Piccadilly Jim

Jimmy Crocker aka Piccadilly Jim - Formerly a reporter in New York with a hint of meanness in his reporting. From reporting news he is the news now. He bar hops in London and when he is not hopping is being thrown by the seat of his pants by muscular type men at the door.

Ann Chester - Poet. Thought Jim was a serious reporter. Instead he made a joke of her attempts at poetry.

Mr. Pett - Ann's uncle. Rich. Other wise negligible. All he wants is to be left alone to run his business.

Mrs. Pett - One word - Forceful - describes her well. Socially ambitious. One who wears the pants in the house. Has all sort of literary, artsy parasites living in her house in New York.

Ogden - Mrs. Pett's singularly unlovable (Wodehouse's words) son from a former marriage.

Mrs Crocker - Mrs. Pett's sister. Two words - Piercing Glance - describe her well. Her former husband was known to confess to all crimes if he were to merely catch her eye in her photo! Equally ambitious social climber, but in London. Knows several titled people on first name basis and wants to know more, but Jim's frequent residence in the front page of major newspapers makes it hard.

Mr. Crocker - Jim's father from his former wife and an unhappy man in London. All he wants is to watch baseball, but forced by his wife to make do with, gasp, cricket.

Lord Wisbeach - Is he? I mean is he who he claims he is? (Clue - he is the villain)

Jim accidentally meets Ann in London. Neither recognize each other, but this time Jim falls in love with Ann and she likes him too. Jim returns to New York in an attempt to woo her, but realizes early that he cannot be Jim Crocker due to his earlier glib comments on her poetry. So naturally he pretends to be not himself.

Well it would not be a Wodehouse without one impersonation. Wait it gets better.

Mrs Pett, just like Mrs Crocker sees the real Jim as a menace to their social ambitions. Mrs. Pett wants him under her thumb and Mrs. Crocker wants him out of London.

Jim who is already masquerading as someone else to woo Ann, finds himself impersonating himself so he could be be with Ann under Mrs. Pett's roof in New York!

Convoluted even by Wodehouse standards.

Not bad, not good. Average read.