Saki (or H.H. Monro) only wrote a handful of novelettes, short stories, and plays before he was killed in WWI. What little he did write was top-knotch quality, full of biting satire and timeless wit. One can only guess what future masterpieces died with him on that battlefield. It's heartbreaking to think about. I have no doubt that he would have been listed among the greatest authors Britain has ever produced.In a way, though, it's fitting that he would die the way he did. Two of his novelettes (When William Came and The Westminster Alice) showed how strongly he felt about standing up to fight for your country. When William Came (written in 1913) is a somewhat unnerving look at what might have become of Britain if they had sat back and let Germany invade them. The Westminster Alice is a caricature of the government leaders of the day, written as an Alice in Wonderland parody. He was very good at making everyday happenings and everyman opinions look every bit as ridiculous as they really are.The other novelette in this collection was The Unbearable Bassington. He began it with the author's note "This story has no moral. If it points out an evil, at any rate it suggests no remedy." On the contrary, I think it did have a moral, and if you were reading closely you would know exactly how to remedy the evil it pointed out - Bassington did nothing his whole life but sabotage every chance he was presented to better himself, until finally it was too late. Considering how wittily the story was written, it was quite tragic when you think about it.I have to include a bunch of quotes in this review, I just HAVE to. The man could craft a sentence like few have ever been able to do -She came of a family whose individual members went through life, from the nursery to the grave, with as much tact and consideration as a cactus-hedge might show in going through a crowded bathing tent.Merla was one of those human flies that buzz; in crowded streets, at bazaars and in warm weather, she attained to the proportions of a human bluebottle. Lady Caroline Benaresq had openly predicted that a special fly-paper was being reserved for her accommodation in another world; others, however, held the opinion that she would be miraculously multiplied in a future state, and that four or more Merla Blathlingtons, according to deserts, would be in perpetual and unremitting attendance on each lost soul."He's just produced a play that has had a big success in Moscow and is certain to be extremely popular all over Russia. In the first three acts the heroine is supposed to be dying of consumption; in the last act they find she is really dying of cancer.""Are the Russians really such a gloomy people?""Gloom-loving, but not in the least gloomy. They merely take their sadness pleasurably, just as we are accused of taking our pleasures sadly.""Isn't he at an agricultural college or something of the sort?""Yes, studying to be a gentleman farmer, he told me. I didn't ask if both subjects were compulsory."Quentock was a young artist whose abilities were just receiving due recognition from the critics; that the recognition was not overdue he owed largely to his perception of the fact that if one hides one's talent under a bushel one must be careful to point out to everyone the exact bushel under which it is hidden."As an old lady of my acquaintance observed the other day, some people are born with a sense of how to clothe themselves, others acquire it, others look as if their clothes had been thrust upon them." She gave Lady Caroline her due quotation marks, but the sudden tactfulness with which she looked away from her cousin's frock was entirely her own idea."My dear Mr. Greech," said Lady Caroline, "we all know that Prime Ministers are wedded to the truth, but like other wedded couples they sometimes live apart.""What is young Storre's profession?" some one had once asked concerning him. "He has a great many friends who have independent incomes," had been the answer.Tony Luton was a young man who had sprung from the people, and had taken care that there should be no recoil.He was more quietly dressed than the usual run of music-hall successes; he had looked critically at life from too many angles not to know that though clothes cannot make a man they can certainly damn him.Joan Mardle had reached forty in the leisurely untroubled fashion of a woman who intends to be comely and attractive at fifty. She cultivated a jovial, almost joyous manner, with a top-dressing of hearty good will and good nature which disarmed strangers and recent acquaintances; on getting to know her better they hastily re-armed themselves. Some one had once aptly described her as a hedgehog with the protective mimicry of a puffball. If there was an awkward remark to be made at an inconvenient moment before undesired listeners, Joan invariably made it, and when the occasion did not present itself she was usually capable of creating it. She was not without a certain popularity, the sort of popularity that a dashing highwayman sometimes achieved among those who were not in the habit of travelling on his particular highway."I say, this is a top-hole omelette," said Ronnie. It was his only contribution to the conversation, but it was a valuable one.She had attained to that desirable feminine altitude of purse and position when people who go about everywhere know you well by sight and have never met your dress before.Hubert Herlton's parents had brought him into the world, and some twenty-one years later had put him into a motor business. Having taken these pardonable liberties they had completely exhausted their ideas of what to do with him, and Hubert seemed unlikely to develop any ideas of his own on the subject.Aaaaaand there I should stop, though those quotes were only from the novelettes. The plays would have to be quoted pretty much in their entirety, so I'd better not get started!In summary: READ SAKI. Good times.
