BOOKS AND WRITERS

Waikato Times, Volume 119, Issue 19884, 13 May 1936, Page 12

BOOKS AND WRITERS

COMMENTS AND EXTRAC’IS. “In all circumstances the heads or the .\unrnllans are. like [heir vocabuillhs, moody bu: unboxwdn' —Amhony \\’lnn.

LATI KIM clonal. HIS LIFE AND DEATH. TOKENS OF NA'HONAL AFFECTION. .._—... Humanity clings to 1 great emotional nxporloncv. and the ticsirc {or some lasting memento at tho vieath of King Georg». and at the tokens of national aflarlton “Ill! .t'ieililt‘d his passing in \\ldely «'hrsrishe'd. l'. \\uiu'itl he tiit‘ll Cult in Lind 1 more .ipprupinit: 5311+ taciiuu it-r l' luau "Hail illlll li‘dre\\ell: ‘l‘hw Passing ui‘ hing Lin-urge V.” the Luuulun 'l‘iiue: :w‘mml ill' the 1': Jam brtxwvu tlm int-ginning ut' the King's i'.Alul lllllt‘!) out his burial at \\'ilnlaur. innxlish Journalism is at its best \\hrn ll hummus tho wtiiule of common fouling in a great emergency. and a volunu» ot‘ 80ml prose is always to be \‘ulued for Its own sake. In “Hail and r‘nrrwell“ we have a complete memorial at the King's life and death. The reader or it in a ruture generation will probably turn first to what romes last—the story of the Suvereign and his reign. Then he will follow the account of the last illness. in \\'llil‘il the treasured lite “moved peacefully towards its close." The impressive pageantry 01‘ the funeral will next be studied, and finally the tributes uttered in Parliament and through other channels. The book is perfectly conceived in its form and production. as in the attunemeut or its contents with public feeling. All who read it will know the!» England the better for it. “Ho Dld Good Things." in “King George. the Well Beloved" Ernest H. Short aims at portroyins the more intimate lines of King George‘s personality. and makes good an of the abundant material at his disposal. "Amid the anxieties of the war years,“ the Km; once said. “my stamps saved my [MW—surely the benefits hi a hobby have nevrr been more t‘ltly dram-lbw! There are many with touches tn the course or the familiar narrative. But it was a peculiar t'eiiolty that led the author to recall the words or .\tnrty South at the [five of (tiles \\'interborne: “You was a good man and did good things.“ AUU'I’IALIAN AUTHORS. POETRY WRITTIN 0N BILLS. ._... Autnlin. in proportion to populatlon must hove as man brilliant writers as Britain, said IVE: G. LyleBlalr in In address to Millions Club members at Sydney. There was 21 \\nman in Sydney. ha uid. who wrote poetry. sometimes exquisite. on the backs of grocery bills and scraps of paper. He intended to publish a collection of these poems. AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL. ._.... THE MAY ISSUE. \\'ator-anlnurist Roy Dalgarno supplies the (‘OVt‘l' for this month's Australian Journal, a particularly smart Issue rontnining sorlals and short stories h) many tnlrntett Australians and New 'z'mlumin'rS. Tim principal iratnrr is iltr rmumonrnulrnt, ol' :1 (livt‘riiim wruu of «in stories. r'ulillt'tl “Em'lxulrit’t .‘Illl! .\‘t-nri.“ hy (Iztplain P“ Rhmhu. illili‘l' Ilnh‘il \\rilors in« tComtnuud in next column.) _—

le ZIALAND AUTHOR. SECOND HOOK PUBLISHED "AND so THEY BEGAN." The publiiraiion in June of a second novel h) Mr Jack Brodie, son of Mr and Mrs \\'uiii-r Brodie. New Ply—nioulli. l> announced in a letter from England, i'w-eiwil by tlw ziuihor‘fi family. Mr Bl'Udit“ \\lm. under the nom—ile—pluinv or John Guthrie. attracted the noili-i- or distinguished overseas ‘criiics {ni‘ llln ~snort stories, pubiishe-l ‘lils iii-st nmei, "'l'lii: Liillc Ih)untr)." übolll a war ago. it crczitiwi wide in» icresi in New Zmlund. llis SCl'Ulld \\lll'li. entitled “And So ’l‘hey Begun." also has a New ZEalanil setting, and. ii is understood, deals with the early pioneers. .\lr Brodie left his home for England about three months ago. and had been in London only five days when he heard that ilie publishers had uccepied his hnok. ARNOLD BENNETT, THE MAN. LETTERS TO HIS .\‘EPHEVV. “Arnold Bennett's Letters To His Nephew, withdrawn on the eve of publication recently because of the discover}; of some inaccuracies. add considerably to our knowledge of Ben—nett as a man, though they throw little light on his career as a serious artist. They were written. between 1916 and Bennett's death in 1932, to Richard Bennett, the author's nephew and adopted son. whom he sent to Oundle and Cambridge and launched in a business career. They deal with a. great variety of subjects, mainly of small importance. Almost every one- provides an amusing clue to the writer's mood when he despatrhed it. They are signed: " Your creative uncle." “Your convalescent uncle," "Your sitting - in a dressing gown because there is , abso—lutely no coal left uncle ”—and so forth. One ends: “ Your - gloomy about the - ilrst night at - the - Lyric uncle." Interest. in Clothes. Bennett's interest in clothes is frequently revealed. and on this aspect or his character, among others, Mr. Frank Swinnerton‘s excellent preface la illuminating. He writes: “\Vhen the Prince of Wales (the resent King) once asked him where he bought his shirts. Bennett was conscious of a subtle compliment far transcending any commendation of his work." Mr Swinnerton refers to the “extraordinary charm" of Bennett’s personality. “His impulse was to help all. That impulse landed him in a thousand cilillculties, and it may have killed him before the had any reason to expect death." Most of Bennett‘s friends have borne witness in the same strain. and with obvious sincerity.

_._—E“ elude Richard K‘everne, Myra .\lori‘ls. .\lavis Newton, Rnx Grayson. Helen Somers. H. .\ll'xClSh, Beryl Gray and Louis Kaye. The featured pages are cmmch with ililci'esiin): suciious, including fashions. i‘niiiu notes. cookery hints :md recipes, imilllng and needlewui‘k designs; rlivssmaking notes, pum—xi'uphs, puzzles. and u seclion for the children. ,