Pongo Twistleton is in a state of financial embarrassment and it's not for the first time. Uncle Fred, meanwhile, has been asked by Lord Emsworth o...
read full description
reviews
Dec 03, 2011
Isabel
rated it: 
Polly frowned. In a world scented with flowers and full of soft music, these sentiments jarred upon her. [return]'I don't see why it's got to be a sort of fight.' [return]'Well, it has. Marriage is a battlefield, not a bed of roses. Who said that? It sounds too good to be my own. Not that I don't think of some extraordinarily good things, generally in my bath.' [return][return]When his sister Lady Constance agrees to give his beloved Empress to the visiting Duke of Dunstable, for fear that he wi
More...
Jul 31, 2011
Steve
rated it: 
When the absent minded pig lover Lord Emsworth entertains the obstinate and quick tempered Duke of Dunstable at Blandings Castle a clash of personalities was bound to happen even if the two do agree on one thing; the other is totally loopy! Throw into the melting pot a broken engagement, an engagement that cannot be completed for lack of funds, some serious gambling debts and a private detective that cannot forget that he was a former silver ring turf accountant and life at Blandings looks set t
More...
Nov 26, 2011
Sarah
rated it:
I am amazed that Wodehouse finds so many reasons for young couples to break their engagements, as well as reasons for needing to raise a bit of capital. The last paragraph of this novel seems to convey a warm, fuzzy feeling, but there's really not as much to be warm and fuzzy about as in the other Wodehouses I've read. They usually end with about six weddings in the works. This one has only one that we can be relatively sure of happening - that of Polly and Ricky - and her father and his uncle a
More...
Jun 05, 2011
Gary
rated it:
This is the third of the Blandings novels. Although others say Uncle Fred in the Springtime is one of the best of Wodehouse's books, I did not enjoy it quite as much as the previous two in the series. It involves many of Wodehouse's standard Blandings elements: upper class English eccentrics, daughters and/or sons who want to marry below their class,various vistors to the Blandings castle who pretend to be someone else in order to win an aunt's approval of marriage, and--of course-the champio
More...
Jun 04, 2008
Brynna
rated it: 
Uncle Fred has become my favorite Wodehouse character. He is so calming, in spite of his escapades, because you know that he can handle anything (short of his wife's disapproval) that life could throw his way. A little blackmail here, taking a new identity there, and it's all fixed.
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Aug 10, 2009
Paul
rated it:
What would life be without Wodehouse? It gives one the h.j. to contemplate, if that's the word I want. In the shires of imagination, no citizen does his or her duty quite so delightfully as Uncle Fred. Springtime is the season that Wodehouse brings with him, read whenever.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Dec 17, 2009
Plummo
rated it:
The greatest of the greatest.
A pig hides in the bathroom and eats soap. A beloved uncle jumps out of a wardrobe. A bedeviled duke sets about the furniture with a poker. Eggs are thrown at whistlers.
Can you spot the gaping hole in the plot?
A pig hides in the bathroom and eats soap. A beloved uncle jumps out of a wardrobe. A bedeviled duke sets about the furniture with a poker. Eggs are thrown at whistlers.
Can you spot the gaping hole in the plot?
5 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
May 21, 2010
Dan
rated it:
When Anthony Lane, an admitted Wodehouse addict, met Wodehouse biographer Robert Crum, Lane reports that he was greeted "not with a 'Hello' or a 'How are you?' but with the words 'When did you last read "Uncle Fred in the Springtime"?' I replied, quite truthfully, 'Yesterday.'" Lane, who at his best is a worthy successor to the Master, says it "may be Wodehouse's greatest novel." I'd place it right behind my three favorite Woosters, but my third reading was an unm
More...
Jan 31, 2008
Ian
rated it:
If not the best then, at worst, ‘Uncle Fred in the Springtime’ is one of the best Wodehouse novels. It is a sort of a ‘Best of Wodehouse’ with Pongo Twistleton and his Uncle Fred, whom we met previously in ‘Young Men in Spats’, flitting by Blandings Castle under an assumed name, as is traditional to first time visitors. The name in question belongs to Roderick Glossop, renowned psychiatrist, whom has had to pronounce Bertie Wooster certifiable on more than one occasion.
Also present a More...
Also present a More...
Aug 08, 2011
Ensiform
rated it:
A tale of Uncle Elmsworth, the Efficient Baxter and Uncle Fred. It was brilliant in its execution, but not as funny as the Bertie and Jeeves chemistry. Also, the incredibly complex plot strained even the Wodehousian limit of credulity: a man is convinced he is crazy because three of his friends pretend not to know him (and he accepts their flat denial of their identity). But not to be analytical of this type of writing: I enjoyed it.
Dec 22, 2010
Melissa
rated it:
Good lord, this is hysterical even by Wodehouse standards. "This leaves us with the simple problem - How is this existing state of what I might call 'plus pig' to be converted into a state of 'minus pig'? There can be only one answer, my dear Emsworth. The pig must be smuggled away to a place of safety and kept under cover till the Duke has blown over." Oh, if only it could be so simple!
