LITERATURE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23517, 4 June 1938, Page 4

LITERATURE

RECENT FICTION

" Thy Rod and Thy Staff." By Hjalmar Bergman (Cape). “ Candle In the Sun.” By Edith Roberts (Harrap). “No News." By Pamela Frankau (Heinemann). “ Come Away, Death.” By Gladys Mitchell (Joseph). “ The Pub on the Pool.” By A. D. Divine (Collins). “It Happened in Essex.” By Victor Bridges (Hodder and Stoughton). ” Outrage in Manchu'iuo.” By Val GlelpiiH fr’agcpn ” Death Stands By.” By John Creasey (Long). ” The Four Make Holiday.” By Mark Cross (Ward, Lock). " The Subjugated Beast.” By R. R. Ryan (Jenkins). “Red Clark. Bossl ” By Gordon Ray Young (Methuen).

(Each 7» 6d.)

A Swedish Family Chronicle “ Thy Rod and Thy Staff ” is an intriguing and provocative novel issued under the auspices of the AngloSwedish Literary Foundation. It was written by Hjalmar Bergman and translated by Claude Napier. It might almost be called a Swedish “Forsyte Saga ” in miniature. The book centres round Agnes Borck, who rose from a serving wench, a virtual slave, to be the resolute head of a family whose standing was far above her own humble origins. ■ “That old dam of Satan,” the peasants called her, and even the members of the family over whom she ruled were no more affectionate or complimentary in many of their references to her. The story spans many years and a multitude of changes in the life of a Swedish house, and the author captures the imagination very easily with the skilful portrayal of the old lady’s children, grandchildren, grand-nieces, and grandnephews. and host of friends and enemies. Everything is narrated with uncommon force and verisimilitude, and the whole style of the book is strangely impressive. Its flavour is distinctly un-English, and yet in its structure “Thy Rod and Thy Staff” has much in common with similar works in our own language. It differs from “The Forsyte Saga” and “The Kerries Chronicles” however, in the respect that it is complete in itself. The complication of multiplying generations is there, but it is kept admirably in check. In the flood of fiction that flows so constant in these days this is a book that should manage to keep its head above water and avoid being swept downstream. Mixed Marriage

Kipling’s famous dictum about the eternal failure of the diametrically opposed points of the compass to come together is reiterated in “Candle In the Sun," by Edith Roberts. The setting is the United States colony of Puerto Rico—or so one may assume — and the theme deals dually with the matrimonial and political irreconcilables which may be found there, in the union of the Latin and American peoples. Avery Carpenter, fresh from college, marries a Puerto Rican belonging to a powerful island family, and the first part of the book relates to her attempts to establish friendly relations with his people. That, however, is only half the problem. Her husband himself lives by a different moral and social code, and adjustment comes tardily, somewhat assisted by the violence of' a murder and a great storm, but scarcely aided by Avery’s own lapse from grace. Mrs Roberts knows her West Indies and her types, and her novel is interesting without being remarkable.

“No News’* Pamela Frankau’s new novel at least has the merit of being unusual, but slveral of its leading characters will px-obably be too blatantly “ Bohemian ’’ to attract most readers. The story concerns a young newspaperman who is

assigned the job of “covering” the story of the disappearance of a wellknown financier. In his search he stumbles across a group of people who offer far more promising “copy,” if only he could use it. The strange group includes an eccentric young woman in love with a man who thinks he is dying; an equally eccentric artist who forces himself to believe he is almost blind; a millionaire with a ridiculous camera; and two precocious and improbable children.

Ileusinian Mysteries “ Come Away. Death,” is a most unusual mystery story in that it manages to be extremely interesting and extremely boring at one and the same time. The plot is unusual, the dialogue natural, and the atmosphere excellently contrived, but somehow the interest begins to lag even before the murder occurs. The pace is altogether too leisurely. The story concerns an eccentric archaeologist who plans an expedition to several of the Greek cities to see whether, by reproducing the ancient forms of worship and sacrifice, he can obtain any manifestation of the existence of the gods and goddesses of Greek mythology. The author Gladys Mitchell, is strong in careful characterisation, she has a pretty wit, and her knowledge of the Eleusinian and other mysteries is by no means superficial. One English reviewer is quoted on the dust-cover as stating that ' a new Gladys Mitchell is as much an event as a new Dorothy Sayers.” In that phrase, “ Come Away, Death,” receives, perhaps, its best recommendation, but also the best elucidation of the feeling of some readers that it is not desirable that all the resources of literature and scholarship should be recruited in a book which professes, when everything is said, to be a thriller. Our copy is from Whitcombe and Tombs.

“ The Pub on the Pool ” Mr Divine's new story contains all the elements which have made his previous tales of mystery and ships preferred reading. His characterisation is good, his knowledge of the sea and of foreign ports accurate and picturesque, and his invention resourceful. The feud between rival smugglers, who are bringing valuable merchandise into the Port of London duty free, provides the mainspring of the plot. The party on whose behalf the reader’s sympathies are enlisted is content to deal in plain smuggling, but the rival organisation trades in “ dope ” and political plotters. After exciting operations, which include the burning of a tramp steamer, a speedboat chase around the Thames bridges, and a detailed description of the method of bringing illicit goods ashore in the Pool of London, the tale takes an international twist, It becomes the duty of the peaceful organisation to undertake a kidnapping at sea. Mr Divine a situation here which all lovers of sea stories will enjoy, as he depicts graphically the struggle between two tramp steamers in mid-

By Victor Bridges

Hevkm • Notes*

Channel, and the experiences of the man and girl who nearly lose their lives when one ship founders. The story has its anomalies according to logic, but it is never dull or badly written.

