The Lexington Herald from Lexington, Kentucky • 41

Senday November 4-1956 Sunday Herald-Leader 41 Books And Authors Implausible Plot Handicaps Novel But Other Qualities Keep It Interesting Best Sellers (CUapUai My riUkkwi' Weekly) FICTION DON'T GO NEAR THE WATER William Brinkley PEYTON PLACE Grace Metali-oui A CERTAIN SMILE Francolse Sagan TOE LAST HURRAH Edwin O'Connor THE MANDARINS Simone de Beauvoir NONFICTION THE STORY Kathryn Hulme PROFILES IN COURAGE John Kennedy ARTHRITIS AND COMMON SENSE Dan Dale Alexander THE OUTSIDER Colin Wilson THE UNICORN Anne Morrow Lindbergh prudently he challenges comparison with Thomas Wolfe by setting up a prefatory statement of motifs which are then echoed through his novel Exotic Setting And yet I liked much of It Why? Mr Mercer does settings extremely well and his setting Is so exotic that somehow it lends an aura of bellevability to the most implausible plot at least the setting shelters the plot from the cold light of reason until the book is finished Some of the motifs are far more mature than his narrative as he poses intriguing problems about the effect cl curse and Book About Money Worthwhile Addition-To Personal Library a book on practical SUCCESS WITH YOUR looking for By the end of next year there probably won't be a publisher without at least one Alexander Hamilton item on his list for 1997 marks the bicentennial of the birth of our first Secretary of the Treasury Already on calendar are the following works: a book on his basic writings by Columbia University Prof Richard Morris which will be brought out in a paperbound edition by Pocket Books in the next month or so and released in an enlarged hard-cover edition by Dial Press on January 11 1957 The Utter wlU likely be titled "Hamilton and the Founding of the Nation" The same month "Alexander Hamilton and the Conservative by Louis Hacker dean of the graduate faculty at Columbia will be offered by McGraw-HilL Columbia University Press has plans to begin publication of the definitive papers of Alexander' Hamilton while Little Brown has scheduled for next spring a two-volume biography of the statesman by John Miller professor at Leland Stanford University And the first of another two-volume biography of Hamil-" ton this time by Rutgers Professor Broadus Mitchell is being readied by Macmillan for bicentennial issue the second volume to follow in 58 Little did we ken when we Intro duced ourself to Eartha Kitt at a recent party celebrating the publication of her autobiography "Thursday's Child" that our bub- bling about her night-dub debut In New York was stabbing an old wound Whether we were actually 'more discerning than the critics about the '51 disaster or Just plain dumb about chanteuses we thought she was good Later when we read her account of the flop we realized our faux pas For it wasn't until the topic of her book was raised that Eartha thawed and began chatting with animation She reported that she was two ears writing it what with enter-alnment engagements and couldn't be more surprised to find it published "It was an accident like everything else that has happened to me" said Miss Kitt "I got into the theater by accident too" She told us that she has been writing prose pieces since childhood with-- out any 1 professional aspiration and it was only the urging of friends that edged her to a publisher with her memoirs "The book Intended to be literary" she insisted "1 Just wanted to put Into it the way I feel about things 1 don't know any more about writ- lng than I do about singing" "Oh come now" we said "No I don't" she repeated "My singing is Just expressing what 1 The performer-turned-author has yet another string to her artistic bow: she has recently taken up painting However a request to see some threw her into consternation "No not" she refused "I want to keep one thing to myself that doesn't become bold youthful manner In which ns year proxy vote Mrs Doudy" Learned in Madrid a couple of weeks ago (Just to drop a place name) that historical novelist Frank Yerby has taken up permanent residence in the Spanish capital with his new wife reputedly a luscious senora And we can believe it inasmuch as fully two-thirds of that country's women are beauties may they remain there A selection from "The Complete Book of Absolutely Perfect Housekeeping" published in Ladles' Home Journal has already had the girls in a giggle so look for more merriment in the menage a couple of weeks hence when Harcourt Brace will release Elinor Goulding Smith's manual for disorganized housewives For example she reasons "Cookbooks have their place If you know anything about cooking buy one really good cookbook and