... The M arriage Tangle B zA mold i aimer IT is difficult to recall the names of more than a few men, like the Prince Consort, who have made a dignified and successful job of being husband to a famous woman. The task of being wife to a famous man, while no doubt easier on account of woman's adaptability and readiness to serve, is also highly exacting, and one does not have to be very imaginative ...

... Believe it or not I Mysteries of the Great War I Mysteries of the Great War: by Harold T. Wilkins (PhiliD Allan, iss.l HIS adjec tives, his vocabulary and his fondness for exclama- I tion marks all proclaim Mr. Wilkins's love of mystery. 1 We all love a mystery, and we a 1 l--o r some of us, anyhow love the truth as well. But whilst love of truth makes one man suspicious of mysteries, it ...

... : Reviewed by Alan Seymour MARY LAVIN'S new book, The House in Clewe Street (Michael Joseph, 12s. 6d.), provides her debut as a novelist. Already she has given us two volumes of dis tinguished short stories-- Tales from Bective Bridge, her first, which won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize for the best work of fiction published in the fruitful year 1943, and The Long Ago, published the ...

... Books.- 1 Reviewed by r Noel Thompson LET us start off this month with a book which is surely going to be a winner, The Thin Blue Line (Hutchinson, 5s.) by Charles Graves. It does not matter what Charles Graves writes about, you will always learn something new, and this book, his first in novel form, is no exception. He has taken seven young men who joined the R.A.F. in October, 1939 as his ...

... : Reviewed by Noel Thompson TWO books this month have their setting for the most part on board ship. The first is Life Boat by Signe Toksvig (Faber and Faber, 7s. 6d.), and a very unusual book this is. The plot is that of the American wife of a German husband on their way back to Germany. The husband's former governess is on board, now a missionary, and terribly wounded about the face by the ...

... Cities of Refuge by Phili-b Gibbs (Hutchinson, 8s. 6d.) THIS, the longest novel Sir Philip Gibbs has yet written, deals with the wanderings of Russian exiles, from country to country, from capital to capital. The spectacle of misfortune borne with uncomplaining fortitude has always appealed to this author and revealed his powers in their most favourable light. This is the best book he has ...

... Death of a Man by Kay Boyle (haber and fiaber, 7s. Od.) THIS is a long story by one of the best writers of short stories in England to-day and it has the same peculiar, sharp, clean flavour that distin guishes them. The scene is laid in Austria, and the theme is the spread of National Socialism among the Tyrolean population. But such a description is too formidable for the swift flight of the ...

... The Asp, and Other Stories by John Knittell (i Hutchinson, 7s. 6d.) COMING from the author of Via Mala and Dr. Ibrahim, these short stories are a little dis appointing, and lack the quality of the novels. ...

... Two Kfnds of Tr avell er To Portugal: by Douglas Goldring (Rich and Cowan, 12s. 6d.) Through Russia by Air: by John Grier son (Foulis, 5s.) A GREAT deal of pleasure, though not the luxurious and highly sophisticated pleasure offered by more advertised and accessible lands, may be derived from a holiday spent in Portugal. It is, as are so few other countries to-day, still unspoiled, and ...

... : Reviewed by Trevor ...

... by T homas Burke (Constable. 7s. 6d.) Eighteen short stories, rather merci less stories of murders and mean streets, constitute Mr. Burke's new volume. The longing to escape from the endless battle for existence, the sudden yielding to crime, the haunting suspense which follows crime these are the three chords which Mr. Burke sounds in story after story, key after key. The book as a whole ...

... Reviewed by Trevor Allen SINCE laughter should ring in the festive season, let us turn first this month to showman Billy Rose of Broadway night life. He seems to have promoted most things in his time. Once he wanted an elephant for a show, and was urged to go to Mr. Charles W. Beall, wild animal trainer as well as vice-president of the Chase National Bank. In addition to his zoo, Mr. Beall had ...