Torchy

Meet Torchy, a twenty-something office boy with more confidence than sense and a nose for opportunity in the chaos of early 1900s Manhattan. He barges into the Glory Be Mining Company, elbowing past a crowd of desperate job seekers, and talks his way past Mr. Pepper with a charm that barely masks his near-total lack of qualifications. The job is his. Now the real trouble begins. What follows is a series of workplace scrapes, social climbing attempts, and small victories that capture a particular slice of New York life at the turn of the century. Ford writes in a breezy, wisecracking style that was pure soda-fountain comedy in its day. The humor lands unevenly now, some gags feeling fresh while others remain firmly rooted in their era. For readers who enjoy period snapshots of American ambition and the particular madness of office life, Torchy offers a glimpse into a forgotten corner of early popular fiction.