5 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Jun 06, 2011
Deepa
rated it:
This book is not just about hilarious character descriptions and rib-ticking metaphors. These are vital elements of any P.G. Wodehouse book. This story is about how these birds(In the Wodehousian slang) get entangled in sticky situations. As we all know, at least one character in P.G. Wodehouse’s stories lies in the middle of a marsh. Here we have more people than the reader can handle stuck in weird situations! And we have the benevolent hero uncle Fred trying to solve each one’s predicament a
More...
Jan 18, 2012
Karen
rated it:
3 1/2 stars
Uncle Fred is a schemer, constantly changing his plans to reach his objectives: love & marriage for Polly, money for his nephew & a pig for the Lord of Blanding House. The book places the characters in hilarious situations, and Uncle Fred is orchestrating them all. Wodehouse is a great writer.
Uncle Fred is a schemer, constantly changing his plans to reach his objectives: love & marriage for Polly, money for his nephew & a pig for the Lord of Blanding House. The book places the characters in hilarious situations, and Uncle Fred is orchestrating them all. Wodehouse is a great writer.
Feb 17, 2011
Dianna
rated it: 
If you are a person who likes English humor this book is for you. Unfortunately, I had a very hard time making myself finish this book. Don't misunderstand me, it is somewhat funny.
I had a difficult time keeping up with the characters and who they were pretending to be. And for one person Uncle Fred gets into a world of trouble. I got tired just reading about his antics.
I had a difficult time keeping up with the characters and who they were pretending to be. And for one person Uncle Fred gets into a world of trouble. I got tired just reading about his antics.
Nov 20, 2010
Miriam
rated it:
Uncle Fred is another one of those characters who probably would be a pain in real life, but is great in a book. I do feel sorry for Pongo, though. The pacing is great, and all sorts of ridiculous things are going on, which makes it a lot of fun to read.
Jun 24, 2009
Lee Ann
rated it:
The usual thwarted love, needing dough, pretending to be someone else, hey-I've-got-an-idea adventure. It's very lucky we have words like “madcap” and “farce” or else we couldn't describe Wodehouse. This was oodles of fun.
Nov 28, 2010
Krisette
rated it:
Uncle Fred is great. Wodehouse's characters are so funny and loveable. This time he's added Uncle Fred to his Blandings Castle characters, and the result was the craziest plot yet. I'm looking forward to reading more books with Uncle Fred.
Jan 20, 2009
s.a
rated it:
Was a gift from Suparna around 7-8 years back. Misplaced it and found it only recently. Had finished 40% of it at the time and found the humour quite appealing to my tastes. Want to pick it back again soon.
Feb 27, 2011
Lloyd
rated it:
The first book-length appearance of Pongo Twistleton's Uncle Fred - the Earl who can't resist pretending to be someone else. Brilliant light humor, in accordance with the conventions of classical New Comedy.
Sep 07, 2010
Rachel
rated it:
I enjoy the Jeeves stories more, but what I've seen of Uncle Fred so far has been worth the read. I love the overlap in Wodehouse's stories, and enjoyed meeting friends from other books in this one.
Sep 12, 2010
Melody
rated it:
A rollicking time with potty uncles, pampered pigs, stately castles, dukes, earls and a couple of commoners. Full of laugh-out-loud stooge-type archaic humor that makes for just a plain ol' fun read.
May 27, 2011
Bonnie
rated it:
A big fan of Wodehouse's Jeeves books, I choose this book expecting it to be equally entertaining. It was a disappointment, so I guess I'll stick with Jeeves.
Dec 11, 2010
Bob
rated it:
Hilarious tale from P.G. Wodehouse, again involving the Empress of Blandings (The famous pig) and another would be pignapper.
May 16, 2011
Kristin
rated it:
I haven't finished it but I already know that I LOVE this book. Makes my stomach hurt from laughing.
Nov 19, 2009
kaitlyn
rated it:
As much as I love Bertie and Jeeves, I think Uncle Fred is my favorite Wodehouse character ever.
Nov 03, 2007
Jim
rated it:
I've always loved Wodehouse and came across this book at a library book sale. The 1939 first edition, US print. Poor condition. But a really great read. One of the funniest W every wrote. No Jeeves or Bertie, but does feature Drones Club characters and Blandings Castle. And Pongo's worrisome Uncle Fred, who says, early on: "The yeast of spring is fermenting in my veins, and I am ready for anything." Chaos ensues.
More...
Oct 10, 2009
Ryan
rated it:
This book had all of the classic Wodehouse elements and characters, but it seemed to me that it had a bit too much of them. There were almost too many plot lines tangled together and it was hard for me to remember who wanted to marry whom and just exactly why this person needed 250 pounds.
Uncle Fred is a great character, and there are several very funny moments, but the Wodehouse standard is so high I would put this in the middle of the pack.
Uncle Fred is a great character, and there are several very funny moments, but the Wodehouse standard is so high I would put this in the middle of the pack.
