Two Penguins And A Pelican Make A Fight

Radio Record, Volume XII, Issue 34, 3 February 1939, Page 12

Two Penguins And A Pelican Make A Fight

One Social Satire And Two Essays

WO Penguins and a Pelican? The birds form a fascinating flight this week-a Penguin, a Penguin Special, and a Pelican Special-birds of widely different feather, flocking together only in respect of excellence. First the ordinary Penguin-Miss Rose Macaulay’s "Crewe Train," now 12 years from its first publication, but a perennial source of delight to the devotees of the author’s dry, brilliant wit. The Pelican special, Arnold Bennett’s "Literary Taste," is something of an achievement. The original essay, than which one could hardly imagine a better introduction to English literature, has been edited by Mr. Frank Swinnertonbut only enough to bring it up to date. Mr. Swinnerton has performed his rather invidious task faithfully and well, and has more than preserved the author’s central idea of catholicity of taste, and his ad-mirably-enunciated thesis that good

style is no more than good thinking. The Penguin special, Mr. W. M. Macmillan’s "Warning from the West Indies," is now reissued after a lapse of two years, The warnings of unrest which were then dropped into the somewhat deaf ears of the British Government, have been more than justified in the interim by the unrests which have given concern to all inter ested in the welfare of the islands. Incidentally, if all those who traveiled under the auspices of the Carnegie Corporation of New York to perform special investigations were so ambitious and so able in their reports as Mr. Macmillan has been, English literature would

be considerably the richer.

S.

P.

"Crewe Train." Rose Macaulay. Penguin Book. "Literary Taste." Arnold ‘Bennett, edited with addi-« tional lists by Frank Swinnerton. Pelican Special. "Warning from the West Indies." W. M. Macmillane Penguin Special. Our copies from the publishers.