follow the recipes with the precision of a chemist If you're a more advanced cook buy several cookbooks and use them all but never follow the recipes Alter the proportions or change the ingredients or add some ripe olives and a dash of do something When you're ready to be a really good cook keep a large collection of cookbooks prominently on display so that everyone will see them and know that you're a gourmet and never consult them stall Makeabsolutely everything up out of your head You may lose your husband but at last you will have achieved truly creative cooking which is marvelous because now you can use up all those scraps in the icebox" Censorship Bill "For Adults Only" signs may soon be barring the portals of Massachusetts bookstores On the other hand if the censorship bill passed by the state's legislature finds mimicry elsewhere we may see a trend toward the four-syllable word alas poor Hemingway et seq The solons of Massachusetts have forbidden the sale display for sale loaning giving or distributing of reading matter to a child under 18 years of age that portrays "lust" "the physical torture of human or terms flexible enough without further modification to outlaw certain classics as well as the comics According to the bUl "It shall be prima fade evidence of offering such literature to a child under 18 if (a) it is displayed upon a newsstand counter or shelf in a store frequented by children under 18 or adjacent to a primary school or public playground or (b) if the words of the text or dialogue exduslve of proper names are written in the vocabulary of the seventh grade or Exempted are "novels snort stories or fictional mystery stories written with a clearly adult vocabulary and text and offered for sale only to persons over 18 and not displayed on open stands shelves and counters frequented by children under 18" 1 Rochelle Glrson backs is "Russia and America by Henry Lb Roberts (New American Library 50 cents) a study of global politics by the director of the Russian Institute at Columbia University It like many of the others mentioned in this column is exactly the kind of book one would use to prove that whoever first had the idea of putting good books into inexpensive format has done both American publishers and American "readers an enormous amount of good Sheldon Grebsteln RACHEL CADE by Charles Mercer Putnam'S $195 By most standards "Rachel Cade" Is a pretty poor novel and perhaps this explains why it is a book club selection and has been tapped by Hollywood Yet I liked it or much of it and I venture that so will you There Is a lot of action here a plethora in fact and a full complement of two-dimensional picturesque characters The plot? Well there's this female missionary nurse (Deborah Kerr? Elizabeth Taylor?) who fled to Africa to forget a traumatic sex experience in Kansas see? After 10 years she comes to assist a missionary doctor in a real outpost He's a queer type and proves it by drop- Sing dead on doorstep (ten minutes after she arrives and then the only white for miles and miles After that it gets real dramatic Blame a seedy Charles Boyer a Belgian provincial administrator who has an eye for women but Is essentially -good down deep in his lovable old cynic's heart When a doctor is needed one honest tells out of the skies with a 100 per cent mortality rate for all the other occupants of the plane Leva Affair There follows a love affair after which the doctor having performed a few surgical miracles goes back to war And there is a child whose illegitimacy is concealed by means of papers forged by the lovable old cynic who has etc Finally appears a tall strong silent Gary Cooperish missionary who fears lions but conquers his fears and marries the girl in what I fear is too blithe a confidence that the missionary board back home will understand all this I forgot to Include a good Roman padre a fine intelligent native a couple of comic retainers a noble chieftain an evil witchdoctor and oh lots of things among them a Hemingway sleeping-bag episode A number of other qualities bothered me too Mr Mercer has a lyric style and a realistic style ana an expository style and when he shifts from one to another the clashing of gears would make an old Black truck blanch Very im Sea Story Fascinating Suspenseful THE WRECK OF THE BIARY DEARE by Hammond limes 1 Knopf $375 As a ship herself the Mary Deare was insignificant a 6000-ton rusted one-stack freighter floundering among th Channel rocks and reefs off the French Coast She had been abandoned by ell except her master Gideon Patch Sbe was boarded by John Sands owner of a sailing vessel nearly run down by the Mary Deare To these two