MR KNOW ALL A Short Story by Somerset Maugham

Clever story about knowing the difference between what is real and what is fake and more importantly when to reveal it.

[@pagano1905]

Dear neuralsurfer. Since I discovered these short stories, a couple of weeks ago, I started a new routine of listening to at least one short story every day after work, and on weekends I do a marathon! I hadn’t read Somerset Maugham since my teens, about 45 years ago, and now that I am somewhat more mature and have a better understanding of human nature, I enjoy them immensely thanks to you! Can’t thank you enough!

[@neuralsurfer]

Wonderful!

[@kieranjohnston7550]

The story ended not only with a hundred dollar note, but with a high note. Cheers for Mr Colada who, despite being unlikeable, showed the discretion of a hero.

[@jacquelineharrod6386]

A true gentleman, who gracefully accepted the mockery he did not deserve. Thank you for this.

[@joyceriddick2309]

ML

[@WhirledPublishing]

She slipped him some cash to compensate for the ridicule

[@davidthompson6636]

Maugham believed in a story with a structure - beginning - middle - end. Always made for a satisfying read

[@sandraeastern9720]

The punchline always at the very end.

[@Shineon83]

One of my favourite Maugham short stories….Just wonderful! ❤

[@clairewyndham1971]

A gentleman to be sure, but also a very sensitive and wise man.

[@joanka65]

😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@JaneCarr-tf7ro]

Thank you so much. I love Somerset Maugham. I haven his copies of his collected short stories but it is wonderful to hear them read out loud.

[@along5925]

Agreed!

[@LauraJernigan-dz4il]

😊😊

[@user-uw1cr8nr8x]

Brilliant reading! I know this story almost by heart, yet your reading reveals how witty Maugham ridiculed the empireshness and arrogance of his own race! The way the story-teller tells about his hurt feelings and deduction is so suggestive! Thank you

[@mtop5776]

This is my favorite Maugham short story.

[@Angelique2716]

There is a movie called "Trio" that has this story as one of the three. That movie was my introduction to Somerset M.... and this story my favorite of the three

[@sharimeyers292]

That’s interesting. Thanks for letting us know.

[@kristenkrueger5527]

I really enjoyed that story! Thank you . ❤

[@alison155]

Yes so did I... a gentleman when needed

[@brendabadih8855]

This is new! Recitations of short stories ! Marvelous. Love the stories of Guy de Maupassant and Poe.too. thanks.

[@Lyrielonwind]

Saki wrote great funny short storied.

[@quicklykay]

Does “Romance at short notice was her speciality” ring a bell? The Open Window by Saki

[@nilgiridreaming]

Neural Surfer, thank you so much for these short stories. What insight into a past era. I am so thrilled with them, and as I am a writer who has been editing the work of other people for too long, I am invigorated by them. I will start writing my own short stories now, borrowing Maugham's slice of life approach. I love how he describes characters, which is something I enjoy doing. He is uninhibited yet controlled at the same time. A master.

[@neuralsurfer]

Thank you for your kind words.... deeply appreciated

[@zakia8623]

I loved the story. What a real gentleman was that Mr. Know all. I am reminded of a doctor who found that a widowed woman from a conservative family was pregnant In India it would have ruined the poor woman's life. The doctor said she has a tumor in the abdomen which needed surgery and quietly removed the 3 week old embryo after fixing a day. So such incidents are not totally imaginary

[@PetroicaRodinogaster264]

I have seen this as a short tale of the unexpected variety and it is a great story. I love short stories with a twist in the tale!

[@samsum3738]

Kolada turned out to be a gentleman after all .

[@antonivaneuzebio957]

True!

[@franciir]

Lovely! Thank you. I grew up in the '90s in India and then reading short stories (Maugham, saki, de Maupassant, O Henry etc) the thing to do during holidays. I remember this story from a lazy summer afternoon's reading ❤

[@jenford7078]

I love this story so much!

[@johngray2261]

Real pearls...unfaithful wife with rich lover. Nice ending.

[@pamelamitchell9459]

Spoiler!

[@lynnblack6493]

I love that story! Good to hear or read every few years. Mr. Kalata is a hero of mine.

[@janetpattison8474]

Great story! Brilliant!

[@franceslynch8815]

A sweet story. I hoped Mr Colada would surprise us. And he did, in the nicest way.❤

[@PumaLyn]

Mrs. Ramsey must have a rich secret admirer.

[@PetroicaRodinogaster264]

Really, you don’t say…how perspicacious of you!

[@Shineon83]

Very.

[@Pola_B_Alex_Art]

One of my favourite short stories by Somerset Maugham, along with "Louise," "The Creative Impulse" and many others. 💗💗💗

[@alidabaxter5849]

Beautifully written and insightful short stories are clearly wasted on some people

[@itsnlee]

Brilliant ending

[@kauffrau6764]

A beautiful story filled with insight and character. Loved the ending.

