The Toys of Peace - The Original Classic Edition
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This is a new and freshly published edition of this culturally important work by Saki, which is now, at last, again available to you.
Enjoy this classic work today. These selected paragraphs distill the contents and give you a quick look inside The Toys of Peace:
"When peace comes," wrote an officer of the 22nd Royal Fusiliers, the regiment in which Munro was a private and in which he rose to the rank of lance-sergeant, "Saki will give us the most wonderful of all the books about the war."
... And it is because these tales, brilliant and elusive as butterflies, hide, rather than reveal, the character of the man who wrote them, give but a suggestion of his tenderness and simplicity, of his iron will, of his splendour in the grip of war, that it is my duty to write these pages about him, now that he lies in the kind earth of France.
...I regret to say that the 'Siege of Adrianople' toy, that their Aunt Susan sent them, didn't need any explanation; they knew all the uniforms and flags, and even the names of the respective commanders, and when I heard them one day using what seemed to be the most objectionable language they said it was Bulgarian words of command; of course it may have been, but at any rate I took the toy away from them.
..."There were, of course, some battles fought during his reign," said Harvey, "but I fancy the accounts of them were much exaggerated; news was very unreliable in those days, and there were practically no war correspondents, so generals and commanders could magnify every little skirmish they engaged in till they reached the proportions of decisive battles.
..."If you could manage to remember where you did leave her, it would be more to the point than these negative assurances," said Lady Beanford; "so far, all we know is that she is not at the Carrywoods', or Ada Spelvexit's, or Westminster Abbey."
Saki Saki
H.H. Munro (1870-1916), better known by his pen name Saki, was a British author and journalist, famous for his witty, darkly comic short stories and satirical works. Saki began his career as a journalist and gained popularity for his contributions to The Westminster Gazette and The Morning Post. Some of his notable works are - "The Open Window" (1914) that features a man tricked by a young girl in a twist of irony, "The Interlopers" (1919) portrays two feuding men trapped by nature, and "The Unbearable Bassington" (1912) satirizes a charming yet irresponsible aristocrat. Saki's works often feature themes of social class, the absurdity of societal conventions, and the consequences of indulgence or selfishness. His characters are typically witty and full of charm but reveal a lack of deeper morality or purpose. It focuses on the upper class, poking fun at their pretensions, laziness, and moral shortcomings, and challenging traditional notions of authority, propriety, and social decorum.
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