FROM BOOKSTALL & STUDY

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19201, 15 October 1930, Page 11

FROM BOOKSTALL & STUDY

Herr Erich Maria Remarque, the author of “All Quiet on the Western Front,” has now written what is more 1 or less a sequel. It will be called “ Kamerad.” - A fund has been started by men of ' Galloway resident in Glasgow to raise , money for a memorial to S. R. Crock- ■ ett. author of “The Stickit Minister.” ; “ The Raiders,” and many other . novels, who was born at Duchrae. . Galloway, and died in 19 L 4. u Mr Ernest Hemingway's novel of . the war on the Italian front, “ A Fare- . well to Arms,” is being dramatised. Miss Elissa Landi, the young English actress, vA jp is also the author of several books, will play the leading part * in the first production in New York. ’ Mr George J I. Doran has resigned from the vice-presidency of Messrs . Doubleday, Doran and Company, the well-known American publishing firm, * in order to join the newspaper, maga- . zine and book organisation controlled by Mr W. R. Hearst. Mr Doran, who i was born in Toronto, has been connected with the publishing business for i over forty years. ! ft The “ Week-End Review ” offered a ■ prize for an epigram on “ A British * Heavy-weight.” This verse, by Mr O. H. T. Dudley, won:— ; Crotonian Milo, having learned to box, Felled, for mere fun, and then consumed, an ox; ■ The British Milo, in a brace of rounds, Himself gets felled for several thousand pounds. Mr John Masefield, the Poet Laureate, is beginning in the September number of an American journal a long ; narrative poem, entitled “The Wanderer.” This describes the adventures ' of a British ship. Eventually the poem will appear in book form, and special copies are to be sent to members of the Ro3*al Family. ft ft :: Aircraftsman T. E. Shaw (formerly Colonel T. E. Lawrence of Arabia), author of “ Revolt in the Desert,” is now in Devonshire, where the section of the Air Force to which he belongs is stationed. The fame acquired in Arabia was not such as Colonel Lawrence liked, and when lie changed his name by deed-poll to Shaw. he. wished to detach himself from that fame. A writer in the London ‘‘ Sunday Times” wonders whether he chose-Shaw as a compliment to Mr Bernard Shaw, who is one of his intimate friends. Aircraftsman Shaw is now at work on a new rendering of the Odyssey. ft ft ft It is a conspicuous fact in ordinary life that women lattgh more easily than men: but it is an equally coni.spicuoits fact in literature that they

make us smile more often than they make us laugh aloud. We realise this immediately when we think of the work of Katherine Mansfield, of Mrs Woolf, of Miss Stella .Benson, of “ Elizabeth.” We have had from “ Elizabeth ” an extremely hilarious book in the “ Caravaners,” but no woman as yet has given us a “ Three Men in A Boat ” or a “ Happy Thoughts.”—Robert Lynd. The London “ Sunday Times” is publishing extracts from the memoirs of Mr E. F. Benson. Allusion is made by Mr Benson to Queen Victoria’s dislike of Gladstone. When Gladstone was informed of one reason for her dislike of him his reception of it was characteristic of the real greatness of the man and his uprightness. There had been from time to time odious and unfounded gossip of the falsest sort, arising from his interest in the deplorable women on the street. He used to talk to them when he walked back at night, .as he so often did, from the House, trying to persuade them to go home. l£e even brought one, with Mrs Gladstone's full knowledge and approval, into his house for a night’s shelter. Very possibly lie behaved imprudently, mat such imprudence was due to his own consciousness of his j high motive, and no one who knew him. could fail to be aware of his

