BOOK NOTES

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 45, 21 January 1939, Page 14

BOOK NOTES

“A DIET OF THISTLES.” J. B. Morton (“Bcvichcomber, the well-known columnist of the Daily Express), in “A Diet of Thistles,” presents a pot pourri of nonsense that provides laughs aplenty. Satire and humour are well blended; comedy is given novel touches that provide many moments of enjoyment. Jt is a book that ono may open at random and with it capture the lightest atmosphere; dull care disappears when the reader encounters the characters which flit across page to page. (Jonathan Cape; our copy from G. H. Bennett and Co.) “JOHN CORNFORD.” A link with the Spanish war and a remarkable insight into a youthful mind constitute in large part the substance of “John Cornford, A Memoir,” edited by Pat Sloan, and just off the presses. By no means an autobiography in the accepted .sense, but rather a symposium of writings, thoughts in poems, and extracts from his diaries, the latter while he was in Spain, the book is as interesting as it is unusual. John Cornford was killed when fighting with the International Brigade in the first six months of the Spanish conflict, yet his analysis of the situation, especially in Catalonia (the scene of hitter strife at present) is searching. “I can vouch for the truth of every fact given here, and I have put down nothing which has not been thoroughly confirmed,” he wrote in one despatch. For a youth of 21—lie was that age at his death—his writings display an unusually mature character, and it is frequently difficult to realise the fact that the writer had not seen more of life. There are evidences of a strong predilection for the Leftist philosophy, but the various writings display a fine balance, which will be read with unusual interest. (Our copy is from Messrs G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.).

“THE INDIAN TWINS.” A new and delightful addition to Lucy Fitch Perkins’s series of the “Twin” stories for children has been released by Jonathan Cape. The writer has published annually stories of “twins,” and this time it is “The Indian Twins,” which follows the Dutch, Irish, Scotch. Swiss, French, Chinese, Japanese. Eskimo, and other features. Since they appeared these books have provided a fund of appropriate reading for children, in a combination of entertainment and education previously unparalleled. Thus, “The Indian Twins.” cnrrvinq on tradition as it were, introduces a new set of twins, this time Beaver 80. and his sister Pigeon, the children of Chief Two Bears. With fine discernment of the juvenile point, of view, the authoress depicts the six to ten years period of these Indians before the white man had penetrated into the romantic AVest of America. From the first chapters when Beaver Boy finds that his parents are absent, and he is without food, and his initial venture into the unknown to obtain some with his sister and boy uncle, until the climax of his “earning his spurs” the book is full of that understanding of a child’s emotions that has made the authoress’s undoubted npneal to the younger generation. “The Indian Twins” is a book which can be confidently recommended to anyone in quest of a present a child would appreciate. (Our copy from G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.)

“PERRI.” “This is a book which has been seen, smelt, heard and recorded through the brain of an animal. Never once has it been marred, by the false echo of a human voice saying. ‘Look at these pretty creatures.’ The only animal in the book that is reallv odd is man.” This is how Mr Beverley Nichols, the well-known author, introduces “Perri.” the youth of a squirrel, by Felix Salten, a new publication by Jonathan Cape. This is a book which should appeal to a wide circle of readers, and one which should establish itself as another triumph in animal tales by the author. “Perri” is the story of a year in the life of a squirrel of that name. It tells of how he became friendly with Annerle, the gamekeeper’s three-year-old daughter; of how the gamekeeper dominates and terrifies the forest folk; and of escapes from the squirrel’s enemies. Other inhabitants of the woods make an appearance in the book, but the central figure is Perri. Through Mr Saltcn’s talented pen, the reader has the curtain drawn back from life in the woods, and on the stage watches all the experiences in the lives of the animals—their fears and their joys. Perri and his friends present a new angle on Nature for Man in his modern world. (Our copy from G- H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.)

DR BARNARDO. In “Doctor of tho Lost” Simon Blumenfield has contributed a life story of Dr Barnardo, the famous emancipator of English juveniles, that should rank as one of the best books of its kind. It is a splendid narrative, taking the render from the time when the young Irishman arrived in London in the middle of last century to study medicine with the object of becoming a medical missionary in China up to the (lays when his great, new found ambition, the rescue of un-cared-for children and the establishment of the now well-known Barnardo’s Homes became an accomplishment. How Barnardo’s zeal, despite uncertain health, overcame the many obstacles that beset him in his fight for tho young victims of malnutrition and disordered social conditions is remarkably well told. His battle with a cholera epidemic, his winning of highly-placed personages to the cause nearest his heart in the East End of London, and his vindication against a campaign of calumny arc well told. Queer people are met with here, and tiio. drawing of tho characters is finely done. The lower strata of human life in the slums' of London in the latter part of the century are tiie material for the novel, with Barnardo, of course, as tho central figure. It is a book that will engross the reader from first page to last. (Jonathan Cape; our copy from G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.)

“IN MY TIME.” Of journalistic autobiographies and individual expressions of opinion on current topics by correspondents there has been a spate, so that each new volume is approached with circumspection. “In My Time,” from the able pen of Sisley Huddleston, “an observer’s record of war and peace,” is certain to he ranked amongst the most enlightening, and perhaps provocative, comments on the circumstances during and after the Great War, and in the course of a lucid and remarkably well-balanced survey deals trenchantly with some aspects that have hitherto been left in obscurity. Mr Huddleston is peculiarly well-fitted to write as he has done, for no man, probably, has attended more conferences—which lie roundly attacks in principle—or has been more intimately and ■ impartially associated

with the men who have made recent history. His well-limned portraits of statesmen, military men, and journalists, his thoughtful analysis of journalistic trends, and his penetrating analysis of tho current world situation are a stimulus and education to read. “In My Time” must rank among the few really worthwhile books of its kind. (Our copy is from Messrs G. H. Bennett and Co., Ltd.).