Dear reader,

This week was a real treat for me, because I’ve loved The Code of the Woosters ever since I first read it as a teenager. Literary critics tend to prefer self-conscious, serious, tortured writers to light, entertaining ones, so P. G. Wodehouse never gets the credit he deserves as one of the greatest prose stylists ever to have put pen to paper. But I think that word for word, sentence for sentence, he’s as good a writer as the English language has ever produced.

We could have picked any number of Jeeves and Wooster stories – not to mention Wodehouse’s other works – but I’ve always had a particularly soft spot for this one. For narrative complexity alone The Code of the Woosters is unbeatable, I think.

This was about the sixth time I’ve read it – in truth, I’ve lost count – but it was such a joy to be plunged back into Wodehouse’s world. There are so many great lines and so many ludicrous situations, it’s hard to pick a favourite.

Incidentally, Tabby and I spent ages discussing which passage to do as the introduction. She came down in favour of the scene where Bertie and Jeeves are taking refuge from the outraged dog, and we had great fun with it. We also spent ages discussing which one of us would do Jeeves’s lines, and which Bertie’s. Inevitably, Tabby imagines herself to be the reincarnated Stiffy Byng, but I’ve always suspected that she has an inner Jeeves. As usual, I was right.

We’re thrilled with the feedback we’ve had about the newsletter and we especially enjoy reading your critiques of the books. Do send in your analysis so that we can feature them in our Reviewers’ Corner.

Keep reading for this week’s Book Notes as well as polls, recommendations and more.

And finally, who is the harshest marker - Tabby or me? Look out for our new scoreboard below.

Until next week,

Dominic

If you enjoyed The Code of the Woosters

Already read the whole Jeeves and Wooster series? Here are some more recommendations…

📚 Wodehouse: A Life by Robert McCrum - We referenced this biography several times in the podcast. It’s brilliant and worth any fan’s time.

📚 A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle - Our episode drew on the many comparisons with the Sherlock stories. This is the first of those novels.

📚 Something Fresh by P. G. Wodehouse - This is the first of his Blandings Castle series - comic novels which tell the stories of the eccentric Lord Emsworth.

📺 Jeeves and Wooster - The comedy show based on Wodehouse’s novel first aired in 1990, starring Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry, running for four series.

📺 Blackadder the Third - Treat yourselves to a rewatch of the hilarious sitcom, and enjoy the Prince Regent and Blackadder dynamic with Jeeves and Wooster in mind.

We need your vote!

We asked Tabby which character she thought was the most Dominic-esque in The Code of the Woosters. She gave us three options.

Who is the most Dominic? Click to vote - and if you leave a comment, please add your name so we can include your response in Reviewers' Corner.

Notes on… The Code of the Woosters

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If you’ve never read The Code of the Woosters, you’re in for a real treat.

Chances are, you may well suddenly discover where lots of jokes and references that have gone over your head about British culture have come from.

There’s nothing better than when a book club makes you to finally get to something that’s lingered on the must-read list for some time.

Let’s face it, we could all do with escapism - but the “lightness” shouldn’t be mistaken for anything resembling a lack of style and skill.

On to some talking points…

Dominic controversially awarded The Code of the Woosters an 11/10, Tabby opted for 10. Both described the “pleasure”, “joy” and “comfort” the story had bought them.

Does The Code of the Woosters deserve such praise? Did you find it a comedic escape from reality, or an outdated fantasy world populated by a privileged few?
Wodehouse is renowned for his comic prowess. Explore the moments that had you laughing out loud. What makes this book so entertaining?

The Jeeves and Wooster stories reside in a privileged world of the highest echelons of English society and yet, to this day, they still have broad appeal.

How did Wodehouse succeed in making his works draw in a mass audience despite them inhabiting such a privileged sphere?
From Malory Towers to Downton Abbey, why do we have a cultural fixation with the English upper classes?
Which personalities did you warm to and why?
One criticism levelled at Wodehouse is his portrayal of women as narrow and unlikeable - Madeline Bassett is a prime example of this. Tabby said you could make a “protofeminist” case that Bertie is “putty in the hands of strong intelligent women”. Where do you stand?
It’s often said there are parallels between Jeeves and Wooster, and Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, with the more all-knowing, intellectual of the two always swooping in to save the other. Explore how Jeeves and Wooster operate as a pair and what other literary duos you’d liken them to.

Wodehouse’s writing conjures up “an Anglo-American fantasy” of British life. Contemporaneously, society was grappling with the rise of Fascism, social and financial instability and the threat of war.

Dominic described the books as a “warm comforting bath” where “the anxieties of modern life have not penetrated”. Looking at the current ‘romantasy’ boom, do we turn to fantasy worlds more when we’re faced with existential threats? Is there a place for joyful escapism, or do writers have a responsibility to represent our times?
Wodehouse was accused of being a traitor in the Second World War, when (as detailed in the podcast and in this article) it was believed he “collaborated with the Nazis” by recording a series of comedic radio broadcasts in Germany. Following an investigation, MI5 concluded that while his actions were politically naive, they did not amount to treachery. It took decades for his reputation to recover. How do you view this incident? What do you think of Wodehouse’s refusal to engage politically in his books?
The presenters pointed out the similarities with Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway as another novel that processed the trauma of war, albeit in an entirely different way. What do you think of this comparison?

Tabby said Wodehouse’s writing was “one of the most recognisable and effective styles in all modern literature”.

