Lord Who?

Not much is seen of Lord Bosham, Lord Emsworth’s heir in the Blandings Castle series.  I have a persistent feeling that, although he is referred to in a number of the stories, he does not make an appearance until this month’s selection “Uncle Fred in the Springtime.”*  Lord Bosham’s younger brother keeps popping up like a cork in the earlier books until he is married off to an American dog biscuit heiress.  Despite being dispatched overseas, Freddie does reappear on occasion.  One gets the feeling that Wodehouse rather liked writing about him.

This feeling cannot be applied to the older brother, I’m afraid.  Whereas Freddie is a catalyst of many plots, and certainly he causes his father much angst pre-marriage as it seems children must, the same does not apply to Bosham.  This distinct feeling that I took away from this month’s selection is that Wodehouse could not find a definite role for him.  Early on in the book, he is a questioner who assists with plot exposition.  Later, in the madcap conclusion, he is the straight man who is removed from the scene as everyone is taken up by the encircling lunacy. 

The other problem is that there is nothing distinct about his characterization.  The role of a young man trying to maintain order is already taken by the erstwhile ex-secretary, Baxter.  There is not much for Lord Bosham to do, which I suspect is a common feeling among heirs (would that one could get Prince Charles’ views on this.). 

So much of Wodehouse’s plots feel like a juggling act.  The majority of them are rather successful, hence his massive writing career.  Because of the success, one of the few times when one of the balls goes rolling away is notable.  Something tells me that the later Blandings books will not be Bosham-packed. 

*One should be warned that Overlook’s cover features a character in blackface.  In my late-pregnancy haze, I did not realize straightaway that I ought to have removed the slipcover whilst out and about in public with it.  I now realize why I got a few strange looks on the train.