Saki (H. H. Munro). WHEN WILLIAM CAME: A Story of London Under the Hohenzollerns. (1913). ***. and, WESTMINSTER ALICE. (1902). **. Both of these novels by the author, along with The Unbearable Bassington, (see earlier blurb) are included in this volume of his complete works. Unfortunately, they do not rate as well as the Bassington novel, though they were unique for their time. “William,” is set in London after a war between England and Germany in which Germany was the victor. It was an entry into the genre called “invasion” novels – popular at the time – which predicted WW I based on the political atmosphere at the time. The William of the title was Kaiser Wilhelm, who really doesn’t appear in the book. The story concerns Murrey Yeovil, an adventurer who was traveling in the Siberian regions when he fell ill and was forced to remain in that remote region for his recovery for a long period. During that period, he was cut off from any news of the outside world. When he recovered and returned to England and his wife, Cicely, he found that the country was now ruled by Germany as a fait accompli, after a single battle in which the English were swamped. It was apparently a relatively bloodless battle since the Brits were totally unprepared for war. It finds the English moneyed class still trying to maintain their former existences while under new rulership, though countless thousands of them had emigrated to their colonies. To those who stayed, it was life as usual, although with the utmost attempts at adapting to their new environment. Saki takes this opportunity to flay the Brits in their unpreparedness for potential war with Europe and their hidebound attachment to their customary activities that led to their rapid overthrow. There’s lots of sardonic commentary here, but not necessarily of the witty kind. Although he manages to make fun of the class structure, he manages to show it as a weakness of character that could very well lead to the destruction of the whole British system. In Westminster Alice, more a parody than a novel, he uses the Alice in Wonderland characters of Lewis Carroll to describe the current members of the government. Although provided with footnotes to let us know who each of the characters represent, we are still at a loss as to his barbs’ significance unless we are serious historians of the period. I suspect that this is more of a directed British novel than one that translates well across borders.
Do You like book The Complete Saki (1991)?
Saki’s short stories are among the funniest things I’ve read in my life. Imagine O. Henry’s stories, with their surprise endings, as if written by Oscar Wilde — the sentimentality replaced by mordant wit and an utter delight in language and wordplay (“the black sheep of a rather greyish family”).These little gems — most no more than four or five pages long — are positively addictive. Try ‘The Reticence of Lady Anne’, ‘Gabriel-Ernest’, ‘Tobermory’, Mrs. Packletide’s Tiger’, ‘Sredni Vashtar’, ‘Wratislav’, ‘Laura’, ‘The Scharz-Metterklume Method’, ‘The Lumber-Room’.... -Alan
—Jeff
Let me set the tone of this book review with three simple words: I love Saki.I discovered Saki's writing by accident whilst rifling through a pile of unpromising paperbacks on a second hand book stall, and since then, that battered old book has been with me all over the World. It's a perfect companion for journeys of all types and durations, and a great book to have by your bedside for those days when you're not sure what to read.Saki is a complete master of the short (and often very short) story. His writing is as light as spun sugar and as precise as a sniper's bullet. If you're the kind of reader who doesn't like to waste time reading unnecessary words, then let me introduce you to Saki, because he clearly didn't want to waste anyone's time.But there's more to Saki than mere economy of style. His stories are peopled by richly drawn characters and enlivened with Saki's razor sharp wit. In some ways the stories are wonderful period pieces, but many of the themes hold just as true today. There have always been people who've made fools of themselves and Saki takes delight in prodding them with a few well chosen words.The stories are short but perfectly formed - each one is a satisfying morsel. And they vary in tone so you won't be bored. Some stories are hilarious, some satirical - especially when poking fun at snobs and stuffed shirts, and some are quite dark. But what unites his stories is that they're all entertaining.Here, I hope without spoilers, is a flavour:Imagine a man who complains his life is dull to a stranger. The stranger promptly sets out to help the poor dullard out of his rut by bringing chaos to his life. That story is called The Unrest Cure.In another story, well meaning parents give their children non-violent toys in order to bring them up to be peace loving. Imagine their horror when the children's dark imaginations are played out in unexpected ways. The Toys of Peace.My favourite is probably The Interlopers - a chilling tale of rivalry and revenge, topped off with a deliciously dark ending. I also have a soft spot for The Reticence of Lady Anne, but I can't tell you anything about that because it's only one page long and I really don't want to spoil it for you.I hope I've convinced you to give Saki a go - you won't regret it.
—Mikey Campling
A treat when I began it Lo These Many Years Ago* but very long, and not portable, so I put it aside. My estimate? At least 24 oz. and 120 cubic inches of wit and knavery, which is a lot of wit and knavery to hold in one hand on a crowded commuter train. Saki is kind of an Edwardian, upper-class James Thurber. Style trumps virtue in general, but also specifically at bridge-parties. Bores are disposed of creatively, vulgarity is frequently indulged, genteel subversive plots are hatched in drawing-rooms, and a strain of perverse kindness to animals runs throughout. Not unlike Cold Comfort Farm. It is of course a product of its time, and the racism and misogyny are unlovable aspects. Though one devious weasel of a niece does much to redeem Womanhood. The political references are also so very local and time-specific that I'm afraid even being told which Alice in Wonderland character is meant to represent which Member of parliament still didn't clarify matters, and the humor suffered for it. But if you want to be charmed by ingenious devilry, witty banter, and apricot waistcoats, look no further.Some favorite bits:Reginald on thank-you notes: "Of course I wrote and told my aunt that they were the one thing that had been wanting to make my existence blossom like a rose; I am afraid she thought me frivolous." (p.9)On a lady who has asked where to buy books: "You write pointing out that to have recourse to an ironmonger or a corn-dealer will only entail delay and disappointment, and suggest an application to a bookseller as the most hopeful thing. In a day or two she writes again: 'It is all right; I have borrowed it from your aunt.' Here, of course, we have an example of the Beyond-Shopper, one who has learned the Better Way..." (55) *That should be a chat/texting abbreviation: LTMYA.
—Sps