in Billson. Again if I wanted to play the psychoanalyst, I would say that is precisely why Ukridge uses him so much. He doesn't want Billson to succeed.
That does make the three Battling Billson stories a little samey, but to an extent all the stories follow the same basic narrative. Ukridge comes up with a scheme that is unscrupulous but ingenious. Something goes wrong with it, and he loses.
The exception tends to be the stories where Ukridge is helping a woman. The Wodehouse hero is often a bachelor who a certain gallantry towards women but not really much affection for them. Women in Wodehouse are formidable matriarchs, or enthusiastic and likeable young ladies who drag our hero into their schemes without any real concern what happens to him. Working class women are vulgar and loud.
Ukridge is unusual in that he does have dalliances with women, but not to the point of settling down with any. Jeeves had his moments too, but Ukridge seems serious. Indeed the last woman in this story eventually marries Ukridge (in an earlier novel, but Wodehouse hastily sets the stories before this time so that his hero is not encumbered with a spouse).
Off the top of my head I cannot remember any Wodehouse hero who is married. Agatha Christie favoured unmarried detectives, but even she included one crime-solving couple. Wodehouse’s imagination does not extend to the portrayal of married life, except among supporting characters.
Indeed Wodehouse’s imagination is limited in a number of ways. If all these stories are essentially the same one told ten times, then some would say that all Wodehouse’s 90-odd books are the same stories told 90-odd times. That might be unfair but he often uses the same stock characters and plot situations.
Worse still, Wodehouse recycles any nice phrase he used in an earlier book, and re-uses the same quotations from other writers. No matter what decade Wodehouse writes in, you cannot expect to see any allusion to a poet whose works did not come out after the beginning of the twentieth century.
It is as if Wodehouse never added a new book to his library after 1920. Indeed given that Wodehouse literally reuses the same lines, one wonders if his library only comprises a very small book of quotations.
Still Wodehouse does have a gift for telling nicely-crafted stories. Consider ‘The Exit of Battling Billson’. Here is a summary of the opening of the story. While reporting on the sermon of a religious revivalist in an obscure Welsh town, Corky runs into Ukridge, who has just been ejected from a theatre after an altercation with a man who stole his seat, and who tells Corky that he is again managing Battling Billson.
Now in that last sentence, there is not a single piece of incidental detail. Every single thing I mentioned is important to the story. Wodehouse leave no room for waste here.
Overall this is a pleasing collection of stories. They betray their magazine origins, as Wodehouse often repeats details that we might be expected to remember when reading them in a single book but would not know if we picked them up in magazine serial instalments. There is nothing startlingly original or unexpected in the stories, but they have their share of amusing moments.
Doubtless this is why Wodehouse is so fond of him, and perhaps why other characters are more indulgent towards Ukridge than they should be. His friend, the writer James ‘Corky’ Corcoran is the most critical of Ukridge’s friends, and yet he writes the stories up, and always allows himself to be dragged into Ukridge’s schemes.
Beyond that there is the butler-turned-landlord , Bowles, an otherwise frosty figure who has a fatherly regard for Ukridge,. There is also George Tupper, a stuffy but kind mutual friend of Corky and Ukridge, who often unwisely lends a little support to Ukridge’s schemes in the misguided belief that the rascal will settle down.
We have always had a certain sneaking affection for the more cheeky members of the criminal classes, especially those we meet in fiction – the conmen, the shysters, the gentlemen burglars, even bank robbers and gangsters. We would be less happy with these characters if they were taking our money, but there is something glamorous or fun about those who live outside the system – the true individuals in a world of uniformity.
Ukridge is a comparatively minor crook. He engages in a few dishonest transactions without qualms, but his only real concern is trying to make money and an honest method will do just as well if it suits his purposes.
It is necessary that Ukridge’s schemes will come to nothing. If he succeeded, then the dynamic would change, and he would not be a penniless cadger and cheat. On the whole most of the stories are fairly predictable, but I will not spoil the fun by giving away the ending, as part of the fun is guessing.
The stories are a little like whodunits in that respect, but here it is more of a game of ‘What happens next?’ However while the various moneymaking scams will fail, they observe the basic rule of fiction, which is that you never simply use your experience from that failure to do the same thing again in a better way.
If a plan to train dogs to perform tricks falls through, why not get more dogs? If a syndicate chooses a member to injure himself so they can all claim accident insurance, and he lets them down, why not get another member of the syndicate to do it?
