"My Man Jeeves" by P.G. Wodehouse: Ever wonder why butlers in old movies and TV shows are always called Jeeves? Well, it apparently has something to do with a chap named P. G. Wodehouse, who was a wicked popular British novelist back in the day. Mr. Wodehouse's two most famous creations were Bertie Wooster, a slacking Englishman of leisure, and his trusty valet, Jeeves. In numerous short stories and novels, Bertie would stumble into one fine mess after another, all the while depending on the levelheaded Jeeves to see him through with his own brand of reserved wisdom. So, think of it as an early "Mr. Belvedere," except with, like, Peter O'Toole instead of Bob Uecker.

"My Man Jeeves," published in 1919, introduced the world to Bertie and his benevolent butler. It's a collection of eight short stories, although only four of them feature the title character. That's odd. Even more peculiar is the distribution of the tales, with Bertie and Jeeves appearing in the first three, vanishing for four, and then returning to close the book.

The first story, "Leave It to Jeeves," opens with Bertie and his man residing in New York City. Bertie's Aunt Agatha dispatched her nephew across the pond to stop his cousin Gussie from marrying a vaudeville girl. Bertie failed miserably in his quest, but decided to remain Stateside due to his admiration for the Big Apple, not to mention his petrifying fear of Aunt Agatha. Bertie owns a wealthy bachelor flat, with his only profession being living off his family's fortune. Bertie narrates, chatting with the reader in a breezy, informal manner, his prose overflowing with British slang like "chappie," "ripping," and "bally." All the stories are pretty much the same, with one of Bertie's friends always coming to ask for assistance in one problem or another, Bertie then consults Jeeves for advice, their plan somehow goes awry, but in the end Jeeves comes to the rescue, citing "There is always a way."

Between the Bertie and Jeeves stories are four tales featuring Reggie Peppers, a slacking Englishman of leisure. Wow, that sounds familiar. Reggie also narrates his adventures, much in the same tone and voice as Bertie. In fact, I was well into the first Peppers story before I realized it wasn't Bertie narrating. And I only ascertained that fact when Reggie took time to introduce himself to the reader. Aside from a lack of Jeeves, any other differences between Bertie Wooster and Reggie Peppers are negligible, at best. Reggie also has an endless supply of needy friends, and his generous attempts to help always suffer disastrous consequences before eventually working out in the end.

While all the characters are swell, and Mr. Wodehouse certainly can turn a phrase, none of the stories are anything more than mildly amusing, with most being downright dumb. There's just never any pay off. I mean, you can tell Mr. Wodehouse is a clever fellow, and he has a natural ease with the language which any writer would envy, but the stories all lack that one triumphant punch line at the end to bring down the curtain. And the resolutions to the various conflicts are seldom unforeseen or even moderately entertaining.

This is particularly disappointing since I had read how Mr. Wodehouse was a comedic genius and that his stories were some of the funniest in all of literature. Following so closely on the heels of my equally unsatisfying encounter with Jerome K. Jerome, I'm beginning to believe literary critics have no concept of comedy whatsoever. If you're in the mood for real humor, look no further than 70 proof favorites like Max Beerbohm, Oscar Wilde, and our beloved Dorothy Parker.

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