men the ship became the governing factor of their lives Patch had skippered the Mary Deare on the latter half 'of her voyage from Asia after the orl-'glnal captain died A plot by the owner to scuttle her was thwarted by Patch Sands who boarded the Bury Deare thinking there was no one aboard soon became Involved when he was unable to return to his sailing vessel because of a storm With Patch Sands grounded the Mary Dean on Channel rocks Sands also learned the mystery of the cargo and the attempt to scuttle the ship Fascinating Story From this point Sands and Patch were rescued and taken through a court of Inquiry and a return to the grounded Mary Deare in one of the most fascinating sea stories ever told Author Innes with his vest knowledge of the sea and his apparently limitless imagination has written a story which at times borders on the fantastic: But this near-fantasy adds to the excellence of the book 'Innes pen seems incapable of turning out a dull phrase From the outset the reader is caught by his vivid description and his superb narration Not The Usual Some readers might feel that parts of Innes plot are too unrealistic hut for the most part these same factors supplement the suspense which Is evident from- the first page of the book The reader is immediately aware that the theme Is not one of-th usual "ghost ship" variety As the mystery of the Mary Deare unfolds the author manages to his readers into thinking they have found the solution to several questions His ability to contrive other solutions lends highlights to the story "The Wreck of the Mary Deare" Is the Literary Guild selection for November The story has been serialized In the Saturday Evening Post Bill Hanna edited by John Prentlce-Ilsll $395 For those fortunate few who have reached the point where have extra dollars to invest even for the many who are thinking of such familiar finance as buying a home here is a valuable book It was written by the staff of "Changing Times" the Klpllnger magazine end like the well-known Klpllnger' publication the book is eminently readable It has the advantage of reducing even complex financial matters to simple coherent terms The intention of "Success With Your Money" is to provide "basic information on everything from buying stocks and braids to buying a house and life Insurance" and there is no question that the book succeeds admirably in what it sets out to da It includes chapters on such diverse matters as how to save how to pick a stock the operation of office how to cope with inflation and deflation and Investment in real estate Fundamentals Much of th book it is true deala with fundamentals in handling money that are so obvious to any adult they need- no restatement but what is extraneous in "Success With Your is compensated for by such valuable ltemi as its explanation of mortgages analysis of different kinds of life insurance and best of all its shrewd common sense advice on how to buy a home For example the three pages of "What To Consider In Home which list 19 crucial items In home construction are alone worth th price of th book to any prospective home buyer To sum up if you have been In Defense Of Analysis I AM ADAM by Maxine Kaufman Knopf $850 Adam Henleln "age 22 thin dark with scar on left calls Dr Kiraly psychiatrist to say must see you now tonight Because I killed my brother and only you can help me" The novel is a defense of analysis Dr Kiraly explains: "Suppose that a psychiatrist has had a thousand patients each of whom admits a strong desire to murder his mother Nine hundred of them dream constantly of burning down a house A new patient appears and tells the psychiatrist he always dreams of burning doom a house Would you consider It logical If th psychiatrist concluded that the new patient might be considering the murder of his mother?" Dr Kiraly explains that a general practitioner handles an average of 25 patients a day "against an average of six or seven Ktients for the nee the high fees Explains Everything Dr Kiraly explains everything culminating with her identification of two real concerns sexual drive and personal ambition" and identifying the third "the spiritual force" She leads the hero to the path of health promising to stick with him a little longer explaining "Then I must push you over the edge of the nest and let you try your wings" The best parts of the novel are the dramatizations of fantasies But fantasy dramatizations are not enough to clothe a case history with fiction's reality The stuff of fiction is here: the background th dreams the architecture of plot But the book come off The reader may close the book with a respect for psychiatry's power