[@marshawoods4983]

First time I ever heard one of the stories I enjoyed it very much

[@javierv333]

Maugham me parece un genio escribiendo relatos cortos. Leí sus novelas The Razor's Edge y From Human Bondage, que me parecieron muy buenas, pero su estilo literario me parece demasiado formal y sobrio, por eso creo que brilla más en los cuentos. Su lectura es muy hermosa y se sigue muy bien por alguien como yo que no domina el inglés. Thank you very much for your work!

[@ufosrus]

Yo lo acabo de descubrir y me encantó este cuento.

[@Lyrielonwind]

Hay un autor poco conocido. Su pseudónimo es Saki y sus relatos son extraños pero divertidos.

[@chelmcclutchie5748]

​@@LyrielonwindYes Saki is.as good as you say. However Saki is a pwn name, his real name is H.H. Munroe.

[@brunovanhove1832]

This story,I must say, strikes a cord of personal familiarity!! Who was it, that said "a gentleman is one who never hurts someone feeling unintentionally!" Anyway,,, '87 it was, and having the privilege to spend two months of summer vacation ( preferably) alone, being young, carefree,and not at all bad to look at!! I had an affair with a "pretty little thing", Coinsidence or not? A friend who started to give lessons at my old school, invited me to the open school days, round October, being shown round, and afterwards took coffee at the bright new school restaurant, when a colleague of my friend asked if he could join us ,and meet his brand new Bride, " it's she a "pretty little thing " he asked us proudly?? The lady in question went red in the face when she saw me at the table !! I shook her hand,and said" yes she was!"

[@user-iu4bp2pu7x]

In my opinion Somerset Maugham is one of the best short story writers.His English is of high quality,especially when you listen to it.He gives the essence of event in the end in one sentence.Thank you.❤

[@Lyrielonwind]

I'm impressed by the lenght of all your videos so I don't know if you have any short stories by Saki or Patricia Highsmith. You have another subscriber 😊

[@j.darrel517]

I am thoroughly enjoying these stories ! Many thanks for posting.

[@natalinaconidi6313]

English literature at its best. I simply love your language and the shivers it sends all over my being. My italian language cam simply fade away when I listen to such a luminous sound😊

[@crazydays7]

Loved this one!

[@loniagarwala9608]

Maugham doesn’t disappoint 😊

[@kellym.9453]

Delightful🎉😊

[@njgrandma3519]

Great story! Thank-you for introducing it to me.

[@olgademenchuk7577]

This is a story about a real gentleman

[@DubblyaDottie]

Thank you for this heartwarming story!

[@stephencollicoat1226]

Great story and well narrated.

[@sharonla8071]

I found your channel yesterday and went searching for this story. It's one of my favorites. I'm hoping I will also find The Fall of Edward Barnard. This use of literature is brilliant. I wish I'd thought of it.

[@gaillevine3188]

Excellent story.

[@maureenbrophy7852]

Lovely

[@brigittewengert-rothmaier6856]

Thanks for sharing!

[@stewiecindy5889]

Your site is awesome.

[@nesapanjalingam704]

Thank you for this 😊

[@lidiawolanskyj5560]

Niiice

[@mehranossia3828]

❤❤❤

[@cecilmahpiya]

Who is/was artist for all the paintings. I admire them

[@lanalou2749]

❤

[@assiamouhoub7393]

😍😍😍

[@sarahsnowe]

Similar idea to that of de Maupassant's "The Jewellery."

[@harbinger2838]

If the reader if indeed not Mr. Stanhope, best come clean now.

[@neuralsurfer]

It is not him.

[@MND139]

I think it's AI. It's quite good for AI but some of the intonation isn't quite right in my opinion.

[@nikimarkwick9792]

AI

[@debbielangton8371]

I always said baby ❤ im not like everyone else 🤣 Sherlock trust me 😋😋

[@joshual.1833]

Colada boss it. As a tribute, his name was given to Piña Colada.

[@elliescamp7209]

TRIO | Somerset Maugham 3 movies. On KZbin.

[@malaranu6883]

There is empathy in all of us.

[@katiedotson704]

No. Not all.

[@debbielangton8371]

My theory is being a man of many voices i get confused 🤣😅 Sherlock

[@dangerman8625]

A suggestion view the film video, of Mister Know All, take note.!

