I picked this one more or less at random, because I'd read and enjoyed 'Brideshead Revisited', so I figured there was a decent chance I'd like this too. Ok, now that I've prepared you for a negative review, I'm going to disappoint you. Well, sort of. You'll see.
First things first, did I enjoy it? Yes, yes I did. It was really fun to read, very entertaining and terribly funny. Are my feelings about it a hundred percent positive? Not exactly. On the one hand, it is, as I just mentioned, a very funny, very readable novel. Paul Pennyfeather provides the only logic in the book and, like all good heroes (though of course Waugh tells us Paul isn't really a hero), is bland enough for everyone to feel they can identify with him.
So far, so good. The circumstances leading to Paul's sending down are hilarious and the characters he meets as a result are fascinating - my personal favourite is Peter Beste-Chetwynde, the world's oldest fifteen-year-old. However, some of the attitudes evident in the novel are rather unsavoury, and I found that tainted the experience somewhat.
For instance, when we first meet Margot Beste-Chetwynde, she has with her a black American boyfriend, who is referred to in unpleasant terms, not only by the characters, but also by the narrator. Now one could argue that the characters are intended to be ridiculous and are being mocked by Waugh, but the narrator certainly isn't. I'll admit that acceptable terminology has changed since the '20s, but it does date the novel and give us an insight into Waugh's less pleasant views.
His treatment of Jews, though brief, is of a similar vein, though possibly worse, as it is a casual comment coming from an otherwise amiable character, rather than studied ridiculousness. This aside, I enjoyed the story greatly and fully intend to read more of Waugh's work - it's just a shame he was so obviously of his time.
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