The Little Nugget

School Stories

by P.G. Wodehouse

The Little Nugget (1913) is one of the novels in which Wodehouse found his feet, a light comic thriller set in an English prep school for the children of the nobility and gentry. Into their midst comes eleven-year-old Ogden Ford, the mouthy, overweight, chain-smoking son of an American millionaire. Ogden (whom we meet again in Piccadilly Jim) is the object of a kidnap attempt which forms the basis of the plot. The comedy arises from Wodehouse's favourite topics of Anglo-American misunderstanding and the absurdities of school life.

Genres: Fiction, Humor, Classics, Mystery, Comedy, British Literature, Audiobook

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1913

About the author

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

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

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

Reviews

[Supratim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won't be an exaggeration to say that P G Wodehouse's books are gems of English humour literature. So far I have managed to read only a few of his Blandings Castle series,Jeeves series and Mr. Mulliner series, but each one was fantastic.

The "little nugget" in the book is a spoiled and to quote the author a "repulsive" child of an American millionaire. The nugget's father won his custody after his parent's divorced and sent him to study in England. Of course, his doting mother would try anything to get her "darling son" back to her.

Now enters Mr. Peter Burns, a man who never had to work for his sustenance and is a bit of a quixotic fool. He is convinced by his fiancee, Cynthia, to kidnap the nugget from the private school he would be attending. No need to say, Burns is not the only person out there to get his hands on the nugget.

The school being in the remote corner of the English countryside is the perfect place for the kidnapping.

Burns joins the school as an assistant master and the adventure begins. We are introduced to a few funny/interesting characters - Mr. Abney, the owner of the school, who is obsessed with the British aristocracy, an undercover detective, Burn's old flame, gun-toting American thugs, a smooth-talking American thief and so on.

Burns, the man who never took any serious responsibility in his life, now has to depend upon his brain as well as brawn to fight off the enemies. He is also a man in a dilemma - his feelings for his old flame and his love for Cynthia are conflicting with each other.

One thing I really liked was how the character of Burns evolved throughout the story. The same thing holds for his old flame, Audrey, as well.

This book was enjoyable but not hilarious. There were some funny moments and dialogues but somewhere it fell short of my expectation. It was more like a cozy adventure with some of comedy thrown in. The book had all the ingredients for being a hilarious adventure-comedy but I felt that something went wrong.

Wodehouse's writing is always so smooth but in my humble opinion the writing was not so great in this book. His depiction of the idiosyncrasies of people, his ability to turn mundane events into something so funny were not so developed in this book. The flair and skill the author so remarkably demonstrated in his Jeeves, Blandings Castle or Mr. Mulliner books were in somewhat a rudimentary stage in "The Little Nugget".

The gun-toting thugs were not really that convincing and the action scenes were well - forced, one expects more from the PG Wodehouse. The romantic dilemma suffered by Burns started to bore as well.

I would like to rate the book 3.5 but did not want to round it off to 4.

Lovers of P G Wodehouse can give this book a try. Please allow me reiterate that don't expect it to be a laugh riot.

Last but not least I would like to thank my friend for letting me borrow this book from her.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was written in 1913. Ogden Ford the spoilt son of a divorced American millionaire couple is repulsive. I think the best line in the book was ‘Ogden Ford, that El Dorado of the kidnapping industry,’.

The story revolves around competing criminals trying to kidnap Ogden. Peter Burn’s fiancée also wants him to kidnap the boy for his mother. This early Wodehouse is not hilarious as some others but still raises a smile and giggle in places.

[Jason Koivu · Rating 4 out of 5]

An early Wodehouse that reads a lot like a later one. The comedy is not as developed as in would be in his Jeeves and Wooster books, but the kidnapping plot's close. The character's need a little work too. They're a bit flat. Although, I really enjoyed W's portrayal of the American kidnappers. The main character doesn't have the charm of Bertie Wooster, but he's a likable chap and serviceable for this particular story. Good stuff! I haven't been a fan of W's early work (too heavy on the drippy romance), but this one is the stuff to give the troops!

[John Frankham · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of Wodehouse's earliest non-school novels (1913, when 31), but already mixing English and American characters in order to make his work saleable on both sides of the Atlantic.

Wodehouse was already working/living in England and America, and had already had some success with short stories in the USA.

The Little Nugget is an insufferable young American boy at school in England, with rival gun-toting American crooks trying to kidnap him and sell him back to one or other of his estranged parents. Our English hero and heroine, parted for five years, find themselves working for the rival parents. All works out OK, of course!

More physical action and bullets whizzing than in his later, smoother, books, the writing and plotting of this last apprentice-work are already accomplished. Published first in Munsey's in the USA, his subsequent novel, Something New (the original, and subsequently English title, Something Fresh, was thought too racy!) was the first of the great series of novels published in parts in the Saturday Evening Post, the best, and best-paying, magazine in the USA.

