This version was printed by Penguin Books in 1970 and was sold for 25p but due to the proximity to decimalisation in the UK it also carried the 5/- price to help with comparison of currencies.

So to the book. I found the language quite exquisite and felt that I had been transported to the classroom of the American Night Schools for Adults. The subtle humour was very well crafted but that did not stop me laughing out loud on a number of occasions.

Apart from the pure enjoyment I had from reading this over the weekend, thanks for that, I also had a think about the language references you mentioned in your post. I spend a lot of time working closely with many people from India and am also fascinated with some of the phrases that are used on an every day basis such as “please do the needful”. Its really interesting how we take the construction of our own language for granted and don’t even consider how peculiar some of our own phrases might be to those for whom English is their second language. So apart from the fun of reading the book, it has also prompted me to exercise my mind a bit too!

The final thing that following this little breadcrumb of gold has done for me is that it reminded me of a book I read whilst in hospital, recovering from a major operation on my knee (anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction). The book was given to me by a friend to help “keep my spirits up” and its called A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole. I’m not sure exactly why I thought of it, possibly the genius of Hyman Kaplan and Toole’s Ignatius J Reilly, or maybe its the clever use of language. Either way, its brought back some interesting memories.

Thanks for the education. Keep ‘em coming!