The Good and Bad of Buying Wodehouse

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

I purchased my first Wodehouse novel today; I read many in the library, but started mourning my lack of true ownership and set off to Barnes and Noble to resolve the dilemma. However, my joy turned to horror when I opened the first page to see these words (albeit this is a slightly abridged version):

The Libary of Congress has cataloged this paper back as:
Jeeves and the Tie that Binds | P.G. Wodehouse.
1. Jeeves (fictitious character) 2. Wooster, Bertie (fictitious character)
3. Single men - fiction 4. Butlers - fiction 5. England - fiction

Not even the Library of Congress is willing to recognize the difference between a Valet and a Butler. What a travesty.

BUT ON THE GOOD SIDE . . .

The cover actually is rather nice and doesn't make me cringe in pain (as most Wodehouse covers do.) Sorry about the fuzzy picture quality, but here it is.

And one of the clues in my crossword puzzle in New York Magazine today was "Gentlemen's gentleman."

Yup, you guessed it, the answer was five letters: v-a-l-e-t. This made me extremely happy.

Comments

[jivefish.livejournal.com]

Hahahaha, I bought that same edition back in... December, I believe. I don't have a library card anymore, so I just went on an adventure buying some of his books. I currently have 4: that one, The Code of the Woosters, How Right You Are, Jeeves, and Very Good, Jeeves! I need to finish reading VGJ before I start reading J&TTTB even though I bought VGJ last month, lol.

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Are you reading them in order? I just read those most readily available, so haven't conquered Very Good, Jeeves. I am avoiding the library currently as I lost their copy of The Jeeves Omnibus.

[jivefish.livejournal.com]

To be honest, I'm not quite sure what the order is (bad fangirl?). Like you, I just read what is readily available. Code was the first I read, because it was the only Wodehouse novel they had at Borders. Luckily, I had seen some of the series to know who the characters are.

I got lucky and found a copy of Very Good, Jeeves at a used bookstore by a coffee shop I frequent. I've actually been on the hunt for some of the omnibuses, particularly the one with the introduction written by Hugh Laurie. I think I just might order it online though.

[thirstyrobot.livejournal.com]

<library nerd>

Fortunately, catalogers are free to make their own additions to authority records, and it seems that many have corrected this oversight. (http://www.worldcat.org/search?q=su%3AValets+Fiction.&qt=hot_subject) Still, *thwaps LC's hand with ruler*

</library nerd>

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Really? I wasn't aware. Good to know there are catalogers everywhere trying to right the few wrongs.
Still, it says in big letters on the back of my book: Jeeves, THE VALET. You'd think someone at publishing would say "Hold it, something doesn't match up here!" before sending hundreds of copies out to book stores everywhere .

[princesshannah4.livejournal.com]

You have in your possession the tome with, quite possibly, THE most beautifully slashy moment between these two in the whole series. Enojy!

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Oh, I sped read through that in a mere two hours; lovely book, couldn't put it down.
But which scene are you referring to? The ending?

Every Jeeves book I've read the ending has been slashy. Good for combatting my sorrow at having finished it. ;)

[princesshannah4.livejournal.com]

The ending. It only exists in the American version ;D

Also, I am more than a little in love with your icon. One of my favorite Lieutenant George moments.

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

What? But, then where does it cut off in the UK version? The ending is definitely the best (slashy) part of the whole book!

"There is a tie that binds, sir."
Especially since earlier Jeeves notes: "There is no time when ties do not matter."

SO MARRIED.

On a different note. I adore the Honourable Lieutenant George as well, just bought Blackadder Goes Forth on DVD and am loving all the George-ness. And Baldrick. And Darling. And Melchett. And Blackadder, of course.

[princesshannah4.livejournal.com]

It ends when Jeeves says that he destroyed the Wooster, B. pages in the Junior Ganymede book (agh, my Whovian is showing...I almost typed "Gallifrey"), Bertie gives a little start, and simply replies "Much Obliged, Jeeves" (which is the title of the British edition). As the story goes, the American publishers wanted Wodehouse to end the book with an actual explanation of why he did what he did. The rest is history.

[katelynna10000.livejournal.com]

Every time you call Jeeves a butler- A small furry creature dies. REMEMBER THAT LIBRARY OF CONGRESS!

I need to read the cannon...curse my addiction to Anne Rice- and my school literature...

[princesshannah4.livejournal.com]

It can't be said enough:

(http://nl.tinypic.com)

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Oh god . . . scary Jeeves in indeed frightening. Where on earth did you get that macro from; I feel I've seen it before.

[princesshannah4.livejournal.com]

I made it myself, actually. If it looks familiar, I've posted it a few times before.

[daiong.livejournal.com]

Lol! I love it! That must be the face he makes when somebody calls him a butler XDDD

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Anne Rice? Not a bad addiction; I adore the Vampire Chronicles, but there is always time for Wodehouse.

[katelynna10000.livejournal.com]

yes, I'm almsot done- it's the 500 page book i have to read for my English class that gets in the way.....and my lack of library transport...or transport to anywhere, for that matter

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Oh yes that would sting. What book may I be so bold as to ask?

[katelynna10000.livejournal.com]

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Illende. It's a good book, but it's allot to read in a limited time- even if it's not quite 500 pages. And we're reading The Tin Drum later on this year *dies*

[emeraldreeve.livejournal.com]

My library is even worse. It describes Jeeves as a butler and Bertie as a bumbling idiot.

[storyfan.livejournal.com]

Those editions of Wodehouse have very nice covers, I think. I've seen some that are perfectly dreadful.

I'm just waiting for some decent covers for Pmsith novels.

[a-wittyusername.livejournal.com]

I have as many of that set as can easily be found. They're the nicest covers short of my awesomely WTF cover of Right Ho, Jeeves. (Really, the cover makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.)

The one for...whichever one features Alpine Joe (Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves, i believe? my feet hurt too much for me to walk across the flat to check) has a great representation of the infamous hat on it. They're nice copies, they are. look really nice all on a shelf together. The hard part is tracking down all of them. Because of course, no bookstore seems to have more than 3 wodehouse books-usually the same 3 as every other bookstore in town.

[amphitritie.livejournal.com]

Hm, would it be bothersonme to ask whether you could try and find this WTF Cover of Right Ho, Jeeves on the internet and link it? I'd like to see, please.

Yeah, bookstores are like that, I was actually looking for a copy of My Man Jeeves or the Code of the Woosters, but bookstores never have on the shelf what you want. I found that in a corner, after searching for an hour and a half. Took me a while to figure out where the alphabetization maze continued through the huge store.

[daiong.livejournal.com]

As yes, the cover is very nice indeed :3 I like it! Hmm, I haven't bought the whole series of Jeeves yet, maybe I'll try to find this version.

Gentlemen's gentleman means valet and valet only <3

[mrs-rochester11.livejournal.com]

Hey! I have that copy!:) It has served me quite well if i do say so myself. I agree, it's always nice when you finally OWN a copy<3<3