Well worth a read.

[Libbeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will use this "review" for all the P. G. Wodehouse I have read. I read them all so long ago and enjoyed them so much that I have given them all 5 stars. As I re-read them I will adjust the stars accordingly, if necessary, and add a proper review.
When I first discovered P. G. Wodehouse I devoured every book I could find in the local library, throughout the eighties and early nineties. Alas, this means that I have read most of them and stumbling across one I have not read is a rare thing. I'm sure that through this great site I will joyfully find at least a few I have not read, and be able to track them down.
My records only began in 1982, so I do not have a note of any I read before then. I’m sure I will enjoy re-reading them.

[Mela · Rating 3 out of 5]

One can (I mean, such a fan like me) easily see Wodehouse's pen here. But most of all, a fan can also easily see that it was written before his most marvelous books.

I was enjoying listening to an audiobook (from LibriVox). There were funny dialogues and sentences that made me laugh. But it was not as hilarious and enjoyable as Jeeves and Bertie's stories.

As an example of the genre, I would have given it 4 stars, but comparing it to other Wodehouse's novel that I have read it deserves 3 stars.

[Chautona Havig · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've enjoyed Jeeves and Wooster, and with the name Glossop in this one, I suspect it's semi-related to those. Still, it started off rather slow and definitely not very interesting. However, once we got Peter Burns into the story, I really enjoyed it. I loved that our "hero" couldn't do everything right the first time (or at all sometimes) and that there was decided character growth in those who needed it and not in the rest.
I also really enjoyed learning a bit of respect for someone not quite respectABLE. And yet, said person chose to be so... maybe I had it all wrong. Still eager to read more by Wodehouse. I'm thinking we'll definitely look at Damsel in Distress next. It's a fun one.

[Samuel Sadler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another delightful romantic comedy from Wodehouse. The Little Nugget provides the right balance of love, suspense, psychology and humor. A fine testament to Plum's ability to incite love, respect, fear or disgust for a certain character through his subtle observations of character.

[Karen · Rating 1 out of 5]

The least funny of all the Wodehouse books I've read, and though the plot is tighter than some, there just wasn't enough to keep me invested in the ending. But if you haven't read anything by Wodehouse you should--and it should be Hot Water, not The Little Nugget.

[Illiterate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wodehouse was not quite ready to free his romantic comedy from schools and adventures.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some really funny stuff (to me) although not quite as fun as other works I’ve read. Wodehouse has delightful humor and knows how to “turn a phrase”.

[Dr Goon Taco Supreme · Rating 2 out of 5]

"The Little Nugget" isn't a great read. Not only is the title of, "The Little Nugget," terrible, causing idiots to comment and scoff at the sight of the book, but the story itself is anticlimactic.

The characters are not interesting and the story was dull. Although I enjoy reading books written by P.G. Wodehouse a great deal, and if pressed I might admit that he is one of my favorites writers, “The Little Nugget” sucked. I would not read it again and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone in search of a good book.

[Cyr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as funny as I remembered it. The concept of an oft-kidnapped son of rich parents who is so spoiled and unpleasant that once kidnapped, one finds his company unbearable is a fantastic premise for a comedic story. But once he launches out from it, Wodehouse passes up opportunities for hilarity to go in slightly more of a rom-com direction. Still good, but on re-read I found myself pining for the book that might have been, if he'd gone full throttle on humor like his Wooster and Jeeves stuff.

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love it. This 1913 book looks to me like a Wodehousian, novel-length retelling of O'Henry's 1910 short story The Ransom of Red Chief.

This must have been produced before Wodehouse settled into his formula. It is different from the formulaic works. It is more of a serious adventure novel than the usual musical comedy without music that he usually produced. It isn't only different, it is also a very pleasant and satisfying read.

I recommend it.

[David Nadolny · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was very disappointed in this book. I have enjoyed dozens of PG Wodehouse novels and was looking forward to another, but the style of writing in this book almost makes me think he was sick when he wrote it or had a ghost writer or such. It just wasn't up to the usual Wodehouse snuff.

[Sarah TheAromaofBooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this was a fun and funny little story, it lacks the constant wit and sly humor of many of Wodehouse's later works. A good one-time read, but not where I would recommend starting if you're new to Wodehouse.

[Arthur M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes what was funny in 1913 is also funny in 2018.

[sophia douglas · Rating 4 out of 5]

i wish there was more of the nugget!! he was too funny!!

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out with much hilarity and laughter. But with the arrival of the American kidnappers the plot became boring and drawn out. Or, I was just really tired. One of those two for sure.

