Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-09-19
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRAcEwELL.

What great city has inspired SO many
noveliStS as London2
Novels have been laid in New York,
In Paris, in Vienna, in Rome, but mostly
rather incidentally. The action occurs
in those cities, that is all.
But when English writer's put their
characters in London, the city takes
possession OF them.
Its places and people soon usurp The
entire story, so that the reader brings
away with him a vivid impression, not
SO much of having read story, as that
he has been places and seen people.
During the past year or so q halI
dozen fine novels have placed London
once more on the literary map.
IT would seem to the American reader
that there must be something eXtraor-
dinarily vital about the capital city OF
the British Empire. =
New York cannot show six novels IN
the same class with Angel Pavement,
by J. B. Priestley; The Water Gipsles,
by A. P. Herbert: 1.-THE Square Circle,
by Denis MacKail; albert Grope," by
r o. Mann; saturday Night" by
THOMAS Moult, and 1.-The Midnight
Bell" by Patrick Hamilton.
The last named is a sketch, In COM
harrison with the others, which belongs
to the new-old fat novel class. seem
tngly. 1t takes a great many words To
portray the very flavor of London; and
every true novel addict is glad OF IT,
The reading world had grown tired
of the short and shorter novel. II eX-
ouisitely done, in the manner OF JIG
Bridge of San Luis Rey," Tor instance
such short works have their appeal.
Few stories are elaborated in that
stylistic maner, however. In all toc
many novels published during the paSl
! five years the reader is through almost
| before he has begun.
An excellent example Of this Is the
! long short story, or SNORT long story
whichever one wants to call II, ealleo
'S 8 Pedro" which was originally pup
| lished in Scribner's as prize story, ana
which now has been put out between
covers by one of the book clubs.
AS finely etched as that catastrophe
/ (the real SIS. VestriS) is IN the tale
The reader is left with feeling OF want
because the whole thing Is entlreiy too
short.
Mr. Hugh Walpoles latest novel, "Ju-
dith Paris" belongs in the fat class. Il
has 776 pages.
nett Imperial Palace" was exceedingly
Eneaish authors Of all degrees are
turning with one accord toward the re-
yival Of the long work of fiction.
Dickens, in other words, Is winning
again.
Not that the great Charles, Of course,
invented the long novel.
If any one may be said to have done
1t, it was the author Of Tom Jones"
But, after all, the hefty, bulky, long
novel belongs to no one nation.
1t is the natural way OF telling a
story.
Somehow. when one takes to words,
he wants plenty Of space.
Happily, the reader wants the same
thing.
Once the gamut is run (from the
long novel, perhaps without so much
art" in it, to the exceedingly short
one, crammed with style, the more
style the better the reader OF books
is quite willing to go back to the be-
! ginning of the cycle.
That is just exactly what Is hap
pening in England today.
1t is an exceedingly interesting thing
I'd note that when the New Yorker
writes about his great metropolis he
tends to give the reader a picture OF
sophistication, whereas when the Lop-
| doner presents the city on the Thames