The early worm by Robert Benchley
QR code
The early worm by Robert Benchley is a collection of humorous essays written in the early 20th century. With droll, deadpan wit, it skewers modern habits, public fads, urban inconveniences, and historical myths through parodies, mock interviews, absurd reports, and running comic conceits. Expect urbane satire, playful logic, and affectionate send-ups of American life, culture, and celebrity. The opening of this collection strings together brisk comic pieces: a mock graduation address that
mangles “the facts of life,” a tirade against New York’s sidewalk-choking construction sheds, and a salesman’s report that chases Paul Revere through his midnight ride to land an acid order. It then pivots to an absurd “true crime,” a list of football-season “upsets,” and a nonsensical interview with Mussolini, followed by the launch of a bicycle “polar expedition” through Manhattan and a jab at the perpetual “Save Old Ironsides” drives. Benchley lampoons nostalgia with a miserable “good old-fashioned” country Christmas, reimagines a luxury tower as a tenement back-yard, parodies theatrical reminiscences, and offers a faux-earnest inventory of what college “taught” him. Brief sketches continue—an awkward chat with Dreiser, another quaint mystery, a tabloid-style scoop on Louis XVI, and a mock history of the Christmas card—before the opening section trails into a stylistic pastiche of the era’s literary chroniclers. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
Download for free
For your e-reader or reading app — Kindle, Kobo, Apple Books, Calibre etc.
Kindle → Use Send-to-Kindle
- Download the EPUB3 file above
- Upload it on the Amazon site your Kindle is registered with: amazon.com/sendtokindle for the US, amazon.co.uk/sendtokindle for the UK etc.
- It appears on your Kindle and in the Kindle app
Kobo, Nook etc. → Transfer via USB
- Download the EPUB3 file on your computer
- Connect your e-reader by USB and tap "Connect" on its screen
- Drag the file onto the e-reader drive
Phone, Tablet or Computer → Online or Reading App
Easiest: read online in your browser. Nothing to install.
Or use a reading app:
- Find and install one you like, for example Apple Books, ReadEra or Thorium Reader
- Download the EPUB3 file above
- Open it in the app
More help: iPhone / iPad · Android · Computer
Other formats & older devices
There may be more files related to this item.
About this eBook
| Author | Benchley, Robert, 1889-1945 |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Held, John, Jr., 1889-1958 |
| Illustrator | Williams, Gluyas, 1888-1982 |
| LoC No. | 27011199 |
| Title | The early worm |
| Original Publication | New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1927. |
| Contents | A talk to young men -- The seed of revolt -- Paul Revere's ride -- Fascinating crimes [1] -- Upsets -- An interview with Mussolini -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [1] -- The saving-"Old-Ironsides" habit -- A good old-fashioned Christmas -- Life in the Ritz tenement -- Old program from the Benchley Collection -- What college did to me -- An interview with Theodore Dreiser -- Fascinating crimes [2] -- Louis dot dope -- The rise and fall of the Christmas card -- The henna decade -- A plan to stabilize the franc -- Sex is out -- Uncle Edith's ghost story -- Fascinating crimes [3] -- The end of the season -- Exam time -- Throwing back the European offensive -- An interview with Vice-President Dawes -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [2] -- A ghost story -- Discovering Weber and Fields -- Water football -- More songs for Meller -- Fascinating crimes [4] -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [3] -- An interview with the Countess Karolyi -- The boys' camp business -- At last a substitute for snow -- The new wing -- Uncle Calvin's no-waste games -- The world of Grandpa Benchley -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [4] -- How to start a supper club -- The new villainy -- Time-off from the show -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [5] -- Spying on the vehicular tunnel -- Compiling an American tragedy -- Storm warnings for New York -- The "Life" Polar Expedition [6]. |
| Credits | Carla Foust, Tim Miller and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from scanned images of public domain material from the Google Books project.) |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | American wit and humor |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 78352 |
| ISBN (HTML) | 979-8-238-78352-9 |
| Release Date | Apr 3, 2026 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 441 downloads in the last 30 days. |
Project Gutenberg eBooks are always free!