but he's not likely to have much faith pi in the who Inhabit the notebook peopii New In Paperbacks that's Just a sampla of tha manage LG A If you gave Chronology Of Interesting But THE CRUCIAL DECADE by Erie Goldman Knopf 54 According to Goldman "this book tries to give meaning to the years from 1945 to 1955 It attempts to do it in a way that human beings have been using to understand themselves as long as there have been human by writing a history" Unfortunately what this account Is not Is "history" Its most regrettable lack is the kind of meaning and perspective which the historian is qualified to offer That is words to the contrary what is provided is for the most part a competent and often dramatic chronocllng of events which al- Mti eminently desirable can be eft to writers whose historical credentials are ter less impressive than Goldman's One can appreciate the facile if sometimes slick writing of Goldman but despite his skill In narrative his "history" appears to be no more than a chronology of events adeptly abstracted from newspaper and periodical accounts of the past 10 years To this chronology of events is appended a disappointingly brief and somewhat saccharine elogue In which is offered the "meaning" of tha "crucial decade" Offers Little For the serious historian this account of the past 10 years has little to offer For the well-informed reader this book similarly offers little except an opportunity to recall some of the events of the past decade which have escaped memory Its greatest benefit would probably accrue to the person who has recently become an adult or to th foreigner who seeks a quick survey and modest synthesis of the United States between 1945 and 1955 Doubtless as time passes and as the oruelal decade fades Into the past this account will take on more value for the general reader Herald-Leader ACROSS 1 Petition 5 Incline 10 Cast eyes over 14 Sealer 15 Wading bird 16 Muse of history 17 Preposition 18 Monument of past 19 Inching manners 20 Wire measure 21 Engage 22 One of Solomon Tlf 24 Upstairs in theater 28 Tie 27 Kind 28 Adhesive 32 Grudge 35 Give way 36 Uncooked 37 Woman of title 38 Dispatch 39 Hobbling 40 Shoshonean Indian 41 Legal matters 42 Thread 43 Ecstatic utterance 45 Signal 46 Young men 47 Saddle 51 Loosen 54 Relate 55 'Period 56 Opportunity 57 Ordinary 59 Italian 60 Vanished 61 Walk 62 Employer 63 Puts stop 64 Advice: 65 Acquiree 1 Vertical 2 Portuguese 3 Coral 4 Longing 5 Dwindle 6 Suspicious 7 Heraldic 8 Taro 8 Surround 10 Write 11 Society 12 Helper 13 playwright Past Decade Not History As an account of a 10-year American period this book is reminiscent of Frederick Lewis "Only Yesterday" and "Since Yesterday In fact one senses perhaps an attempt on Goldman's part to use Allen as a a model it may be said in passing that Goldman tells to duplicate in either scope or drama Whether this Is due to the character of the twenties or to romanticizing on the part of the contemporary reader or to ability to synthesize events dramatically are debatable matters Suffice it to say that Goldman's account falls short of vivid portrayal of the twenties Enjoyable Book And yet despite the several shortcomings of what is an essentially unpretentious book it was for this reviewer entirely enjoyable Particularly rewarding was Goldman's treatment of personalities The account given of the exchange between Branch Rickey and Jackie Robinson on the eve of the entrance Into big league baseball was especially moving Similarly dramatic were the descriptions of the hurried consultations at the beginning of the Korean War the firing of Mac-Arthur the Army-McCarthy contretemps the Hiss trial and tha famous "Checkers" speech of vice-president Nixon In his final commentary on the meaning of th 10-year period Goldman sees the American people teeing up to two major issues: "Would the United States continue through extensions of the welfare state and of welfare capitalism and a variety of other techniques the Half-Century of Revolution in domestic affairs? Would It keep on moving along the new Inter national path marked by the attitudes clustering around -the concepts of containment and Qoldman's answer? A strong -yes Sidney Kaplan Crossword Puzzle 21 Cavity 23 Uttered 25 Metropolis 26 Tunes for taro 28 Overcast 29 Bedouin 30 Plucky 31 Widemouthed Jug 32 Legato effect 33 Footway 34 Fancy 35 Railroad base 38 Gangsters 29 Wllllngy 41 Russian ruler 42 Maximum 44 Featherq 45 One who drops In 47 Amity 48 Boost 49 Bird 50 Spans of time 51 Ply with arguments 52 Midday 53 Loving 54 Melody 58 Hold meeting 50 Haul Trifling Tale Immoral But Not Indelicate SOME DARUNG FOLLY' by Monica Stirling Coward