Porterhouse Blue [Paperback]

Tom Sharpe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1989

Never before published in America, and now a six-hour PBS presentation, Porterhouse Blue is the story of one college campus with more problems than students. A revolution at Porterhouse College sends a lot of things out in the open--namely one gross of condoms.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

The basis of a PBS miniseries, Porterhouse Blues confirms that Tom Sharpe is "an excellent writer and absolutely hilarious. His characterizations are deft, his plots are brilliant, and his prose style is smooth and winning" (P.J. O'Rourke).

To Porterhouse College-bastion of a formidable crew team, lavish dining hall and wine cellar, and laughable academic standards-comes a crusading new Master. Porterhouse alumni believe in manly sports, the royal family, and brandy in the library with a fervor they bring to few intellectual positions. And the college upholds a long tradition of granting degrees to a certain number of muttonheaded young gentlemen of enviable pedigree and adequate family contribution to the school's treasury.

The new Master, afire with liberal zeal, upsets everyone's digestion with a speech outlining plans to do things that simply aren't done: the admission of women, a cafeteria to replace the revered service of the kitchens, and contraceptive dispensers in every bathroom. The shock of the new and modern rattles even the college retainers. The head porter, Skullion, perhaps the staunchest supporter of the old way, rallies some powerful graduates to the cause, including the illustrious Canon Bowel and the madly wealthy-and plain mad-Sir Cathcart D'Eath. Their counterrevolutionary efforts result, among other peculiar events, in the most bizarre disaster seen at Cambridge in five hundred years, and in an escalation of threats, bluffs, and maneuvers to shame the shadiest of politicians. And the production of an investigative documentary on the strange doings at Porterhouse precipitates scandal of the highest order and an utterly unforeseeable conclusion.

"Terrific. It is light years since I read anything so original."--P.G. Wodehouse

"The funniest writer in English today."--The Washington Post Book World

Tom Sharpe was born in England in 1928 and educated at Cambridge. He emigrated to South Africa in 1951, but was deported in 1961. From 1963 to 1972 he was a lecturer in history at the Cambridge College of Arts and Technology. He is the author of eight other novels and two non-fiction books, Riotous Assembly and Indecent Exposure, about South Africa. He is married and lives in Cambridge.

About the Author

Tom Sharpe was born in 1928 and educated at Lancing College and Pembroke College, Cambridge. He did his national service in the Marines before moving to South Africa in 1951, where he did social work before teaching in Natal. He had a photographic studio in Pietermaritzburg from 1957 until 1961, and from 1963 to 1972 he was a lecturer in History at the Cambridge College of Arts and Technology. He is the author of sixteen bestselling novels, including Porterhouse Blue and Blott on the Landscape, which were serialised on television, and Wilt, which was made into a film. In 1986 he was awarded the XXIIIeme Grand Prix de l'Humour Noir Xavier Forneret, and in 2010 he was awarded the inaugural BBK La Risa de Bilbao Prize. He is married and divides his time between Cambridge, England, and northern Spain. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 219 pages
• Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press; 1st Atlantic Monthly Press ed edition (February 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0871132796
• ISBN-13: 978-0871132796
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #982,754 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funniest Book I've Ever Listened To, January 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Porterhouse Blue (Paperback)

I borrowed the unabridged audio version of Porterhouse Blue from the local library, and listened while riding my bike. I'm afraid I made a spectacle of myself as I rode along, cracking up , with tears of laughter streaming down my face! I'm sure it was the funniest book I've ever read. I'm here at amazon.com looking for more of Mr. Sharpe!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Underrated satire, May 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Porterhouse Blue (Paperback)

Why Sharpe is not as well known in this country as lesser talents is beyond me. A classic satire of British politics and society circa late 60s-early 70s set in an English College (based on Peterhouse?). The machinations of the dean and his subordinates to preserve the status quo in the face of the new liberal head are hilarious. Even better is the twist ending which reveals the true nature of class conflict in Britain. Also features a hilarious explosion involving a disturbed student, an elderly chambermaid, and a box of condoms. To find out more, read this most excellent book.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Laugh Out Loud Funny, December 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Porterhouse Blue (Paperback)

I listened to the unabridged audio version of this book, and laughed from the beginning to the end. I've also listened to Ancestral Vices, another very funny book. I think the way to tell if a book is really funny is to read it (or listen to it)again, and if you still laugh hysterically, while already knowing the outcome, it really is well done. Porterhouse Blue passed this test with flying colors, as it kept me awake and entertained driving through the night on a cross-country journey.