Pluck and Luck

In ''Pluck and Luck'' there are two main types of Benchley writing here, genre parody and slice-of-life humor. The former are the most unhinged bits of the book, in which popular literary styles of the day and various types of stuffed-shirt academic writing are folded, spindled, and mutilated. The best way to let you know what to expect from these pieces is to think of those monologues Groucho delivers in most of the Marx Brothers movies, then drop Goethe references into one. That's Benchley in a nutshell.

The other pieces take us through more prosaic concerns, without nearly as much punishment to the language, but without losing the wit. Here Benchley bemoans the plight of married couples roped into visiting the neighbors, the one day of summer vacation of which no pictures exist (i.e. the day you have to go through the misery of packing up), and that evergreen favorite of humorists since time began, travelling with children. It's not as weird as the parodies, but closer to the heart, so still really good stuff.