Max

Evening Post, 15 Dec 2005

Seven Men and Two Others Max Beerbohm, Prion, £8.99

Max Beerbohm made his name writing graceful, funny essays; these seem much the same, until sudden turns into fantasy - deals with the devil, astonishing coincidences, freakish runs of luck - make it clear that the eight friends he’s writing about aren't real. The ninth man, if you’ve been counting, is Beerbohm himself, a gentle and confused presence in all the stories. You’ll struggle to find comic writing more perfectly executed.