[@debbielangton8371]

🤣🤣

[@happydays3678]

I didn't understand the ending at all. 🤷

[@brunovanhove1832]

If you read my reaction, you might guess, or get an idea 😂

[@Shineon83]

The wife had told her husband that her pearls were imitation pearls. The husband has a “poorly-paid job in the American Consulate.” Mr. Colada, seeing the wife’s pearls, bets the husband that they are real.… As he examines the pearls, Mr. Colada, who is a pearl specialist, sees that they are, indeed, real. …He is just about to announce his triumph when he sees the terrified & begging look on the wife’s face, as she looks at him…He then swallows his pride, and pronounces them “frauds”….(The inference is that the pearls were a gift to the wife from a lover-that was the reason for her frightened look)…. Mr. C showed himself to be honorable by keeping her secret.…The wife was honorable for returning the 100£ note to Mr. C (and Mr. C ends by making a joke about the “foolishness” of leaving such a pretty, young wife all alone for a year-as her husband had done)….

[@mysticmeadowshomestead6209]

Mr. Kalata claimed to be a true born Englishman. However, to be a true Englishman one must prove it, not with a passport but with conduct that is "cricket." Like a true Englishman, he had a code he lived by. In that code it was better to be known as a know-it-all and take any personal disparagements onto his own shoulders, than to be a gossip which would put disparagement onto other people. As a pearl merchant, he was quite right about the value and cost of the pearl necklace. Evidently Mrs. Ramsey had had an affair in New York while her obese husband was away for a year in Kobe, England. The real pearl necklace was a gift from her lover, but she told her husband that she bought them from a department store for $18.00. Mr. Kalata was about to prove himself to be right about the necklace, when he saw the distress on Mrs. Ramsey's face. A true English gentleman puts the happiness of a woman above his own ego about being right. Therefore, he decided to cover her indiscretion by "losing" the bet. In gratitude, Mrs. Ramsey returned the L100 note in an envelope she was careful to address in block capitals to prevent her handwriting from ever being identified. However, Mr. Kalata tore the envelop into small bits and had the pieces thrown out of the portal and into the sea. Proving that he was a true English gentleman.

[@quicklykay]

It’s a wonderful short story. I enjoyed reading it much more.

[@amadeus0123]

​@@Shineon83Bingo!

[@Riklott1111]

What was the lessons here? Why did he give back the 100 dollars?

[@francescaemc2]

He did not. She gave it.

[@rheinhartsilvento2576]

Listen to the story again. You'll understand 🤗

[@greymacleod9626]

For a start she Sent the 100! Max took a dive (the Pearls were real) loosing the bet like an English gentleman to avoid the potential embarrassment (or worse) to the wife!

[@brunovanhove1832]

It was probably " the pretty little thing" don't you think!

[@Riklott1111]

@@brunovanhove1832 yes

[@ambc8970]

0:06 i used to have all the collected short stories of somerset maugham. to be honest to.did not like him ,and his racist remarks and looking down on other cultures. i went to.malaysia a couple of times. and in penang where i stayed at the eastern oriental hotel . in the lobby there was an antique glass cupboard with pictures of all the famous people that stayed at the hotel except the picture of sometset maugham. the malaysians despised him so much they did not want to look at his picture. he was a flaming gay by the way.

[@cacampbell3654]

Ah ..... you despise SM bc he’s a racist and classist, in your opinion. But your vicious homophobia is nothing like that, right?! 😄

[@maryoruanai4671]

Oh dear….

[@michaelofsydney6128]

I'm a bit dumb. I didn't get it.

[@GeorgeNeofotistos]

The necklace was real and very expensive perhaps she spent her husband's money on it, or worse, she had a lover in New York for that year that bought it as a gift for her. My guess is it's the latter😊

[@harbinger2838]

@@GeorgeNeofotistos I coudn't have said it any better.

[@winnepeterson6570]

Please don’t consider yourself dumb just because you “don’t get it”. I believe the story was written to show that even arrogant, unlikeable people can be kind given the right circumstances. We begin heartily disliking the fellow, but immediately change when he recognizes the young lady’s predicament and willingly suffers humiliation from the other passengers in order to protect her secret. Out of gratitude, she returns his money. What I find interesting is that she knew his first name.

[@greymacleod9626]

The pearls were real and Max was an English gentleman after all.

[@Shineon83]

@@GeorgeNeofotistosShe def had a lover. That is the entire point of Mr. Colada’s closing line in the story

[@mawi1172]

I'm trying to get educated here😢😢😢😢😢😢....so far I'm not very intrigued at 9:34. Long story short: wife made out to be a sluuut. What else is new?😢😢😢

[@Lyrielonwind]

The arrogant guy had enough empathy to not suggest it. He proved to be a gentleman and not a women hater.

[@gillps5130]

The beauty is in Mr Know All's acting on his worldly wisdom with subtle presence of mind and compassion. He really was Mr Know All in the best possible way.

[@holmes5517]

Go back to your Harry Potters dear.

[@amanda-clairebennett6132]

🙏🙏

[@Grace.allovertheplace]

Thank you for always brightening up my days with all the wonderful different stories you post here on your channel. I’m truly grateful 🩰

[@neuralsurfer]

I'm so glad!

[@Grace.allovertheplace]

@@neuralsurfer 🫡🩰