If I was a psychoanalyst, I would suggest that Ukridge does not really want his plans to work, as this would change his life and make him dull and respectable. (Obviously the real reason is simpler – it would be a poor collection of stories if Ukridge did the same thing again and again.)
The exception here is the three stories concerning Battling Billson, a boxer that Ukridge tries to manage. Unfortunately the temperamental pugilist alternates between soft sentimentality and fierce fighting, always engaging in one when he should be doing the other.
Given that this scheme depends on a fickle character who is more likely to let Ukridge down than anyone in Ukridge’s other schemes, we may wonder at Ukridge's faith in Billson. Again if I wanted to play the psychoanalyst, I would say that is precisely why Ukridge uses him so much. He doesn't want Billson to succeed.
That does make the three Battling Billson stories a little samey, but to an extent all the stories follow the same basic narrative. Ukridge comes up with a scheme that is unscrupulous but ingenious. Something goes wrong with it, and he loses.
The exception tends to be the stories where Ukridge is helping a woman. The Wodehouse hero is often a bachelor who a certain gallantry towards women but not really much affection for them. Women in Wodehouse are formidable matriarchs, or enthusiastic and likeable young ladies who drag our hero into their schemes without any real concern what happens to him. Working class women are vulgar and loud.
Ukridge is unusual in that he does have dalliances with women, but not to the point of settling down with any. Jeeves had his moments too, but Ukridge seems serious. Indeed the last woman in this story eventually marries Ukridge (in an earlier novel, but Wodehouse hastily sets the stories before this time so that his hero is not encumbered with a spouse).
Off the top of my head I cannot remember any Wodehouse hero who is married. Agatha Christie favoured unmarried detectives, but even she included one crime-solving couple. Wodehouse’s imagination does not extend to the portrayal of married life, except among supporting characters.
Indeed Wodehouse’s imagination is limited in a number of ways. If all these stories are essentially the same one told ten times, then some would say that all Wodehouse’s 90-odd books are the same stories told 90-odd times. That might be unfair but he often uses the same stock characters and plot situations.
Worse still, Wodehouse recycles any nice phrase he used in an earlier book, and re-uses the same quotations from other writers. No matter what decade Wodehouse writes in, you cannot expect to see any allusion to a poet whose works did not come out after the beginning of the twentieth century.
It is as if Wodehouse never added a new book to his library after 1920. Indeed given that Wodehouse literally reuses the same lines, one wonders if his library only comprises a very small book of quotations.
Still Wodehouse does have a gift for telling nicely-crafted stories. Consider ‘The Exit of Battling Billson’. Here is a summary of the opening of the story. While reporting on the sermon of a religious revivalist in an obscure Welsh town, Corky runs into Ukridge, who has just been ejected from a theatre after an altercation with a man who stole his seat, and who tells Corky that he is again managing Battling Billson.
Now in that last sentence, there is not a single piece of incidental detail. Every single thing I mentioned is important to the story. Wodehouse leave no room for waste here.
Overall this is a pleasing collection of stories. They betray their magazine origins, as Wodehouse often repeats details that we might be expected to remember when reading them in a single book but would not know if we picked them up in magazine serial instalments. There is nothing startlingly original or unexpected in the stories, but they have their share of amusing moments.
March 13, 2015
This is the first of Wodehouse’s books that i’ve read that didn’t involve Jeeves. I can’t say I was overly enamoured. The book is set out in 10 shorter stories, many of which refer back to previous episodes, and are based around Ukridge trying to make money and in most case failing miserably. The stories were quite short and I found myself reading quickly just to get to the end of them. They do not have the same kind of humour that other Wodehouse novels do. Quite disappointing and not the place to start with Wodehouse. So many better novels have been written.
April 11, 2013
I'm still coming to terms with reading Wodehouse books without Bertie Wooster in them and, whilst I find them entertaining, generally find that they don't come up to the dazzling standard of the Jeeves and Wooster volumes. This one came close at times, though, with a few laugh-out-loud moments and some delightful descriptions -- a boxing match and the nocturnal activities of a kidnapped parrot spring to mind immediately.
January 29, 2008
Not as funny as Bertie Wooster (what on earth is?) or even Mulliner or the Blandings Castle stories, but still plenty of amusement for Wodehouse fans. Ukridge, the main character, is forever scheming to get rich quick -- his failures are often magnificent.
July 21, 2014
Love Wodehouse's style as ever but not a fan of Ukridge himself. I would gladly read that Corky has at last given him a toe up the backside and told him to go buy his own suits and socks. :D
July 5, 2016
Mildly boring at some points, but an enjoyable read nonetheless.
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