Collier, John

(British, 1901–80)

Collier, first published as a poet, went on to write fantasy tales with moral and satirical subtexts. His first novel, His Monkey Wife (1930), ostensibly the story of a pet chimpanzee's infatuation with and eventual seduction of Mr Fatigay, a schoolteacher based in Africa, is an allegory which undermines and questions a series of contemporary assumptions. Setting primitive instinct against superficial etiquette, old moral values against new, and the expectations of the male against those of the female, the story is a subtle exposure of social divisions and injustices. Move on to Defy the Foul Fiend (1934), the story of Willoughby, the illegitimate and neglected son of a nobleman, and his tumultuous marriage to Lucy. Also try Fancies and Goodnights (1951), for a selection of some of Collier's best short stories.

Saki, Jonathan Swift, John Galsworthy  SR