With Book and Verse

Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 44, 15 May 1931, Page 40

With Book and Verse

By

JOHN

O'DREAMS

IMPSES of the Great," by Mr. George Sylvester Viereck, is a virile and stimulating series of interyiews with men and women who, during the past twenty years, at one time oy another, have loomed iarge in world affairs. The idiosyncracies of personalities as widely different as those of Professor Einstein, Freud, the late ‘Emperor of Germany, Voronoff, Henry Ford, the Queen of the Belgians, and a. dozen others are delineated with the pen of a ready writer; and if at times bias is noticeable in presentation of certain protagonists, this possibly is to be accounted for by the nationality of. the brilliant raconteur. The book is offered to the reading pubJie as a comprehensive compendium of the characteristics of the great, likewise "a kaleidoscope of human intelligence, a mirror of mankind, in the first quarter of the twentieth century, and a record of the pulse-beat of the age." ‘To some the most outstanding of the numerous notabilities is that of the scintillating iconoclast, Frank Harris, himself a past master .in the etching of thumb-nail portraits of his contemporaries, and who "dreams of a uew creation inspired not by pain but by pleasure." There is a delightful and characteristically plain-spoken interview with Mr. G. B. Shaw, and of many other types and nationalities in the arena of Europe. Emil Ludwig, voung, fearless and gifted biographer and novelist, hits out from the shoulder on certain aspects of British and Germanic thought, and is characterised as "a genius in portraiture, journalist de luxe, lecturer and author." The book ‘is illustrated with some excellent photographs, and is to be commended to those who like close-up presentations, _ warts and all, of world-famous leaders ‘of literature and affairs,

ACCORDING to latest figures, the average of production of fiction last year in Hngland was ten .° els a day. Assuredly of the ‘naking of books there is no end, but, in view of this arrestingly large total, one reflects how great are the odds against young and unknown writers, even though possessed of great gifts and phenomenal perseverance. Hard to win a place in the sun in any calling in these dim days of stress and cut-throat endeavyour; and one applauds the pluck, and wonders at the hope that springs eternal in those New Zealand writers who, by dint of indomitable courage, initiative and ability, have climbed some few rungs of the difficult ladder of literary success. * cad HERE are those who delight in the work of the daringly outspoken American ‘novelist, Mr. James Branch Cabell, and others who with equal cordiality detest his books, lock, stock and barrel; but that he is a brilliantly imaginative and ereative force in contemporary fiction no one can deny. Attention at Home lately has been arrested by some literary studies from his pen, not recently published in Wngland, though meeting with success in America some time back. The idea exploited in "The Certain Hour" is that of the psychological moment in a man’s life when for a brief space he experiences com-

-plete self-revelation. Myr. Cabell makes his excursions into other men’s minds commendably terse, possibly realising that more than a moment of stark selfknowledge would forever prick the bubble of that inflated conception of the ego which keeps many a man going. * B 2 ON reading an account of the liter- . ary fare provided for the month just past by the B.B.C. for its fortunate public, I echo, with different con-

text, Browning’s fervid wish: "O! tat be in Bngland now that April’s here!" One reads in that fascinating notice that Mr. David Hardman was to give a comprehensive series of talks on the Forsyte Saga, which must have proved a great opportunity for lecturer and listener, and been greatly appreciated by the multitudinous public who place Mr. Galsworthy very near the top of the list of contemporary novelists. In the same month the author of the widely discussed "Bengal Lancer" gave six talks concerning "Gods, Saints and Heroes of Hindustan," his intention being to convey something’of his own intimate and vivid knowledge of conditions in India and general background of life in that. mysterious country.