Books Reviewed

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 885, 31 January 1930, Page 14

Books Reviewed

A SOLDIER OF FORTUNE. AWAY hack ill 1910 a young man from Kentucky, one Bert Hall, learned to fly in France. Later he bought a ’plane and during the Balkan wars of 1913 became the entire Air Force of the Turks, and then, when they lowered his wages, of the Bulgars. The neutrality of his country could hardly be expected to keep a man like that out of the beginning of the Great War, and Bert Hall joined the Foreign Legion. Flying was his job, however, and he was soon with the French squadron. Then came the foundation of the Lafayette Escadrille, a body of American pilots who wanted to fight, and. because their country did not, had to do their flying with the French. And. of course, Bert Hall was in that. Later lie was sent on a special mission to Russia and to Rumania, just at the time when those countries were about finished with the war, though officially they were still fighting. lie made himself very unpopular with the Russians when he actually shot down a German machine, for such an action

was sure to bring: reprisals. But the Tsar of all the Russias, even then r little shaky on his throne—“with eyebags under each eye, and a very sad, wistful look on his face”—decorated him. He saw the beginning of the revolution, when it looked as if Kerenskl’s Government was going to be too strong for the Soviet, and the Soidiers' and Sailors’ Committee. Kerenski told him: “Lieutenant Hall, I am the man of the hour in Russia. The people do not know it yet, but they will.” From Rumania Bert Hall flew over Sofia, bombing the palace, where the Kaiser, the Emperor of Austria, the King of Bulgaria, and the Sultan of Turkey were supposed to be holding a conference. And when he returned to France he escorted a general’s wife »nd smuggled out thousands of pounds’ worth of jewels in his belt—this on the trans-Siberian railway. He went to America, and back to France, where he had a good laugh at the new American aviators who were winning the war in Paris. Like Mae GrVer, of “War Birds,” he liked the British, or the “Limies” as he called them, and had a mighty contempt for the methods of the American Army, though he thought much of the fighting qualities ot the American infantryman. The ’»jok has not the life of “War Birds’; it lacks the ingenuousness of that peerless war diary; partly because of the difference In personality of the writers, partly because much of Hall’s book is net straight diary, hut the work of a collaborator, J. J. Niles, himself a '»ar flyer. Niles has done a good job. but Hall, interpreted by him. Is more boastful, and vainer than he la shown to be by his own diary. Hall Is revealed by his diary as a typical soldier of fortune of the old style. Cruel, rather unscrupulous, his weakness women, but, strangely, not “likker.” And a. good fellow. Since the war he lias been flying in Russia, India, and Japan. Now he is General Chan, Chief of the Air Service, Canton, China. To what extent he draws on his imagination it is hard to say, but his diary must be read, and, if It {■ read, it will be enjoyed. Elliott White Springs writes the foreword. “One Man’s X\ar.” Bert Hall and J. 3. Niles. John Hamilton, l td. 0«r cSPir IWBI the publishers. Grace and Brevity. The theme of Byron in his “Manfred” is used by Princess Marthe Bibesco in “The Green Parrot,” a story which deals more with the dead than the living. Through it runs the strong note of tragedy as its characters through birth and environment follow their strange ways in chasing an unsatisfying will-o’-the-wisp. Brevity and grace mark the work of the authoress in dealing with a subject which compels thoughtful, study, and which, with less delicate treatment, might repel rather than attract. “Toe Green Parrot.” Princes Bibesoo. Selsvyn Blount, Ltd. Our copy from the publishers. Not One Drop! There are some people who cannot believe that a detective novel can he written without one page being stained with gore. Yet Collin Brooks, author of “Seven Hells,” has done this. In this first-rate story there is not one solitary drop of blood. There is a corpse, but one which met a natural end. A book with a title like “Seven Hells,” however, must have a bit of devilry about it. The disappearance of Arthur Brandon after a visit to a grim farmhouse in the North of England is surrounded with, the elements of tragedy, and Inspector Wenn and his flippant friend Winwood ffoulkes (with two small “ff’s”) have their full share of excitement in unravelling the mystery of a dying man’s mumbling of "Seven Hells!” A girl on the brink of madness, a staid country solicitor, and a most attractive nurse give spice to this concoction of thrills. “Seven Hells." Collin Brooks. Hutchinson, London. Our copy from the publisher. For Bridge Players. Mrs Taylor, of the London School of Auction Bridge, and Mr G. F. Hervey, are joint authors of a new text book, “Advanced Auction Bridge.” This volume deals mainly with the niceties of the game, and presupposes a sound basic knowledge. There are also chapters on the mathematics, ethies, and psychology of Bridge, and some useful instruction on how to leach it. A useful manual for the Bridge student. “Advanced Auction Bridge." Taylor and Hervey. G. P. Putnam's Sons. Our copy from the publishers. “ Sob-Stuff ” Sentimental reaction to the mobliysteria ot the war years in England is obviously the force which moved Miss Marguerite Williams to write “A Mother of Men.” It is, one presumes, an addition to the growing mass ot “women’s-point-of-view” literature and, in common with the lesser works in that style, is marked by an overpowering sentimentality and inaccuracy of thought and expression. It is not altogether a bad book because it deals with an exceptionally interesting period—England in the ‘ew years before the war and during the war —and it would he hard, perhaps, to write a thoroughly uninteresting book about such a time. There are some excellent pictures given of the change which occurs in the country’s outlook, but the story is marred by the idea which constantly reaches the reader that the author knows little of the class about which she is writing

