The Tournament, by John Clarke, isn't so much a novel as an erudite and hilarious recounting of a fictional tennis tournament in Paris played by the most notable thinkers, artists, scientists, etc., of the twentieth century. Each chapter describes the matches of the day, and there's not much in the way of a plot or protagonist but the pages will fly by so quickly that you won't even notice.

The players come from countries all over the world. Hemingway is on the American team. He's referred to as "Ernie" and says of his flight to France: "The plane was high in the air. I slept and then I ate and drank and then I slept again. The sun came up. I drank again and then I slept. Then the plane banked and came in and landed and stopped and I could hear the great big engines being turned off. That's the way it is."

Most of the jokes, puns, quips, and poems are of this type and require only a basic knowledge of the person in question, though many of the 500 players are less famous than Hemingway and the jokes, therefore, more obscure, particularly in the women's draw.

The Tournament is extremely enjoyable. It is for anyone who considers themselves educated but has a sense of humor about it.