Psmith in the City

By: P. G. Wodehouse

Narrated by: Jonathan Cecil

Length: 5 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's Summary

Psmith and his friend Mike are sent by their fathers to work in the City. But work is the last thing on Psmith's mind; surely there are more interesting things to do with the day than spend it in a bank? Unfortunately the natives aren't conducive to his socialising within work hours, but all's fair in love and work as the monocled Old Etonian, with a little grudging help from Mike, begins to rope in allies in order to reform the bank manager and make him A Decent Member of Society. And if all else fails, there's always blackmail.

©2014 P.G. Wodehouse (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Master of the English Prose

Wodehouse met with controversy in his life, and was often undervalued as a literary figure because his writing didn't skirt the confectionery: it planted itself firmly in the middle of it. The more I read or listen to his work the more I'm utterly bowled over by his precision, clarity, invention - and by the utter genius of his comic timing. He might not be the deepest writer, but he is the most deeply superficial one ever to trot the boards of that stickiest of wickets: English prose. And Jonathan Cecil is something like the incarnation of the Buddha of the perfect Wodehousian voice.

Psmith may be funnier than Jeeves

I'd heard some critics claim that the Psmith character is actually much funnier than the Jeeves stories, but I had a hard time believing it until I listened to this story. Psmith, like Jeeves, has an uncanny knack of manipulating the behaviour of everyone around him in order to achieve his own ends while maintaining detachment and apparent innocence.

This book doesn't have quite as many laugh-out-loud moments as some of the Jeeves and Wooster stuff (the setting of the story is the New Asiatic Bank, and Wodehouse's hatred of his first job in a bank - at the same age that Psmith is in this story - is well documented, so I'm thinking perhaps this is less farcical) but the plotting is excellent. And let's face it: I love Bertie Wooster as much as the next person (and probably more) but there is a limit to how many stories one can read about his half-baked engagements before you long for a bit of variety. Psmith in the City makes a nice change.

A wonderful afternoon with Psmith

It has been a lifetime since I have met up with Psmith and thoroughly enjoyed his company again. Astonishingly exhilarating to listen to the flowing sentences and to chuckle at the delightful turns of phrase. (Try speaking to folks in the style of Psmith and feel better for it.)

Great fun

Narrator Cecil makes any book a richer experience and when combined with This author one has the best of all possible combinations.

Fun

What did you love best about Psmith in the City?

How can you not like Psmith??? It is such a checkout from reality to spend time with him.

Among the very best

Beautifully read. Among the funniest of Wodehouse's vast treasure trove. Mischief from start to finish.

One of my all time favorites, and a real classic.

What did you love best about Psmith in the City?

The suavity of Psmith and his devotion to those around him--also his socialism and rascally nature. Wodehouse always homers with the language.

Have you listened to any of Jonathan Cecil’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, I've heard many of his performances. He is always excellent.

The Unflappable Poise of a Shropshire Psmith

He never takes serious people seriously. He maintains an unruffled calm in the face of others’ displeasure, pretending to misunderstand their manifest perturbation. He is a joy, a treat, and a model for a happy life.

I’ve never understood Frances Donaldson’s contention, in her Wodehouse biography, that the character Psmith was somehow an impediment to his creator's development as a writer. I’ve always wished there were as many Psmith books as there are volumes of Jeeves and Wooster, Blandings Castle and Mr. Mulliner.

Alas, there are not. But enjoy the ones we have. Especially this one, where you’ll find Jonathan Cecil at the peak of his powers.

Better than Jeeves and Wooster

I prefer the characters of Psmith and Mike to
Jeeves and Wooster. Wodehouse’s well-timed one-liner descriptions of people are priceless. If you enjoy cricket or other sports, this book will have extra appeal. I don’t follow sport and I still enjoyed the references to the game because, well, Wodehouse makes them fun and interesting.

Funny

I have probably read all of PG Wodehouse books and always enjoy his humor. Psmith and Mike rate at the top of my list.

Favourite character

Johnathan Cecil is perfect for my favourite Wodehouse character. Always considered his Psmith to be his best performances, even better than his Bertie Wooster. The storyline is well up to the author's usual high standard.

For cricket fans only

If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

Hard-core Wodehouse fans only and then only if they love cricket!

Has Psmith in the City put you off other books in this genre?

If this had been my first Wodehouse there would never have been any more.

Have you listened to any of Jonathan Cecil’s other performances? How does this one compare?

The performance is fine - it's the content that's rubbish.

You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Unless you love cricket to the point of wanting to listen to long (15 minute) descriptions of matches - no redeeming qualities for the rest of us.

Any additional comments?

If this had been my first PG Wodehose book there would never have ever been any more! It’s a series of loosely connected incidents concerned with cricket and avoiding work while employed at a bank. None of the usual imposters, mistaken identities, formidable aunts or unwanted engagements that PG Wodehouse usually delivers with such wit. The entire first fifteen minutes of this book is spent in a description of a cricket match! This is for hard-core Wodehouse fans who love cricket only – be warned!

Not one of his best

Narrator is excellent as usual, but this is not as funny as most of PG Wodehouse's books!

The recording left something to be desired

What did you like most about Psmith in the City?

It is a good yarn with some decent funny bits.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Psmith in the City?

The hustings at which Psmith attends and interjects with carefully chosen words and causes a riot.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Indeed it did but there were quality issues with the recording that meant that it was below the usual standard from Audible.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

You might if you had time. I was sufficiently engaged to take it with me in the car to listen to on the way to work.

Any additional comments?

It sounded as if the recording had been badly edited. Many phrases were cut off at the last word so you could not hear the ending of the word or phrase. This was very irritating and was a disatraction from the story.

More brilliant Wodehouse

Jonathan Cecil could narrate the phone book and I'd still find it soothing. This is essentially a collection of Mike and Psmith stories woven into a novel, much like several of the J & W books. Not as good as Leave it to Psmith in my opinion, but still brilliant comic writing.

Psmith with the silent P ....

This is one of my favourite PGWodehouse creations. I have read this book a few times but Jonathan Cecil brought this even more to life for me. Highly recommended!

Great

I love the idea of someone who can get round all problems - and Psmith is such a person. Very amusing and brilliantly narrated.

boring Wodehouse? !!!

Unfortunately this one had me falling off to sleep over and over and over again. Not Audible's problem, but not one of Wodehouse's better works.

Very little action.