Product Description
The beloved characters--mortal and immortal--of Topper return in this uproarious romp through the south of France. One of Thorne Smith's best-loved comedies, it proves once again that he is the undisputed master of urbane wit and sophisticated repartee. Cosmo Topper, the mild-mannered bank manager who was persuaded to take a walk on the wild side by the ghosts of George and Marion Kerby in Topper, finds himself reunited with his dyspeptic wife for an extended vacation on the Riviera. But he doesn't have long to enjoy the peace and quiet before the irrepressible Kerbys materialize once again and start causing fracases, confusing the citizenry, alarming the gendarmes, getting naked, and turning every occasion into revelry or melee. Soon Marion decides that Topper as a ghost would be even more laughs than Topper in the flesh. And all she needs to arrange is one simple little murder.
Born in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1892, educated at Dartmouth, THORNE SMITH was an early cohort of Dorothy Parker's. He achieved literary success in 1926 with the publication of Topper and went on to publish nine novels in the next eight years. He earned a passionate following among both critics and readers before his death, at the age of forty-two, in 1934.
CAROLYN SEE is the author of nine books. Her latest novel is The Handyman. She lives in Pacific Palisades, California.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Reviews:
Marcus (USA: GA) (2009/02/21): With the recent appearance of this forgotten depression era classic on the Guardian's list of 100 Comedy Books You Must Read, it is to be hoped that a few more contemporary fans will discover this funniest of Jazz Age novelists. In some ways, Smith's fantasies represent an encapsulation of the sensibility of the age of the Flapper and the Speakeasy, and they also show the emergence of modern attitudes towards sexuality occurring much earlier than most suppose.
Imagine a novel written by Dorothy Parker and you're getting close to that which makes Smith so delightful. Topper Takes A Trip is irreverent, profane, and entertaining in a way that no other writer of the era can touch. You WILL laugh out loud!
