Evening star., 1928-02-28
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
!. G.. NJ.

cbcuO VIC wv lituIfIlkIy DtCDiIlt
ovcrfed with eating itself. Especially is
this true in respect to the novel whose
enormous increase within the past few
years IS sure sign OF a sharply whettcd
appetite in this direction on the part
OF readers generally. To meet the ris-
ing demand OF the novel addict, pub
fishers as body are hot on the trail Of
fresh talent. of the young writer whose
originality Is OF a striking turn, whose
outlook upon the field of fiction pos
| SeSses that quality Of difference which
carries promise within IL. And from
such zeal novels are sWarming out from
publishing houses onto the street,
where, motley Of good, bad, indiffcr-
ent. knee deep they stand among the
leaders come out to meet them. In
fiction alone the busyneSs Of book store,
library. magazine stall. stands as clear
proof OF the popularity Of the story.
Even the delicatcssen and the apOthe-
cary shop offer. between Snatches at a
sandwich and the choice of a proper
pill, many a thrilling line of romance
from the book racks to right and left.
And we, the average, read pretty
much as we eat. voraciously, hurricdly
Both the meal and the novel in hand
are things to get away with as speedily
as possible. For is there not another
meal due in few hours? And is there
not another story waiting for this one
to move along out of the way. waiting
to meet the chronic hunger for amuse-
ment, for swift changes to pass the
time along? In both cases the course
so commonly pursued breeds It's own
malady. An ovcrpacking that precludes
orderly functioning, either gastronomic
or mental. However, let's leave the
gourmand to his doom. or the doctor
For at this point there is clear S o S
| from the oVerstuffed novel reader. who
by and large. is beginning to realize the
| dilemma which his own reading cX-
cesses in fiction have brought upon
| him.
There are doctors for this aiIment as
we'll as for that other one. William
| Lyon Phelps Is one Of these. DR.. JOS
! eph Collins is one also. Regis Michaud
is one, too. And there are othcrs~-iil
fact, a regular school of them. The
common purpose among them is tC
eliminate the bad, to organize the re-
manning good to prescribe measures
| pointed upon discrimination and gOOc
taste, to work toward a real pleasure &c
, supplant idle diversion.
NO, the distressed reader can hardly
tell one novel from another. There art
SO many of them slowed. hit or miss
| within the mind. No, he is not con-
scious that there are orders among
| novels. ranks among novelists. and that
these derive from point Of view. from
definite and specific purpose, from fit
4cSS OF means to meet that purpose
rom the architects sense of structure
| from the quality of individual imagina-
! ton In word. he does not know that
some novels are pure artistry, that
others are mere prentice work turned
OIL IN salad days Of unpreparedness OF
! III the Sodden, disillusioncd years OF
! personal gain. He knows only that h
Is too full, too achey. too out of sort.
! from seemingly hopeless Possession ot
trash and good substance, Of beauty anC
| ugIineSs. OF futility and achieved pur-
pose. The pity, too. is that he hac
/ oeen rather proud OF being a great
reader" Scholarship and pseudo
| scholarship, taste and philistiniSm. ar,
often undistinguishable TO the minds O
us. the average. HoWcver-here come:
our flrst aid He Is a Frenchman witt
a French mind. He Is student and Z
writer in whom the home folks takt
] pride. He knows America. For. beinl
q teacher also. he has taught French IL
q Western university. He likes Amer.
| lea, likes us. So. let us watch him a.
he lives up 10 all OF these Qualnca.
tons and recommendations:
TIE AMERICAN NOVEL TODAY
| Regis Michaud. Little. Brown & Co
The first thing that NJ Michaud doe.
in behalf Of the perturbed novel reader
| IS To take him up into a high place
Where. spread out below IN full sight
! Is the whole field OF current American
| novels. An aStonishingly active field
'ull OF workers, at first sight just a nlaz,
or persons moving To and fro. Now ane
then one becomes d!StinguiShable-s
| book or writer Away over there i
| Theodore Dresser. big fellow whJ
shows up we'll, There is Cabcll. ant
| right below is Sinclair Lewis. who seem
| TO be claiming exclusive right OF wa
! along Main street. Here is ErSkne wit!
| his folks from Eden and Troy Owe
| there Is quite a crowd the Howell
tribe, There are too many 10 identit'
| more than here and there one or au
| ether. The point OF union is that 81!
are tremendously busy at their common
craft. Another point Is that this is ,
new harvest field. not only for the novel
| but for poetry and the drama as we'll
An indication of the new zeal the ncv
| tAitEINSk ll (ICANlNE litFIItutP. M
Michaud smiles MS the man beside hin
asks why these writer's seem 10 be III
I common mood ot resistance AgalnS
| whatP oh. against that which all reb
els fight, the Older order The work
! has grown III this way. by setting aSid
| the old and outworn for the new prom
Use, the new outlook. These are rebels
! all OF these younger noyeliStS. Then
| very seriously, NJ. Michaud states th
case against the Puritan states 1t rs !
presents Itself to him. The Puritan ha
Saddled the world with inhihitionS, ),
many and SO enduring that II is goin.
To take armies OF writer's many year
| 10 do away with their Influences u
even Ia modify It very considerably
And he goes into an interesting SpCcia
accounting, OF many Of these. The maj
! beside hun listens atteuttVcly. Now aNC
then he doesn't agree with either tn;
fact itself or with the deduction madt
| from IL. But disagreement is one u
the wholesome things OF life. So he JUS
| listens. When NJ Michaud tells hin
! that all the claim these new writer;
make Is that of playing fair with HE
| OF being sincere and honest about /;
then the man smiles rs he cnNiSaec;
dead old PnritanS turning III thea
graves over the implied charge tha
| they themselves were not honest, die
not play fair Afraid Of life and death
OF the devil and his many works W
earth. they yielded 10 the strange ~,
ot Self~deception. doing 1t 81 Thoroughly
! and so we'll that even Ia this day w
are under the spell of their many
| frightened and essentially Innocent sub
| tcrtugca III respect ~ the real facts o'
| human nature trying a. set along VIII
| THIS monumental business ot living
| The man hates 10 have this cunrc~
| tent helper beside him leave the topic
III hand. indeed his chief topic Il turns
| To he. but time IL running along and
| they TOO. must move with it. Then NJ
Michaud takes up. one by one. the
special and particular form ot rebellion
set up by one and another uutStRndins
| American novelist What Is thus out
| trying to do Dresser, Ur Lewis. W Ca
he'll, W Sherwood Anderson What sci
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