One of the few things that Lahore used to lag behind Pindi in was that you could find Wodehouses in Pindi. In my half a dozen trips to Lahore during my five years in Med School,I'd searched every bookstore I'd gone to for Plums. They either didn't stock him, or had only his school stories, or rarely, a novel that I already had. Pindi on the other hand, took the cake because every old-book shop had at least one Wodehouse. I'll grant that 98.5% of the time, they were the ones I already have, but still....
On my penultimate Lahore trip however, the pattern changed. Not only did I find two new Wodehouses, but also a book I was looking for for a long while (Is two 'for's correct?), namely Richard Usbourne's "Wodehouse At Work To The End". This temporarily stopped me from losing all faith in humanity. When I finally shifted from Pindi to Lahore, things took a turn for the better and Readings (the greatest bookstore ever) decided to stock a truckload of Plums. Out of that truckload, I managed to find another half-dozen that were missing from my bookshelf.
At last count, I have 56 Wodehouse books, along with 25 more in e-book format, which leaves me (according to David Jasen's brilliant "P.G. Wodehouse,A Portrait of The Master") with 16 more before I break even. Judging from the time it took me to get to 56, factoring in the decreasing odds of finding one I don't already have, I figure it'll take me 15 odd years to get to a complete set. And even if I count the 25 odd ones I can find online,that's too long a wait. Drastic measures are needed if I'm to get anywhere near my goal of reading all of the Master's work, and I've thought of one drastic measure that might go some way in helping me ...
This is a Wodehouse appeal. I'll list all the Wodehouse books that I haven't got or I can't find online, and if anyone has any of these books, printed, as part of an omnibus, in e-book form or otherwise I'd be ultra-indebted if they could share it with me. A photocopy, a scan, an e-book, a book-in-the-mail which I'll solemnly promise to return, or an old fashioned sale (at an extra 10% commission), anywhichway it may be, it'll be immensely appreciated.
- Bill The Conqueror
-
If I Were You - Louder And Funnier
- Doctor Sally
- Nothing Serious
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The Old Reliable - Bring On The Girls
- Performing Flea
- French Leave
- America,I Like You
Something Fishy- A Few Quick Ones
- Plum Pie
Do Butlers Burgle Banks?The Girl In Blue-
Pearls,Girls And Monty Bodkin -
Bachelors Anonymous
Here's to a successful experiment...
P.S Thanks to the generosity of friends and readers, I am now in a position to cross a few books off the list. At this rate, I'll be able to cross off quite a few pretty darn soon.
P.P.S I'm down to the final 10, it's the home stretch folks !!
