LITERARY

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 78, 2 April 1927, Page 22

LITERARY

A second edition of Mr. Hector Bolitho's novel, "Solemn Boy," is said to be assured.

A serial novel, "Life's What You Make Tt," by the New Zealand authoress. Miss Rosemary Rees, is running through the '"Evening Standard," London, It is a storv of her native land.

A lightly humorous biography, condensed towards the terse perfection of an epitaph, is unusual, and "A Lucky Lad," by Jean K. MacKenzic (Hopkinson), is in this way, and in every way, a delightful novelty. The authoress is no dour Scot, but writes with a delicacy of feeling and a gentleness of manner more French than Highland Scottish. So light is it that it has been ballasted by no less than three prefaces, which can bo skipped without loss. Miss MacKenzie is said to be without sentiment, but she can be as sentimental as Dickens without any departure from her photographic accuracy or pithy description. A few words, and you see the place; as few again and you know the people.

The original of one of Kipling's characters in "Stalky and Co." was present at the inaugural meeting of the Kipling Society held at the Royal Automobile Clut) last month. Lieut.-General Sir George Macmunn was in the chair, and of the 24 founder members the following were present: Lady Cunynghame, Mr. G. C. Beresford ("MuTurk"), Capt. Guy Nickalls, Major A. Corbett-Smith, and Mr. J. 11. C. Brooking. It was resolved to send a wireless message to Mr. Kipling on board R.S.M.P. Andes in the following terms: —"Honoured to advise that Kipling Society formed at founders' meeting to-day, officers elected, rules drawn, papers offered, and hundreds applications membership tabled. We send respectful greetings to yourself and Mrs. Kipling."

Of more interest to the specialist in the French Revolution period than to the student of general history is "The Fall of Robespierre." by Albert Mathiez (Williams and Xorgate). This ia an attempt to make Robespierre out to be a better man than is generally supposed —"a frreat and clear-sighted statesman who lived but for the pood of his country." To this end the number of chapters in his career are treated in detail, and with considerable vigour. Coming after the lofty exposition of the historian's ideal in the introduction, with its devotion to truth, and its description of the historian as "a cure of souls/' the vigour is rather amusing. Professor Mathiez gives the impression of being more intent upon proving a theory than in pursuing truth with an absolutely impartial mind. His method is provocative rather than restful, but perhaps "restful" is an unfortunate word. There was nothing restful about the Revolution.

A writer In "T.P.'s and Cassell's Weekly," discusses the question of book titles. Thackeray, he maintains, was superior to Dickens in this respect, and Walter Scott better than either of them. "Ivanhoe" and "Redgauntlet" and the "Heart of Midlothian" have a challenging ring about them, and there is the glamour of romantic history in "The Talisman" and "Kenilworth." It was not, he says, until the last quarter of the nineteenth century that the immense importance of a* good title seems to have been fully realised. The title of the 'book is "half the battle." Hardy has some of the very best: "A Pair of Blue Eyes," "The Return of the Native," "Far from the Madding Crowd." But could anything be more attractive, say. than some of Dickens'—"David Copperfield," "The Old Curiosity Shop"? Wilkie Collins, too, knew the full value of a good title: "The Woman in White"; and Besant and Rice: "The Golden Butterfly."