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“You can’t press your suit and another fellow’s trousers simultaneously.”

Author: P.G. Wodehouse

Bertie Wooster is in another rather sticky situation. He’s stuck at Deverill Hall, surrounded by a gaggle of critical aunts, pretending to be a ditzy friend of his, helping with other people’s complicated romances, and making rather a mess of all of it. Without his devoted manservant, Jeeves, it’s doomed to failure.

When said ditzy friend arrives, this time disguised as Bertie himself, more hilarity and misunderstandings ensue. Relationships reform and break apart, aunts get scandalized, a play is ruined, and eventually Jeeves himself – of course pretending to be someone else as well – arrives in the nick of time to cosh (Brit speak for hit) a policeman (shocker, Jeeves your rascal!) and save the day.

The Mating Season contains all the elements that we have come to love. Wodehouse has his usual upbeat, aristocratic twaddle, the conversations and turns of phrase being half of the fun. Bertie is well meaning but brainless, Jeeves is calm and ready to save the flighty nobles from their own inner turmoil, and the aunts are suitably caustic and judgy.


Bertie Wooster and Jeeves in “Scoring off Jeeves” illustrated by A. Wallis Mills.jpg

What makes The Mating Season stand above some of the others (which, let’s face it, are all incredibly similar but equally jocular and addictive) is the overly complicated game of impersonation. It’s delightful. Bertie is pretending to be his friend, one of his other friends (also with a doomed romance) arrives out of the blue pretending to be Jeeves, and then the original friend arrives pretending to be Bertie. The absurdity just builds, culminating in a complicated, jaw dropping revelation and Bertie, as usual, gets the worst of it from everyone. Sheer comic genius. The laughs don’t stop with this one, and the ridiculous nature of the circumstances are so well-timed and so utterly insane that readers spend the entire book chuckling in childish glee. It’s perfect.

In the end, Jeeves gets to come out of character a bit with a brazen act, everyone confronts a doddering aunt (except poor Bertie), relationships are saved, a giant dog is rescued from an irate policeman, and poor Bertie gets very little gratitude and a lot of static. It’s exactly the end we expected and wanted, and we’re busy wiping away tears from all the laughing.

I can’t wait to go to the next in the series, but so far, The Mating Season is standing out as one of my all-time favorites. A usual, well-done Wodehouse. Thank you for bringing mirth and happiness into the world through your vibrant, absurd, lovable books and characters. On to the next Bertie and Jeeves mishap!

 

– Frances Carden

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Frances Carden
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