N.Z. TASTE IN LITERATURE.

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 75, 30 March 1939, Page 16

N.Z. TASTE IN LITERATURE.

Books That Are Popular in Backblocks. It has often been said that New Zealanders have no developed taste in either literature or art. An interesting sidelight on the literary taste of New Zealanders was shown at the annual meeting of the Mayoress' War Memorial Library League last night, when the Tasman Club presented its report of books specially requested during the year. In the list of books enumerated in the re pout, it was interesting to note that the poetry section, which included requests for Milton's "Paradise Lost" and Rupert Brooke's "Poems of To-day," was equally as large as the section that dealt with the more practical books on cooking and gardening subjects. Another interesting feature in the poetry section was the large number of requests received for "Kowliai Blossoms," a New Zealand boofc. Apparently New Zealanders are beginning to take an interest in their own literature, for there were also a number of requests for "Tales of New Zealand Bush." Favourite Authors. Among the other sections in literature. excluding first aid, cooking and gardening books, the following authors were found to be exceedingly popular: — Wodehouse, R. L. Stevenson, James Barrie, Dumas, Dickens, Georgette Heyer. Galsworthy, Kipling, Upton Sinclair, Bernard Shaw, John Oxenham and Ethel Turner. There was, of course, the usual large number of requests for children's books | of all varieties, and in this section "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" and "Little Lord Fauntleroy" were the most popular. | The magazine request section also | showed an interest in New Zealand cul- | ture. There were various requests for the "New Zealand Art," and the "New Zealand Academy of Art," while the "Readers' Digest" and the "Literary Digest" were also frequently requested in this section. It was reported by the Tasman Club that this year the Victoria League's book of "Tried Recipes" had proved more popular than any other form of literature, and a record number of requests was received for this book.