—a wealthy and slightly patrician family of ship-owners. The book is chiefly concerned with the feeling of the mother of the family as her sons go off to the war. There is nothing in her that is original and nothing that l she says or thinks has not been said I or thought better and more acutely iby o-ther writers. Above all, the mother and, indeed, the whole family, lis impossibly sentimental with a ! sickly sweetness that gradually be- j comes ridiculous. "A Mother of Men," by Marguerite Williams. Published by Methuen and Company, London. Our copy from the publishers. A Complaisant Husbansl. Julian Perrier was obstinate and xazy. At least that was the description of him by his grandmother, who doted on him and was to leave him her fortune with one condition that was that he should marry an Irish girl. He goes to Ireland to meet her a 3 the easiest way to appease the old lady, and of course falls in love with the girl. Her father, an Irish squire, impecunious as usual, thinks that Julian wants to marry his daughter for the sake of his'grand mo tiler’s money, and after the wedding, flushed with the champagne from the breakfast, he tells nis daughter. Then her Irish blood rebels, and she decides that she will spend his money, but will not be a wife to him. This she proceeds to do, and incidentally gets mixed up with a couple of crooks who turn her town house into a gambling den, which is raided by the police. Nothing seems to disturb her husband, who is playing “The Waiting Game,” which is the title of the story by L. G. Oswald. After she has dragged his name and reputation in the mire, the waiting game proves successful, and the pair are reconciled. The plot is not exactly an original one, but the author treats the situations in a fresh manner which holds the interest. The various characters are clear cut and vivid, but that of the complaisant husband rather strains credulity. A story with plenty of incident. “The Waiting Game." L. S. Oswald. Nasli and Grayson. Our copy from Whltcombe and Tombs. An Amateur Detective Missing—or murdered? This was the question that puzzled alike Detective-Inspector Heather, of Scotland Yard, and Mr. Algernon Vereker, the life-long friend of the missing man. How these rivals patiently fitted together the clues like fragments of a jig-saw puzzle and finally traced the murderer makes an entertaining story, as told by Robin Forsythe. Vereker, an artist by temperament and a man of leisure by circumstance, proves himself au excellent amateur sleuth in this tale. Unaided, he solves the mystery step by step, arriving at the solution at precisely the same moment as Scotland Yard, with its many trained investigators. Mr. Forsythe has drawn his characters well and has handled the plot so carefully that the final denouement will come as a surprise to all readers. "Missing or Murdered,” by Robin Forsythe. Our copy direct from the publishers, John Lane, the Bodley Head, Ltd., London.