absolute moral rectitude. The gossip had somehow reached the Queer’s ears, and she hinted at what she had heard to Lord Beacon sfield, who, at the least, did not tell her that there could be no truth in it, but, for whatever reason, let her continue to suspect ugly things of him. Mr Gladstone was speaking one dav about the Queen’s coldness and unfriendliness towards him to the late Lord Stanmore, who was an old and valued friend of his. and Lord Stanmore thought he had better tell him that the Queen suspected him of immoral behaviour with common women. And Mr Gladstone’s answer was one that, could only have been made by a man of truly great nature. “If the Queen thinks that of me.’’ he said. “ she is quite right to treat me as she does." “ Lady of Daylight.” by G. M. Attenborough (Cassell and Company), reads with delight. It is the second novel bv this author, and has the same charm of quotation a= her first. “ The Rich Young Man.'' It is stimulating for its rich turns of phrase, and has a well-sustained plot. Dianeme is the heroine and with her husband, Don, is as happily married as compatibles can be. till a temptress robs them of joy, and death is piled upon heartbreak. Then the little son, Maynard, is the focus of love. He grows to manhood finely and joyously, the light ■-f his mother’s s<ml.

till one tragic day he meets and loves Dawn, much his senior, all unconscious that she was partner of his father’s unfaithfulness. How, with dignity and thoroughness, this impasse is negotiated, is best read in the book. It is unexpected; it is finely conceived; it is drajmatic, and all ends well. “The God That Answers By Fire,” by Joseph Hocking (Cassell and Company), tells of the experience of a young clergyman, David Godolphin who is appointed by a charming young lady of the manor to a living in a crowded mining district in the North of England. He -takes his sacred calling lightly until brought face to lace with, the tragedy of a pit disaster. Through much thought and deep spiritual exercise Godolphin wins through to peace of soul. There is a charming 16ve story woven into this book. Tamsin, the madcap lady of the manor, has appointed Godolphin because he was a good society man, a, bridge player and dancer; but when he turns to deeper things she realises the depths of bis soul, and when troubles come upon him she knows that she loves him. There are some skilfully drawn pictures in the book J of the hard-headed, commonsense Yorkshiremen. “The Token," by the Canadian authoress, Edith J. Archibald (Cassell and Company), takes its name from the Church members’ evidence of right of admission to the sacrament of the Lord's supper. It is a story of adventure and romance, spiced with some real vScottish humour. The scene is set for the most part on Cape Breton Island, and, incidentally, St John's, Newfoundland, and the characters depict Scottish farming settlers with a stern Calvanistic faith. Sheila Aforrisori, the pretty granddaughter of Angus Macßov, ruling elder of the kirk, is the heroine, and Alan Carmichael, her lover, shares the role of hero with Norton Tyler, the scui of a wealthy colliery proprietor. “The Token" is a special one given to ! Sheila by the minister as a keepsake. | against the time when she should be j admitted to full church membership. There is an apparently fatal rjuarrel between Alan and Norton, and. the former, before fleeing as a fugitive, pleads with Sheila for something of her own to take away with him, and she gives the precious token. The story is full of character, and the life and customs of the island are described with fascinating interest. Mr Ridgwc.ll Cull um. whose new novel. •“ The Treasure of Big Waters," has .fust appeared, has an adventurous life. Many people - think he is an' -American—no doubt because the locale of many of his books is America but he is really a British subject and lives- in London. lie left England, however, at the age of seventeen and spent many years abroad. He joined a gold rush in the Transvaal and saw service in the Kaffir wars Later lie travelled through Yukon and Alaska, fur hunting md trailn.

also spent years cattle ranching in Montana and the adjoining States, being involved in several Indian risings. lie has been writing novels since 1904. Mr Hamilton Fyffe tells in his “Northcliffe: An Intimate Biography,” how Lord Northcliffe made use of a “ speakeasy ” on the occasion of his tour of the United States: - He finds that he nee*is some stimulant to help him through ceremonial lunches and dinners, and. to sip now and then while he speaks. What is to be done? He would ret be seen to break the law; that would 1 unbecoming. Yet something he must have, lit asked his private secretary (Montagu Garry, whom he made Lord Rowton) to get him a bottle of white brandy . . . . Corrv went all over Manchester (New Hampshire). Neither wine merchants nor saloons had any such liquid. At last he was told where he might buy some brandy that was almost white. He rushed off, secured a bottle, mixed brandy and water, filled a glass, and put it in front of his chief. Everyone else thought it was water. The speech was a complete success. Northcliffe’s solution o£ the same difficulty was gin.