A. V. Laider

by Max Beerbohm

Max Beerbohm (1872 - 1956) was a British caricaturist and parodist. As a young man he was considered quite the wit and spent much time in London society. By 35 he was middle aged and a bit dull. Beerbohm was drama critic for the Saturday Review and later did broadcast radio work. A V Laider is an excellent example of leg pulling in literature. The reader is on the verge of horror when the narrator mockingly lets the reader down. The story is masterfully told from the gray arrival at the hotel to the railway accident which was foretold in the palms of several passengers. A V Laider is an amateur palm reader who sees an impending accident, but lacks the courage to warm his friends who are about to board the train.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, British Literature

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1920

About the author

Sir Henry Maximilian Beerbohm, as "Max," known British writ, apparently wrote Caricatures of Twenty-five Gentlemen in 1896.

Henry Maximilian Beerbohm served as an English essayist, parodist.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Bee...

Reviews

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent short story that held my interest through to the end. It takes a lovely twist and has a slightly ironic ending--which is always pleasing in a short work.

[Дмитрий · Rating 4 out of 5]

Сюжет немного мета, но стиль автора просто превосходный.

[Ci · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short story is largely an exercise in conversational wit while embedding a deeper question about the basic human curiosity. The curiosity of the first-person "I" in this story is the one to be examined carefully since it defies the self-proclaimed disbelief. How does one "be taken" by stories told in a particular fashion? How does the disbelief giving ways to fascination and mystery? The author has demonstrated the art of story-telling pitting successfully against our cooler reasoning -- it is the atmosphere, the foreshadowing, the details, and the way an outright impossiblity woven into our psyche. This story is a purely jewel in short-story form.

[George Ilsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is always a slight shock in seeing an envelope of one's own after it has gone through the post. It looks as if it had gone through so much.

This is the second short story by Max Beerbohm I've recently read — both were titled with a man's name; the other was Enoch Soames: A Memory of the Eighteen-Nineties.

This one contains a real fantasy, if you will, in that the title character is a fabulist, a spinner of tales — in other words, an unreliable narrator. The plot depends on a series of remarkable coincidences.

The undisclosed first person narrator of the story is as frustrated by the antics of A.V. Laider as the reader might be.

[Yomna Saber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing by all means. The narrator goes to a motel to complete his recovery after catching influenza and runs into Laider and they speculate on existential questions on free will and the truth. Laider narrates two stories that conflate reality with imagination, and by the end the reader is muddled up, not knowing what to believe and what to discard. Very witty twist and a very interesting story to read indeed.

[Maxine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not like it.

[Reta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This short story was one of my favorites this semester. It is incredibly imaginative and it plays with your mind. I can't believe that there are other people that create stories this way and share them as if they were true! I just do it in my head.

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think I could give such a slight story 5 stars, though it's perfect of its kind. It reminded me of looking in a mirror with a mirror behind you, and so on and so on.

[martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gentle, amusing and mischievous short story. The imagined discussion between the envelopes on the hotel letter board is as humorous as it is ridiculous.
Fun to read.

[Per · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/761

[The Vignette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listen to it here: https://anchor.fm/austin-lugo/episode...
Get early access, exclusive content, and so much more: https://www.patreon.com/lifethroughfi...

[Bettie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is taken from Seven Men, copyright 1920

I unpacked my things and went down to await luncheon.



Two of Beerbohm's self-portraits. "The Theft" depicts him stealing a book from the library in 1894. "The Restitution" shows him returning that book in 1920. (wiki pic)

absurdist literature



3*

[Nina · Rating 3 out of 5]

IN COSTAIN STORIES 2

[for-much-deliberation ... · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of those unusual short tales, and damned extreme imaginations...