His tone flicks between British sports slang to the New York Jazz Age and even biblical references. What is the impact of this “high-low” style on the text and which do you prefer?
Dominic said: “I don't believe there's any writer in English, with the possible exception of Shakespeare, who has produced works that word for word, line for line, are better, more ingeniously, more cleverly and more satisfyingly written.” Do you agree with him? Who do you think is a better writer and why?
In his piece for The Spectator, critic Charles Moore highlighted the literary density of Wodehouse’s writing, finding 85 instances of allusions to other texts, from Shakespeare to Keats to Dickens. What were your favourite references?

“The plot is not the point” says Tabby, when the presenters talked about the infamously complicated run of events that take place within The Code of the Woosters.

The cow creamer is often cited as a famous example of a MacGuffin - a plot device that is necessary to the action, but is irrelevant in itself. Discuss some of your favourite MacGuffins in literature.
Dominic has read The Code of the Woosters six times - why do you think it’s a story that many re-read time and time again?

The quote that says it all

“The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured cosiness.”

And, it feels, one could add…“with a P.G. Wodehouse novel sitting by an armchair”.

This passage is an example of that nostalgia for an over-egged Englishness that is almost storybook in nature. But it really does sound nice…

What quote stayed with you? Email us and let us know.

Who would you give this to?

An American friend who insists their great-great-great-grandparents were royalty? Someone who needs a good laugh? Someone who doesn’t yet realise you’re the Jeeves to their Wooster?

Tell us, who would you share this with?

Reviewers’ corner

We’re intrigued to know your feelings on The Code of the Woosters. Send your thoughts and we’ll share the best here next week.

Are you a Wodehouse hater? What did our presenters miss?
It’s a tough feat to make a funny novel - which books have made you laugh out loud?

Here’s what you had to say about The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray poll results

Did you find find Wilde’s novel a witty masterpiece like Tabby, or an overrated self-indulgence like Dominic? We’re afraid to say, Dominic, that 63% are on Tabby’s side.

We also asked you to rank The Picture of Dorian Gray out of 10. The winning score was 8.

The book that was left behind

“I grew up in a home with no books,” one of our YouTube viewers wrote. “Once when I was 8, a visitor left his copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray and I read it in two days. It was the early 70s when children were very sheltered. I was terrified but could not stop reading such beautiful writing. No need to say, I became a literature teacher.”

Top Gear

We very much enjoyed his summary, which came in via the poll. “At times beautifully written, at times like reading the brochure to IKEA and other times like listening to James May's humour on loop for 24 hours.”

Dorian fans unite

Gianna took to the comments on Spotify to defend Gray/Wilde’s honour against the criticisms from Dominic, writing: “Read it in college and was so taken with its floridity. Love the early chapter that is just a ledger of the things that Dorian buys and their descriptions. 100/10 witticisms for me.”

Commenting on our poll, another audience member agreed. “I first read this book as a teenager, when I think a lot of it went over my head, and have loved it more on each subsequent reading. I also taught it to A-Level students for many years,” they wrote. “It's clever, witty and multi-layered. I remember one class in particular who were united in their hatred for Lord Henry, who they thought was the one truly amoral character... As was mentioned, it is a very moral book, despite Wilde's assertion in the preface.”

‘Smarter martyr’

But there were many backers of Dominic’s views too. One of our listeners wrote on Spotify: “As an Irish elderly gay man I feel much as Dominic does about the book, and I feel ambivalent about Oscar himself, too smart for his own good. A smarter martyr you couldn't find.”

“I’m with Dominic!” said a poll commenter, “I'm glad I'm not the only one to find Lord Henry's relentless and often reaching dichotomies to be tedious.”

This listener simply pointed out: “Dominic discussing looksmaxxing was not on my bingo card.” Anything can happen on The Book Club…

Dream dinners

After Tabby and Dominic revealed The Picture of Dorian Gray came from a dinner party that included Wilde and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, we asked what your dream literary dinner party guest list would look like.

Caroline emailed this delightful combination in: “I would definitely have Patricia Highsmith (with or without snails in her bra) and Jean Rhys to compete in eccentricity. Oscar Wilde and Ernest Hemingway to spark heated debate and Anita Brookner to calm everyone down and be the voice of reason.”

And Liz writes from Australia: “Oscar would definitely be on my list for that dinner, but I fear my repartee may not be up to his standards.”

Scoreboard

By popular demand (and perhaps partly inspired by a Dominic request too), we’ve started a scoreboard, with the results Dominic and Tabby have given the last five books. We’ll leave you to tell us what you think about the numbers…

Book	Dominic’s verdict	Tabby’s verdict
The Picture of Dorian Gray	5/10	7.5/10
The Hunger Games	6.5/10	7/10
Mrs Dalloway	10/10	10/10
Beloved	10/10	10/10
The Woman In White	8/10	8/10

Next on The Book Club

If you or your book club want to read ahead, here’s what’s coming up.

June 22: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
June 29: A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin
July 7: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
July 14: The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa
July 21: Circe by Madeline Miller
July 28: The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan
August 4: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
August 11: Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Keeping score

Dominic gave The Code of the Woosters 11 unexpected intimate apparel designers (or incriminating notebooks) out of 10, while Tabby opted for 10/10. It’s fair to say they were big fans…

Tell us your score and we’ll share the average next week.

Click to vote - and if you leave a comment, please add your name so we can include your response in our Reviewers' Corner.

See you next week for Little Women.

The Book Club team.

Book Notes: The Code of the Woosters