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The Swoop! or How Clarence Saved England - A Tale of the Great Invasion
P G Wodehouse was a British writer known for his comic style. Besides writing short stories and novels he also wrote plays and musical lyrics. This comic satire tells of the invasion of England by several European countries. The invaders are slowed down by a trip to a dance hall and the common cold before a troop of boy scouts finally gets the best of them.
Paperback, 80 pages
Published
by Book Jungle
(first published 1909)
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Because I was working up at Scout camp, and because I knew about this story that P.G. Wodehouse had written about the boy who had saved England, who was a Boy Scout, I figured that this would be a great read for me. And it was. Silly, overarching, fun, ruthless in its parodies, The Swoop! was a blast. As far as how it compares with the rest of Wodehouse's works, I think this one was just thrown together, expanded from a short story to a novel and then sent to the press, so it is a bit disjointed...more
"<a href=""http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1350578.html"">http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/1350578.html</a>[return][return]Michael Moorcock describes this as a ""funny, futuristic"" book, but it is really a parody of the invasion scare sub-genre. Moorcock is, however, correct to describe it as funny, despite the incomprehensible contemporary cultural references and unpleasant racial stereotypes (which as far as I remember are largely absent fro...more
“The Swoop! – Or How Clarence Saved England – A Tale of the Great Invasion” was originally published on April 16th of 1909. It is not like other Wodehouse books from the period that I have read, but if I had to pick the one it was most like it would be “William Tell Told Again”. The premise of the book is that England in invaded by nine armies and has only the Boy Scouts to protect it. Wodehouse is satirizing “invasion” stories which were popular at the time. In particular, the title refers ...more
This book is quite different from other Wodehouse books. It is a tongue in cheek story about England being invaded by 10 different armies including from Germany, Russia, Monaco, Italy, … Most residents either ignore the enemy or treat the marching and fighting armies as entertainment, but Clarence Chugwater, boy scout extraordinaire, encourages the leaders of the armies to fight among themselves and then surrounds and captures the remaining armies to save England. There are wonderful coments a...more
Germany invades Essex! ... Russians land in Yarmouth! ... Mad Mullah captures Portsmouth! ... Swiss navy bombards Lyme Regis! ... Chinese forces troop through Wales! ... navy of Monaco sails up the Firth of Clyde. Britannia is lost! The nation's only hope lies in Clarence, Boy Scout extraordinaire. Relying on undiluted patriotism and quick thinking, Clarence endeavors to save a nation whose sense of self-preservation has been dulled by an addiction to music hall entertainments and sporting news....more
A pre-World War One satire of imagined British ineffectualness against foreign invasion. Okay, the part where the German General and the Russian Count are battling for better reviews (and wages) at London music hall performances was entertaining, but most of this, sadly, is not--really it is very dated and doesn't hold up nearly as well as most other Wodehouse humor. Interesting as a cultural artifact for what is revealed in the stereotyping of nine foreign nationalities as well as local Briti...more
So, seriously, Wodehouse is a comedic genius. I kind of felt bad for the guy next to me on the plane because of the frequent bursts of maniac laughter while I was reading.
That said, I thought it kind of fell apart toward the end and I didn't laugh nearly as frequently. Still, a speedy read and worth the time.
That said, I thought it kind of fell apart toward the end and I didn't laugh nearly as frequently. Still, a speedy read and worth the time.
‘The Swoop’ is without doubt the worst book P G Wodehouse suffered to publish. It is a childish satire on England been invaded by various foreign armies and parodies various political figures that at the time of publishing would have been well known. The invasions are thwarted by Clarence Chugwater and his band of Boy Scouts.
At the time this book was written it no doubt brought joy to countless readers but over a hundred years later it serves only as a lesson that even the greatest w...more
At the time this book was written it no doubt brought joy to countless readers but over a hundred years later it serves only as a lesson that even the greatest w...more
A typical P.G. Wodehouse satire. Though I completely missed lot of his references, it was still funny enough to keep me hooked to the very end. And the fact that it's a short book made it easier to finish!
Quite goofy. The invaders were silly. So was the hero. Gentle poking fun at the English and any likely invaders.
Very amusing story of a day when 9 different armies invaded England. Wry social commentary and observations tell the story in a fun and enjoyable way.
Good.
I was curious about P.G. Wodehouse, and tried to pick a copy of Laughing Gas. Since my local library didn't have one, I went for "The Swoop". Upon reading the first -and longest- story of the book ("The Swoop") I was very disappointed, and was considering whether or not to read the rest of the book. I'm glad I did read it. Some of the stories where pretty good and rather short. If you like happy endings, you will not be disappointed
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These are some of Wodehouse's earliest works, and they are funny, but they lack the timelessness of his best works. The title story is funny, but very dated.
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“Deep down in his heart the genuine Englishman has a rugged distaste for seeing his country invaded by a foreign army. People were asking themselves by what right these aliens had overrun British soil. An ever-growing feeling of annoyance had begun to lay hold of the nation.”
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