Untitled

Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 28, 23 January 1931, Unnumbered Page

N@®pite of many enemies in the gate, . t one of them can deny the grace of Mr. Bernard Shaw’s oratory, the charm of his attractive voice, the grace of his gestures. Privileged at a recent picture theatre in the Capital City to hear him on the sound screen diseourse On the remote and mighty Hinstein, one was struck by expert handling of his theme, delicious drollery, and glancing wit.’ In his melodious voice, and with admirable poise, he treated the genius of Hinstein .with a lightness of touch and a comprehending geniality that delighted his listeners, who no doubt went home and looked up with renewed zest their "Candida," "Major Barbara," and "You Never Can Tell." * B & Me. SHAW, in spite of extraordinary yogue in England, does not appear 4 to have been nearly so successful in ‘eonquering the French critics, where it is held in certain circles that his women are superficially observed. The French are keenly observant and intui-. tive concerning the springs of human action, and it is the opinion of many competent judges that Mr. Shaw does not dig deep enough into the mental processes of his female protagonists. Rightly or wrongly, this opinion is prevalent among certain literary factions. Yet one remembers how wonderfully vital and human a creation he makes of Ann in the Superman play; so full of feminine guile, not in the least loveable, but a mercilessly ‘truthful impersonation. We of mature years ean recognise the type of the fisher of man, be she charming, blatant, or subtle, ‘always intent on landing her quarry, and very often succeeding. R. A. 8. M. HUTCHINSON, appar‘ently suffering from spiritual intoxication, induced by producing a bestseller, is also the author of a son, and has followed up "If Winter Comes" and various other innocuous and pleasant tales with a paean of praise and slightly maudlin meanderings:anent his first-born, entitled "The Book of Simon." Most of us love children, or some child or another, but everything in moderation, and let us at all costs east aside the sickly slime of sentimentality and-fight the good fight shorn of its clinging trappings. Listen: "I imagine his mind ‘at three, I imagine that mind of his, as a little house, a little honeycomb, made up of pearly white cells-glistening, dewy, lustrous, and semi-transparent, pearly white cells, untouched and pure-oh, pure, beyond all conception of purity... . Imagine the little lustrous honeycomb of cells of pearly, pearly white that gay son Simon’s is." Well, well!

HE} author of "Goodbye to Ali That" has followed up his thought-provok-ing and much discussed book with a literary olla podrida bearing the still more colloquial title of "But It Still Goes On." In. this latest book, Mr. Robert Graves embodies -personal opin~ ions, short stories, anda three-act play, the whole providing excellent and varied entertainment. ‘Though at times Mr. Graves exudes bitterness, and -oceasionally is extremely: exaspérating, however much one may ‘disagree with his conclusions, his ability is unquestionable, his literary style-compact. of vim and vigour,.and the courage of his opinions such as to compel admiration, In his present collection versatility is a keynote, the short tales are of absorbing interest, and a journal, which is incorporated, unique in its way. The drama, which concludes the volume, is likely to find adverse critics, dealing as it does with a problem which, in’ the opinion of many, is unfitted for general discussion. Possibly Mr. Graves’s motive is an ethical one, but. the play is unlikely to be produced in any English theatre, and it may be that this is all to the good. * * * Wwe learn from "The Sunday Times" that Mr. H. V. Morton's eagerlyawaited volume, "In Search of Ireland," is published by ‘Methuen, who have sold over 86,000 copies of his "In Search of Scotland." From the same source we learn that keen and poignant curiosity is bound to be raised in a book, "Colossal Blunders of the War," by Mr. William 8. Woods, published by Alen and Unwin. One of these blunders, it is understood, resulted in the slaugitter of no fewer than 700,000 men without gain on either side. bed * * N these days of repertory societies, play-reading circles, and amateur acting, devotees of the drama will find scope for thought and effort in a volume entitled "Twelve One-act Plays" recently to hand. These playlets are eatholie in subject, ranging from "Romance of the Willow Vattern" to a poignant scene before an execution, "The Grill." The average treatment of the diverse themes is admirable, one of the best things in the book, "A Woman of Character," being a quite ex-~ cellent study of that rara avis, a reasonable wife who does not expect too much from men. Valuable advice to amateurs in the histrionic art is contained in the introduction by Walter Prichard Daton, and.the volume is ‘to be commended to youthful students and those of maturer years, who will find in it a great deal to repay study and auch of interest:. and entertainmen