Professionals Rec Calendar Day One-- "What ho, lads!" by BySlantedLight

[jat-sapphire.livejournal.com]

I have loved the work if P G Wodehouse since I was a child. I love his long, madly ornate sentences and his obsessive hobbyist characters, from the Duke of Blandings mooning over his prizewinning pig (called the Duchess of Blandings!) or Uncle Fred, a matchmaker who gets people drunk in the interest of hooking them up, on a drink with the full name, "Tomorrow is of all the year the maddest and merriest day, for I'm to be Queen of the May, Mother, I'm to be Queen of the May!" Also, I do believe that nobody since Dickens has exploited this habit of piling on details and extended similes to such lengths that the reader cannot help but laugh. My own favorite is "his crookedness was such that he could hide at will behind a spiral staircase." (I imagine one of those compact wrought-iron ones.)

Anyway, the rec. "What ho, lads!" was written for a style challenge, so there is less of BSL's own sharp, precise turns of phrase, but quite a lot of Wodehouse's. Go enjoy!

https://archiveofourown.org/works/21806884

Comments

[tinturtle]

As I did on my first reading, I am delighted by the image of Bodie sneaking up on Doyle in order to "bash him over the head with the old Bodie charm." *vbg*

[jat-sapphire.livejournal.com]

Yes! I like that moment too.

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Well there's a nice surprise for the first day of the calendar, and shucks! I'm completely chuffed you liked the Wodehouse Lads enough to rec them - it makes me smile alot! *g* Happy December, and thank you for starting us off!

[siskiou.livejournal.com]

I'm back from a few days at the coast and catching up.
Loved the story. I don't know much about P G Wodehouse, but it didn't keep my from enjoying our lads in that writing style.

[jat-sapphire.livejournal.com]

That's what we want! Thanks for the comment.