Cosmo Topper is a mild mannered and respectable bank manager whose whole life has been ordered down to the last detail, until one day he feels drawn by a strange impulse, to break free and buy a sportscar that was owned by a local couple. The only problem is that the previous owners of the car were a wild living, carefree couple who died in an accident in the car, and they’re still haunting it. George and Marion Kerby decide to turn Topper’s life upside down, partly for the fun of it and partly because they sense it might be just what he needs.

Published in 1926, the book reflects the changing of the guard between the staid and respectable generation, raised in the Victorian tradition, and the new, tradition breaking, freedom loving generation the Roaring Twenties. It also shows the more irreverent style of humour that was emerging, which didn’t hold with the things previous generations held sacred or with the seriousness of previous literary tradition. Where the Victorians would give us sweeping romance, and a haunted mansion, and safety in tradition, here it’s turned on it’s head: the humour lies in the ghosts being not scary but quite immature and hard drinking, completely cheeky, and the unlikelihood of modern vehicle being haunted.

Thorne Smith was born in 1892, and died in 1934. He wrote, or is most famous for writing, humorous supernatural fantasy fiction, where supernatural characters, like our ghosts here, are mixed up in sex, drinking, and general playful mayhem. Teamed with racy illustrations, these were hugely popular in the 30’s, and again in the 50’s. Topper, and it’s sequels, are some of the authors most well known titles, with a 1937 film starring Cary Grant and Constance Bennett as George and Marion being a well beloved classic, and more sequels films and a TV series made as well. His book Turnabout in 1931 inspired the book Freaky Friday. And his book The Passionate Witch, published after his sudden death in 1941, was made into the delightful Veronica Lake vehicle, I Married A Witch, where he turned the idea of witches as old, ugly and darkly malicious into beautiful, naive and playfully malicious. This went on to inspire more characters of this ilk, so we can thank Thorne Smith for Bell, Book and Candle, TV series Bewitched, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, etc.

Thorne Smith’s books are eventful though not particularly long. Each chapter give us a new event in the whole adventure and while there is growth in the lead character, the books aren’t really about preaching personal growth and aren’t particularly sentimental about it either, they’re there to point out the absurdity of life and of people. They’re playful and irreverent and chaotic, and they can be a bit salacious as well. Topper and Marion flirt a lot, and there’s plenty of hints that Marion and George have a somewhat open marriage, at times, though they are also both childishly jealous at times as well.

I really enjoy the humour of this era, especially the dark humour. The 1920’s loved to make fun of things that had been taken seriously for too long and to come across as youthful and unaffected by things. This led into the darker humour of the 1930’s, when screwball comedies were popular, with their quick talking and banter, and things like the Addams Family were created. The spooky was being embraced in a new way, as something that could be funny or even made down to earth in some way, rather than mined for tragedy or fear. It startles and can be so delightful.

Of course, if you’re going to read any book from 100 years ago, you’re most likely going to find some dated views. I can’t remember what they were in this book, but I have a feeling there were some I’m not remembering off the top of my head… But I do think this kind of humour, where ever you find it, can be such a boon in modern times, where we take things very seriously and often quite literally. There’s a time and a place for that, of course, but it’s also important to laugh and to not take life too seriously. Not everything is trauma and looking for the humour, or even having gallows humour, can be a healthy coping strategy as well.

I like Thorne Smith’s novels, and I’ve watched the Topper films several times. They’re so silly and chaotic and the characters are so wild, they’re a really fun ride. They pair well with a nice cocktail and a night in.

Read It If: this may not be for everyone, just because they’re a bit older, but Topper is still in print for a reason. Fast, unserious and booze soaked, this is a witty story, a wild ride, with a nice ending.