Love Among the Chickens by PG Wodehouse (1906)

Though the heading says 1906, I actually read the current hardback edition, which utilizes the text of a substantial revision from 1920. This is my first Wodehouse, and there are mixed feelings. The general opinion which seems to surround him is of unparalleled hilarity. But, although this was great fun in a light way, and had occasional moments of intensification where an audible laugh issued from me, it had nothing of the nonpareil about it. It's the story of an Arthur Dentish young chap, a beginner-novelist, who takes an opportunity to accompany a slightly scoundrelly gent, with any amount of front and total self-belief, to start a chicken farm at 'Combe Regis' (in all respects Lyme Regis) on the Dorset coast. The gent is apparently a recurring Wodehouse character by the name of Ukridge. On this exposure, I'm not that keen to come across him again - pretty irritating, and supposed to be, but not that satisfyingly so. Of course, Ukridge runs up huge bills, has bizarre and ill-thought-out notions of how to run the farm, and how much money will come from it, blazons his way through all sorts of situations with minimum real awareness whilst claiming to be the all-pervading authority. Alongside this is a love story between our young novelist and a locally-staying professor's lovely young daughter. The professor is Irish in background and phenomenally touchy. So our novelist gets into scrapes trying to maintain and further his scheme of capture. This novel has a fun wry tone all through, and the two main characters have an interesting line in self-convinced dodginess. Just can't say that I'm overwhelmed with the brilliance. Happened to be rereading an Ada Leverson published 6 years later, at the same time, for business purposes, and found myself, by contrast, enchanted and laughing out loud. Certainly not a dyed-in-the-wool Wodehouseite yet.