A Damsel in Distress
P.G. Wodehouse
E-book downloaded from the Internet. First published 1919.
This is a romantic comedy, not a part of any series (Jeeves, Blandings...) though some of the characters in this book foreshadow people like Lord Emsworth and Lady Constance from the later books. George Bevan, a successful composer of music for comic plays, falls in love with an Earl's daughter, who is herself in love with someone else. How he successfully woos her forms the main story, such as it is. There is a lot of snappy conversation, many well-sketched characters and a couple of hilarious scenes. Though the writing had not yet, in 1919, reached the heights attained in later books like 'Right Ho, Jeeves', and there are no 'nifties' I can quote, yet it is certainly better than that of PGW's ostensible rivals, such as Richard Gordon or Henry Cecil. The plot though, has none of the intricacies of the 'golden age' stories. All the same, a good book to read - again and again, though each time after a lapse of a few years.
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