The Author: A. D. Divine was born in Cape Town in 1903, and educated at Rondebosch School and Kingswood College, Grahamstown. He began, his working life in the anthropological department of the South African Museum, then worked for the Cape Times, and later edited a women’s magazine. He then spent six years “ loafing ” on tramp steamers, whalers, and trawlers in various parts of the world, was a participant in a Brazilian mutiny, and was once thrown off a steamer at Las Palmas on a charge of attempting to foment mutiny. His previous books include “ Escape from Spain ” and “ They Blocked the Suez Canal.”

A somewhat intriguing figure whose elimination in the early chapters of “It Happened in Essex” is a cause for regret in more ways than one, provides in his untimely demise a background more than usually picaresque in a murder story. Squire Maitland, instead of remaining in England to bemoan the inroads of taxation into his estate, had gone abroad to replenish it, and then, having apparently succeeded, he is found dead in circumstances which suggest, on the surface, over-indulgence in alcohol or a foolish lapse of memory. The latter theory is accepted by officialdom, but Maitland’s daughter is quite unconvinced and, aided by a visitor to the district and the latter’s uncle, the vicar of the parish, she is able to tf achieve both vengeance and happiness, besides establishing her father’s integrity. “ Outrage In Manchubuo ”

Scarlet Royal is persuaded to go on a journey from Hollywood to Western China. A certain Rudiger von Maltzan, the villain of the piece, is the accredited agent of the Japanese Government in an endeavour to bring about a general embroilment in which Russia, Japan, China, and the United States shall be brought to blows as the preface to a world war. Germany, however, seems to be quietly on the fringe, waiting, possibly, to step in and seize the prizes which the dead hands of others cannot retain. Scarlet is taken to some obscure place in the more remote parts of Mongolia. She is tracked by Anthony Havilland, saved from a danger she knew nothing about, and the Japanese military attache commits suicide. The story gives promise of great things in the early chapters, but ends rather tamely, in a certain confusion. Department Z

, Death Stands By ” is concerned with the efforts of Department Z to prevent war between Shovia, a State in Europe, and England. Mueller, the newly-appointed Ambassador to England. is murdered in a lonely and untenanted house. Bob Kerr, an agent of the secret department, hides the body and sets out to find the killer in order to prevent war. Then ensues a vigorous and exciting campaign in which all the advantages are on the side of the enemy. One by one, Department Z unearths the facts which are essential to maintain the peace of Europe, and the final scene is unexpectedly dramatic. This is a book that can be recommended as a good knockabout thriller.

“The Adjusters’* Again Daphne Wrayne is on holiday in a Devonshire village with Major and Mrs Jefferson Morlees when Henry Barton, the tenant of Passington Grange, is beaten to death by his tame, chimpanzee, Morlees is chief constable of the area, gnd this allows Daphne some opportunity to be early on the scene of the tragedy. When the insurance company which held a risk of £30,000 on Barton’s life asks her to make some inquiries, she enters on a trail which Is still warm. “The Four Make Holiday, by Mark Cross, is quite as good as any of the previous tales in this series, although the problem presented to the reader’s mind is somewhat commonplace. Psychology—of Sorts

Kyrle Rock, heiress under her grandfather’s will to a fortune, has, as part of her inheritance, to live with her uncle, Paul Rock, a renowned psychologist, To anyone who is quite unfamiliar with the usual type of experience given us by exponents of mesmerism and kindred experiments the details pf the story will cause the hair to rise in horror., But the episodes are a little far-fetched, and in some respects bizarre. Fortunately, the book lends itself to “skipping,” and it is a simple matter to discover whether Kyrle comes out all right frhm her adventures. Trouble In the West

Red Clark, Boss!” is not the boss when he comes to Nelplaid, where half the desperadoes of the West seem to be gathered to work mischief, but he does not waste time in asserting his right to the title. Before he is fairly established there he has killed three men, who were attempting to shoot an old rancher, and from that moment he has plenty of work on his hands, which provides the opportunity for gun-play, action, and excitement. V. V, L,

Jane Mander’s First Novel The Story of a New Zealand River” the first novel by the New Zealand author, Jane Mander, is being reissued by Messrs Whitcombe and Tombs, The book enjoyed a success destime on its first publication, and has been out of print for many years. Wellington in Fiction Messrs A. H. and A. W. Reed announce early publication of a first novel entitled “ The House of Templemore,” by Pat Lawlor. It is described as a “delicately intimate picture of a humble Irish colonial .family in Wellington in the early twentieth century." A New Series

The first two volumes will be published shortly by Heinemann of a new series entitled “ I Believe,” by various distinguished writers embracing every aspect of modern faith. The first titles are “What I Believe.” by Mr J D. Beresford; and “'Problems of Religion,” by Mr Gerald Bullett