A Life in Letters

50th Anniversary Edition

P.G. Wodehouse, Sophie Ratcliffe

$45

Hardback

Forthcoming
Pre-Order now

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English

Hutchinson
19 August 2025

Biography; Diaries, letters & journals

A new edition of the collected letters of P.G. Wodehouse, complete with a refreshed cover look, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Britain's best-loved comic author.

Charming, witty and profound, this stylish 50th anniversary hardback edition of A LIFE IN LETTERS is the perfect addition to any Wodehouse-lover's bookcase.

'The letters, gossipy in the kindliest, most amused/bemused manner, bear true witness to the wide-ranging influences on Wodehouse's' best-known novels and best-loved characters.' THE TIMES
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The definitive edition of P.G. Wodehouse's collected letters, edited with commentary by Oxford academic Sophie Ratcliffe.

One of the funniest and most admired writers of the twentieth century, P. G. Wodehouse always shied away from the idea of a biography. A quiet, retiring man, he expressed himself through the written word. His letters - collected and expertly edited here - provide an illuminating biographical accompaniment to legendary comic creations such as Jeeves, Bertie Wooster, Psmith and the Empress of Blandings.

Drawing on previously unpublished sources, these letters give an unrivalled insight into Wodehouse, covering his schooldays at Dulwich College, the family's financial reverses which saw his hopes of university dashed, life in New York working in musical comedy with Jerome Kern and George and Ira Gershwin, the years of fame as a novelist, and the unhappy episode in 1940 where he was interned by the Germans and later erroneously accused of broadcasting pro-Nazi propaganda.

By: P.G. Wodehouse
Edited by: Sophie Ratcliffe
Imprint: Hutchinson
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 222mm, Width: 141mm, Spine: 53mm
Weight: 728g
ISBN: 9781529154238
ISBN 10: 1529154235
Pages: 624
Publication Date: 19 August 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

P.G. Wodehouse (Author) P. G. Wodehouse (1881-1975) is widely regarded as the greatest comic writer of the 20th century. Wodehouse wrote more than 70 novels and 200 short stories, creating numerous much-loved characters - the inimitable Jeeves and Wooster, Lord Emsworth and his beloved Empress of Blandings, Mr Mulliner, Ukridge, and Psmith. His humorous articles were published in more than 80 magazines, including Punch, over six decades. He was also a highly successful music lyricist, once with over five musicals running on Broadway simultaneously. P.G. Wodehouse was awarded the Mark Twain Prize for 'an outstanding and lasting contribution to the happiness of the world'.