Jeeves in the Offing: The Valet does a Vanishing Act

Reading Wodehouse in Kodaikanal...

You are probably familiar with the one who said 'Oh, woman in our hours of ease turn tumty tiddly something please, when something something something something brow, a something something something thou.' *

A huge bookshelf and two smaller ones on the sides. A plethora of books on varied subjects, from novels to travel guides to philosophy. Three days staying in the place, with most of it planned for sightseeing and spending time with family. I knew I could afford only a small volume. I had just entered a homestay in Kodaikanal on the top of a small hill, overlooking a valley in the background of taller hills. The place gave a cozy vibe, with a small but colorful garden, an interior crammed with antique items, and the aforementioned bookshelves. I tried to find something that I could read during the 'in-between' times and turned up with three nimble volumes.

I found Republic by Plato, Utopia by Thomas More, and the Jeeves novel by P. G. Wodehouse titled Jeeves in the Offing. Being on vacation, I wasn't in the mood for anything serious. Though I badly wanted to read the two books, I forsook Plato and More for Wodehouse. Probably the colonial history of the hill station also contributed to my decision to pick the book by a British author whose books were set in the world of the British upper class. Anyway, it was on my bedside table for all three days, and I found time to devour a few pages every once in a while. I also found time to wake up a little early one day and sit on a cozy settee in the hallway, placed near a large window with brilliant views, and read the book. On the third day, before checking out, I was able to finish it and return it to its abode.

My first memory of Wodehouse was during my college years when I discovered a shelf dedicated to him in a public library. But my first taste of reading his work was in an anthology of English short stories. The story featuring Bertie and Jeeves titled "Jeeves and the Hard-Boiled Egg" was a hilarious one that stood out from the others in the collection. Soon I got hold of a few copies of his books and was able to read six of them. But I have this habit of reading only a few representative works by an author and then ignoring the rest of their bibliography. Thus I stopped picking up any more Wodehouse till the vacation in Kodaikanal.

Jeeves in the Offing is a typical Wodehouse novel featuring Jeeves. I doubt it finds a place among his best works, but it has enough 'Wodhousian' moments to make it wildly entertaining. The plot is like every other novel of his, where one of Bertie's aunts asks him a favor and he, as usual, makes a tangled mess for all concerned, as well as an ass of himself. The only change this time is that Jeeves is on a well-earned vacation and can't save Bertie. But he eventually joins the fray to save the day, though by making a bigger ass of Bertie. A cinematic parallel is the Bruce Lee movie Big Boss, in which he takes a vow not to fight for the majority of it.

Jeeves being absent for a substantial period has worked for and against the plot. One gets to see Bertie firmly in the center spot, and without the solid support from Jeeves, we find his plans going south through multiple routes. This makes the plot a bit more convoluted and hilarious, though it turns repetitive after a period. The presence of Jeeves is so limited that one feels like the protagonist ending up in a cameo role. But the real reason for the admirers of Wodehouse to read him is his masterful phrasing and command over the language, of which there are ample specimens, including a liberal serving of funny and clever literary allusions, to be found in the book; the final result is more than satisfactory.

*The quote given on the top is Bertie misquoting Sir Walter Scott’s lines in his typical style. Please find the original below:

O Woman! in our hours of ease, Uncertain coy, and hard to please, And variable as the shade By the light quivering aspen made; When pain and anguish wring the brow, A ministering angel thou!

— Walter Scott