Wilt (novel)
Encyclopedia
Wilt is a comedic novel by the author Tom Sharpe
, first published by Secker and Warburg
in 1976. Later editions were published by Pan Books
, and Overlook TP.
) start the title character on a farcical journey. Along the way he finds humiliation and chaos, which ultimately lead him to discover his own strengths and some level of dignity. And all the while he is pursued by the tenacious police inspector Flint, whose plodding skills of detection and deduction interpret Wilt's often bizarre actions as heinous crimes.
Tom Sharpe
Tom Sharpe is an English satirical author, best known for his Wilt series of novels.Sharpe was born in London and moved to South Africa in 1951, where he worked as a social worker and a teacher, before being deported for sedition in 1961...
, first published by Secker and Warburg
Secker and Warburg
Harvill Secker is a British publishing company formed in 2004 from the merger of Secker and Warburg and the Harvill Press.Secker and Warburg was formed in 1936 from a takeover of Martin Secker, which was in receivership, by Fredric Warburg and Roger Senhouse...
in 1976. Later editions were published by Pan Books
Pan Books
Pan Books is an imprint which first became active in the 1940s and is now part of the British-based Macmillan Publishers owned by German publishers, Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group....
, and Overlook TP.
Plot introduction
The novel's title refers to its main character, Henry Wilt. Wilt is a demoralized and professionally under-rated assistant lecturer who teaches literature to uninterested construction apprentices at a community college in the south of England. Years of hen-pecking and harassment by his physically powerful but emotionally immature wife Eva leave Henry Wilt with dreams of killing her in various gruesome ways. But a string of unfortunate events (including one involving an inflatable plastic female dollSex doll
A sex doll is a type of sex toy in the size and shape of a sexual partner for aid in masturbation....
) start the title character on a farcical journey. Along the way he finds humiliation and chaos, which ultimately lead him to discover his own strengths and some level of dignity. And all the while he is pursued by the tenacious police inspector Flint, whose plodding skills of detection and deduction interpret Wilt's often bizarre actions as heinous crimes.
Characters
- Henry Wilt
- Eva Wilt
- Inspector Flint
- Sergeant Yates
- Sally Pringsheim
- Gaskell Pringsheim
- Mr. Morris, Head of Liberal Studies
- Peter Braintree, lecturer in English
- Dr. Board
- Dr. Mayfield
- Reverend St. John Froude
Literary significance and criticism
Widely regarded as one of Sharpe's best novels, Wilt is riddled with amusing scenarios, larger than life characters, a well crafted plot, and plenty of sexual innuendo. The novel plays on the stereotype of prim and proper English culture, and the idea that below this sheen of repressiveness lies a tumultuous sea of deceit and sexual anarchy.Adaptations
- In 1989 the novel was adapted for the film WiltWilt (film)Wilt is a 1989 movie adaptation by LWT of the Tom Sharpe novel of the same name. The story follows the comic misadventures of the eponymous Henry Wilt as he is accused of the murder of his wife when she suddenly goes missing after a party at a friend's house where they have a very public...
(titled The Misadventures of Mr. Wilt in North America).
- The book was released in two audiobook formats: abridged by HarperCollinsHarperCollinsHarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
Audio Books and read by Andrew SachsAndrew SachsAndrew Sachs is a German-born British actor. He made his name on British television and is best known for his portrayals of Manuel in Fawlty Towers, a role for which he was BAFTA-nominated, and Ramsay Clegg in Coronation Street.-Early life:Sachs was born in Berlin, Germany, the son of Katharina , a...
{ISBN 0001046705), and unabridged by ISIS Audio Books and read by Nigel Graham {ISBN 1856955257).
Sequels
Several sequels and additional works featuring Henry Wilt were written by Tom Sharpe. These include:- The Wilt Alternative (1979)
- Wilt on High (1985)
- Wilt Omnibus (1996 collection of the first three Wilt novels)
- Wilt in Nowhere (2004)
- The Wilt Inheritance (2010)