My Ten Years in a Quandary, and How They Grew
My Ten Years in a Quandary, and How They Grew is a 1936 collection of 105 short humorous essays by Robert Benchley.[1] The book was originally published by Harper Brothers and illustrated by Gluyas Williams.[2] It was a best-seller upon release.[3]
Critical reception[edit]
The collection is considered one of Benchley's "most brilliant."[4] A reviewer at America wrote, that My Ten Years in a Quandary, and How They Grew is "bristling… with tiny, droll essays on almost every subject imaginable, and inducing in the reader a state of sustained hilarity."[5] Robert van Gelder of the New York Times wrote, "if there is a better bedside book than this it should be beside the couch of Jove."[6] A reviewer at The Baltimore Sun wrote, "I have never been able to find much humor in the writings of Robert Benchley but I must say his latest book, My Ten Years In A Quandary And How They Grew, has caught my fancy and I do not hesitate to recommend it."[7]
References[edit]
- ^ Poore, C.G. (May 10, 1936). The title refers to Margaret Sidney's popular series Five Little Peppers and How They Grew. It Seems That This Is Mr. Benchley's Saga of the Gaga. New York Times
- ^ Merriam-Webster (1995). Merriam-Webster's encyclopedia of literature, p. 125. Merriam-Webster, ISBN 978-0-87779-042-6
- ^ Staff report (June 7, 1936). Ten Best Sellers Of Current Week. Hartford Courant
- ^ Riverside Dictionary (2004). "Benchley, Robert Charles." The Riverside Dictionary of Biography, p. 73, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN 978-0-618-49337-1
- ^ Editorial staff (1936). My Ten Years in a Quandary (review). America, p. 236
- ^ Van Gender, Robert (May 9, 1936). It Seems That This Is Mr. Benchley's Saga of the Gaga. New York Times
- ^ Review staff (May 11, 1936). My Ten Years in a Quandary, and How They Grew (review). The Baltimore Sun