The First Rumpole Omnibus Paperback – January 3, 1984

This is a great collection of the first Rumpole stories, narrating his experiences both as a barrister and as the husband of Hilda ("She Who Must Be Obeyed"). The stories are always written with humour, and are very engaging. Great for anyone who likes reading stories from England or has an interest in courtroom literature.Since Rumpole is a barrister we get to hear about the cases he undertakes (or the cases he's had in the past). They run the spectrum from petty theft to rape. Because of this be aware that while there is no explicit or graphic violence or sexual content, there are times references to them, as you'd expect from the life and experiences of a barrister who has had to address these issues in court.

I have a friend who loves Rumpole and has read all the books. Some time ago I asked for his suggestion on where to start and he told me the First Rumpole Omnibus was where to go. I actually read "Rumpole Misbehaves" first but thought I would give this a try.I liked it because the first two books in the Omnibus are more like a collection of short stories. All of them are self contained even though they build on one another through reference to the story before it. If you really don't like a story you can move on to the next and won't miss a thing. The third book is more like a traditional novel albeit it short.The bottom line is that these are all very enjoyable and entertaining stories without all the gratuitous sex and violence you get in modern mysteries and thrillers. Even as "legal thrillers" or whatever the genre is, Rumpole is pretty tame. Still, he takes up for the underdog and stands by his principles when others are willing to leave theirs at the door.I may take a break from Rumpole but I can see a time when I'll pick up the Second Rumpole Omnibus or another Rumpole book.

Mortimer's Rumpole is a witty, literate and enjoyable read in light mystery. Readers of the electronic version may be misled, as was I, by the failure of the "Go To ..." function to list the table of contents as an option. But the book does have a working table of contents which one can access by go to the "cover" and then paging forward to the table of contents. The First Omnibus contains the first three books of the Rumpole series: Rumpole of the Bailey, The Trials of Rumpole, and Rumpole's Return.

Horace Rumpole presents himself as just an Old Bailey hack doing run-of-the-mill burglary defenses and the odd car-heist case. In reality he defends the best in the Anglo-American legal traditions against modern forces (for example, the presumption of innocence) - and this was written 20+ years ago!Rumpole is the lovable defender of the average man and foe to all stick-in-the-muds. His motto "Never plead guilty." It could just as well be comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Hilarious, warm, human, touching, self-effacing and ever-ready to pierce the pompous gasbag - that's Rumpole of the Bailey. Start with the First Rumpole Omnibus and work your way through the rest.Guaranteed to tickle your funny bone and warm your heart.

Rumpole is wonderful reading for anyone, but especially lawyers or those who deal with them. He is a 68 year old barrister who mainly defends criminal cases. His narrative voice is a wonder.

Each of the short stories is worth reading. However this somewhat shorter compilation has some of the same stores as the Second Rumpole Omnibus. The second volume has more stories than the first. Caveat emptor!

Fortunately many of these stories were made into videos on BBC and can be seen on YouTube... LOVE them. One thing about Rumpole is that he is always keen on JUSTICE.... and his viewpoints are somewhat unusual. These stories always make you think. I gave them to my home health nurse and she had never heard of Rumpole but now is quite a fan.

Absolutely great writing. Purchased 2 sets of the omnibus books so I could give 1 set as a gift.

Rumple is one of the great characters of English Literature - funny, irreverent, clever.A laugh-out-loud set of stories replete with outrageous dialogue spewed from the mouths of outrageous characters.

Fantastic stories from the Old Bailey. A great raconteur with an interesting look at criminal law. A great read & very funny.

Entertaining to the end

It delivers what is stated on the tin. However, personally find the stories extremely boring. Not an issue with production.

While unforgettable, a real pleasure to 're-read. What a rapscallion. Not to say a blunder and cad. But who would?