McCann 3A0 This solemn trifle from the gifted pen of Monica Stirling is as immoral a novel as one is likely to find yet it never for an instant becomes indelicate Moreover it Is well written and charming though the there are really only are somewhat shapeless "Some Darling is a worn book the story of Sophia Dubois wife of an eminent Parisian lawyer She falls momentarily in love with Remy Mallet gay star of the "Comedle Francois" Remy is more than a famous actor he is an intelligent and charmingly vain person accustomed to satisfying whatever whims he may have' especially about women One fine day buying butterflies in a store he saw Sophia and then and there apparently because he thought she looked a bit he decided to besiege her He went to a great deal of trouble to arrange' an introduction after which he discovered that she was not Russian at all but English and from the beginning of their friendship until about the middle of the book Miss Stirling relates the history of a rather commonplace seduction Perhaps the only unusual thing about it is that Sophia is rather Inexperienced and exceptionally fond of her husband Naturally neither of these minor disadvantages puts Remy off for long and Sophia becomes his mistress One is not giving away the story by telling so much for It has been perfectly dear what would happen from the initial pages Falls In Leva The affair develops in a less routine fashion Remy who began simply because of a physical ate traction for Sophia falls in love with her while Sophia who began from what she mistook for a grand passion fells out of love with him The real plot of the book concerns how and why she falls back in love with her husband and how she deals with her conscience which Remy thinks Is typically bourgeosle It is not quite that well developed Miss Stirling manages these events with considerable skill drawing a threefold analogy first between Sophia and Marie Antoinette and then between Sophia and a woman on trial for murder Javotte Leisia whom husband is defending The story of Javotte Is in Itself interesting but she is not an actor in the novel She serves merely as a catalyst for conscience Sophisticated Tender Remy is a sophisticated and tender seducer the sort any woman would be bound to like Sophia is neither an innocent victim nor a person of loose or weak character Her husband Etienne Is per haps a little thick-headed especially about his wife The stray appears to prove that the Dubois marriage which might normally have been a "relatively one because of an "unusually ha Of course this success the charm and intelligence of the people involved and to the fact that everyone Is smart enough to remain silent Miss Stirling seems bent on proving that what people do not know Is not likely to hurt them in fact it may help them One will recognize the theory that -any sort of sexual conduct is permissible provided one is discreet In this case the theory true though Sophia and Rrany suffer just a little bit before the end of the story Certainly the thesis is immoral but Miss Stirling is never Indelicate She paints her scenes with a sort of 19th century decor and perhaps the seduction Itself is barely credible because she is willing to view it only through dense curtains of (fictional propriety She is a gifted writer once French correspondent for the Atlantic Monthly daughter of an actor herself and long Paris resident She knows enough about Parisian society to tell a tale like "Some Darling Folly" and get away with making it look like a Renoir picnic in the' Bois The book is not important but it- is amusing and readers who like honesty without directness should appreciate it Nevertheless it is not exactly recommended reading for teen-agers or prim young housewives "Reading maketh a full man" but it depends on what ha is full of Herbert Frochnow taboo and faith whether In the primitive or in the civilised mind And he handles well end sympathetically various themes of flight of fear of responsibfity of love for a place and of the challenge of the unknown After all every book we read cant be a good one and we may enjoy quite legitimately I hope some bad ones 'Rachel Cade" will never on its own merits make anyone's list of literary masterpieces and yet it read it with a willing suspension of critical faculties enjoy It too Vais Hugh Jiuen applied finance written in language that tha layman can understand look no further than "Success With Your Money" It would make a worthwhile addition to any personal library 8 Native Kentuckian Margery Wilson Writes Life Story Margery Wilson a native Kentuckian author actress producer lecturer and radio star has written a new book "I Found My Way" It Is the story of her fabulous life: and her discovery of peace of mind and happiness It was published last week by Lippincott Co Born Sara Barker Strayer in Gracey Ky Blargery Wilson took her name at tha age of 16 because her aristocratic southern kinfolk did not Ilk having th family name attached to an "actress While still In her teens she went on to become leading lady in a Cincinnati stock company and then on to Hollywood where she worked for Griffith and Ince Studio She played opposite William Hart in several pictures Including "The Primal Lure" and "The Desert Man" and many with John Gilbert A radio program "Charm1 which she broadcast from Hollywood eventually developed into a book of the same name and then into her Charm course Her previous books are "The Woman You Want To "Believe In Yourself "How To Live Beyond Your "How To Make The Most Of Your Personality and God" and "You're As Young As You Act" She lives in Los Angeles Solution Of Crossword Puzzle hrtstmas CHOOSE THE REVISED STANDARD VERSION BIBLE Easlar to read ths RSVB brjngs you new understanding of the greet stories parables nnd teachings of tha Dibit No gift can bring mom lasting foy than the Dibit written in the living language of today SSLSCT FROM TMESC POPULAR EDITIONS Family aim eCitiene Black genuine leather Maroon buckram J0 0 Smaller aSitlawa- lltwtrateS Black Sturdlta cleth UJt ZJS OM an New Testament la three Tohimea $7 SO tVe'B be kappyta C6 year ertfar by mall MAIN FLOOR Nona 2-7SS4 Paperbacks continue to pour forth each month in bewildering numbers and variety including a range in quality which extends from the book to be quickly flip- ped and put aside 'forever to the nook which would make a permanent addition to library shelf For example two of the newest quick flippers "The Wild Reader" and World of Abner" (both published by Ballentine Books 35 cents) are really not much more than comic books in different form "The Wild Reader" Is a collection of satirical and humorous squibs by such men as Perelman Thurber and Benchley while "The World of Abner" despite an enthusiastic lntroduc- tion by John Steinbeck is merely ing history of Nazi war crimes res' reprint of some of A1 plete with some really shocking classic cartoon strips photographs "Child Behavior Recent Trend by Drs Francis Ug and Louise More serious and more indicative of the recent trend toward the serious in the paperback field are Samuel Eliot "Christopher Columbus Mariner" (New American Library 35 cents) and Fred "The Wright Brothers" (Ballentine 35 cents) Both are valuable books The Columbus biography is a condensation of Morison's Pulitzer Prize "Admiral of the Ocean sea" while the Wright biography is a reprint of the complete version authorized by Orville Wright Two other books of especially current interest are "Olympic Cavalcade of Ames is a reprint iDell 85 cents) of one of the famous Gesell series which traces the development of behavior in children from birth to 10 and gives specific advice on behavior problems "The Papal Encyclicals" edited by Anne Fremantle (New American Library 50 cents) is a comprehensive historical view of the doctrines of the Catholic Church which should be of value to any reader interested in religion or religious history Global Politics The fifth book and the one that concludes this list of recent paper- horse money prisafiy' to slang DOWN coin island bearing root paste carelessly Coward Bible Headquarters Your centrally located Bookstore Religious: Reference: Gifts 144 No Limestone 2-0639 (Tko FrhnJIy Came la Brown) EVERYTHING IN 5BBP RECORDS Record Shop POP BINGING THE BLUES Gay Mitchell NIGHT LIGHTS Nat "King" Cole MOONLIGHT LOVE Perry Como WALKING IN THE RAIN Johnny Ray IUIYTTOI BLUES LET'S TAKE A WALK Blabber Johnson COME ON AND GET IT The Mldnigbters JUST A FEELING Little Walter WHATCHA GONNA DO WHEN YOUR BABY LEAVES YOU Chuck Willis COUNTRY WESTERN REPENTING Kitty Wells A ONE WOMAN MAN Johnny Horton IT (MAKES NO DIFFERENCE NOW Hank Thompson ACCORDING TO MY HEART Jim Reeves Joy Tucd Record Dept Mgr OPEN MONDAY NIGHTS We are presently enlarging our display rooms to present more effectively our equipment and new record department 1 You are invited to coma Hear and compare the well known brands Let us help you plan your high fidelity music and sound system cHidz cf noddies NEW BOOKS RECENTLY RECEIVED WANTED: DENNIS THE MENACE by Hank Ketcham $100 GO NEAR THE WATER by William Brinkley 8398 IT ALL STARTED WITH EVE by Richard Armour $275 THE LIVING OF THESE DAYS by Harry Emerson Fosdirk 1400 ORDER YOUR CHRISTMAS CARDS EARLY David Book Shop 187 Market Street Dial 3-3745 405-409 Upper Near Maxwell.