[Tommy Verhaegen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rich and estranged couple are divorced and fight over the custody over their rotten-spoiled and hence obnoxious son. Custody is with the husband who sends his son to a boarding school in England. The wife calls upon a friend who needs money to abduct her son and bring him to mammy. This friend counts on her fiancee to get hired as a teacher in the school and do the actual kidnapping.
Twho notorious American kidnappers relocate to England to get hold of the "Little Nugget" and become rich in the process.
These are the elements of a Wodehouse with all the characteristics of the greatest of his novels.
Hilarious, full of misunderstandings, a lot of action and a complex romance on the background.
Of course all will end well (this should not be seen as a spoiler alert since it is a main characteristic of a Wodehouse novel). A little violence (with no lasting harm) and the waving of guns (by the Americans, of course) shows that is among the earier works of P.G. while already in full bloom as far as his literary career goes.
We see this from the point of view of a rich English young man and his (at the time) view on American gangsters. Contemporary very correct and a clear indication that this was written before Wodehouse relocated to the United States, which made his focus change accordingly.

[Fx Smeets · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a pet theory of mine, reinforced by thirty years of experience, that one should never venture through life without a Wodehouse or a Terry Pratchett within reach. The Little Nugget contains as much sanity drug as any other Wodehouse, with hints of darker undertones that bring to the foreground the high quality of the writing. I was at first rebuked by the strange structure of the novel. Its abrupt change of narrative voice may be its only flaw as it leaves us unsatisfied as to Cynthia's fate - a most virtuous of flaws though: great novels require great secondary characters, a trait which I find Wodehouse's and Pratchett's works shared.

[Saurabh · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best that P.G. Wodehouse has to offer.

Mr. Wodehouse has clearly outdone himself with this one.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5. Fun story told with a lot of wit and some interesting characters. Wasn’t overly fond of how the ending played out, but I enjoyed the story overall. One of my favorite Wodehouse novels so far.

[Yashovardhan Sinha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not one of Wodehouse's better ones. The humour is there but it is scattered in a sea of quite a dull story.

[Jessreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic Wodehouse.

[Chet Makoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

The plot and characters in this novel first appeared in 1913 as a serial, “The Eighteen-Carat Kid” in the very popular English magazine ‘for boys and old boys,’ The Captain.

[Vinaya Wagh · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a page turner!

[S. Suresh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading The Little Nugget, right after Eighteen-Carat Kid, I could see what a versatile story-teller Wodehouse is. I mentioned in the review of the Eighteen-Carat Kid that he had expanded the comic thriller set in Sanstead boarding school with romantic and love-interest in this book.

It simply blew my mind at the brilliant manner in which he has done it. It’s as though I got to read two stories, set in the same place, with several of the same characters, yet with many an unexpected twist in the plot that subtly changes the character the protagonist, Mr. Burns. It was a genuine treat to me, not just because I am a Plum aficionado, but as a fiction writer, albeit in Tamil language, it felt like a study in how to play around with plots to produce brilliantly different results.

I am yet to read a Wodehouse in which when romance comes in play, there isn’t a love triangle, or an engagement that is broken, or there’s a lover’s tiff, before true love triumphs. The Little Nugget is no different. Peter Burns, the assistant master of Sanstead school, finds himself torn between his love for Cynthia and Audrey. However, unlike many of his stories where there is an element of frivolity in the engagement that gets broken, Peter’s anguish as he grapples with his feelings for Audrey and Cynthia is as genuine and authentic as a romance story can get. Thankfully, Smooth Sam Fisher, mobster Buck MacGinnis and school master Arnold Abney stay true to their character from the novella, and provide the much needed comic relief in this somewhat serious romance story.

[booklady · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frederick Davidson renders another superb performance in this early tale by P.G. Wodehouse of an obnoxious, rich, American youth. Not a very flattering portrayal, as are many Wodehousian youngsters, on both sides of the Atlantic, but then the author knows where to lay the blame—squarely at the feet of the parents who spoil them.

In the case of Ogden Ford, AKA “the Little Nugget” – a term indicating his value to kidnappers – his unappealing presence doesn’t figure prominently in most of the narrative, but serves as a motive or purpose for much of the adult action, however inexplicable this might be.

The Little Nugget isn’t as farcical as Wodehouse’s later works would become, except with respect to the strange notion that such a repulsive child could command such great sums of money in ransom. There are gangsters and a love triangle, but on the whole, its all pretty tame. In any event, I found it less humorous—not up to his usual high standards, although still an enjoyable read.

[Stasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

"At twenty-one, life being all future, it may be examined with impunity. But, at thirty, having become an uncomfortable mixture of future and past, it is a thing to be looked at only when the sun is high and the world full of warmth and optimism".

I never expected it would be a Wodehouse quote that hit me so hard about how I currently feel about life, but then, stranger things have happened. 🤷🏻‍♀️