Nonsense Novels (New York Review Books Classics) - Hardcover

Stephen Leacock was a genius. Yes; genius. Critics are hesitant about using this word, but if it means a capacity for imaginative creation so extraordinary as sometimes to rise above what can be produced by the conscious exertion of an unusually gifted man, that was what Leacock had. If, in the realm of writing, it means individuality so striking as to provoke the admiration, envy and imitation of men themselves finely gifted...certainly Leacock had genius.-- Robertson DaviesIt is an understatement to regard Leacock purely as a funmaker. The often veiled satire of his nonsense reveals a sound philosophy. He is a keen critic who, like Lewis Carroll, wraps his deeper meaning in a mantle of mirth.-- "The New York Times"

Leacock's work stands out as a high point of humor writing--a parody of all the silliest conventions of the adventure story, the ghost story, the detective story, the historical romance, the nautical reversal, the Caledonian feud, and more.