Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-11-06
THIS AND THAT
BIZ cHARLEs 3. TRAcERELL.

Now, book Is the greatest monologue
in the world. Even more than q radio.
book has a way OF mcnopolizing its
nearer, for reader surely hears his
book as well as sees 1t. He smells It, If
the writer has been clever enough to
give him enough images and express
sions calling forth the remembrance
of scents past.
This monologue, which Is book,
has way Of eating into the heart and
soul of a reader. If he is a real reader
and IL it is a real book.
1t calls to him to lay all else aside
and belong to 1t for the duration of
800 pages, or 500 pages, or 800 pages.
Sometimes this call sounds fresh and
clear at the beginning, but toward the
end it becomes faint and sometimes
even fades out completely. Such q
book is not for you, then, reader. DO
not fear what "critics" say. Pick up,
If you will, the great trilogy, "Kristin
LaVransdatter," read the first part with
interest; but If the second pals upon
you, If its tone becomes too much OF
good thing, II its preoccupation
With humdrum things strikes you as
precious. drop it with q blessing and
90 on to something else. That Is the
glory of good books Perhaps some day
you may come back to 1t with fresh
ened mind and enjoy what now you put
aside. Perhaps not. but it will make
no difference.
The book about books suffers from
this handicap, that 1t must have its
hearing among persons who are 50
diverse in minds and likings as book
lovers. There is great pretsnce
among those who love books to hold
uniform opinions about the best au-
thors," but few of the real booklovers
sllccumb to this false face.
The true lover of books knows that
one man will think Charles Dickens a
fool and his books rubbish. and the
next will call him England's mightiest
novelist and put Nicholas Nickleby"
before all that Conrad or Meredith or
Thackeray, or Hardy even, ever wrote.
One lover of books prizes the didactic
poems of Robert Browning and cannot
give poor Longfellow literary leg to
stand on; his fellow reveFses this de-
cision in a sense, although perhaps
he will not be so hard upon poor
Browning.
Literary likes and dislikes are mostly
a matter of taste, or opinion, notorious
ly various, but generally agreeing on
the main theme of any particular au-
thor, that his works are worth reading,
or worth keeping alive, for those who
do like and read them.
them all, or liked them all, despite his
pretenses. He may find it expedient to
make out as If he has read every
author and every book In the world.
It may save him from embarrassment
from that worst of book. pests, the
woman who says. what. you have not
read The Blue Monkey'?"
In his heart, however, he knows he
is a liar. There are too many aUthors,
even good authors, for any one reader
to honestly read and appreciate them
ALL If he tried 1t he would get a
terrible case of indigestion, which, ac-
cording to latest reports, tends to cause
certain types of deafness. Perhaps the
literary counterpart Of such physical
deafness is an inability TO like the
books ones friend loves.
Books about books might wen discuss
such topics as these in order that the
inner human side of authors, writing,
books, publishing. might have its in
ming. The outer human side, as de-
picted in books of Renaissance about
great writers, has been handled to sur
felt. Somehow even the most ardent
Conrad fan" cannot become excited
because the novelist liked cabbage
soup. But tell what he read himself,
and especially the books he did not
care for, and we will read your book
about books to the end.