Evening star., 1933-01-22
10y SARAH Q. BOWERMAN
Personal Memoirs Of Joffre-AMeaO Book by
Jacob Wassermann- q Vide Range
of Fiction
ofFiction.

unblushing use and abuse of all who loved him.
his smallneSs and his heroism, all appear in
his own letters and diaries and in the critical
and imaginative articles contributed by him to
French and German journals"
In reading the book it Is interesting to Spec
ulate as to how many of the character quail
ties which unfold were due to Wagner's "Sturm
und Drang" period and how many were to be-
come permanent. The complete biographies
of course, throw light on t1i, question The
story opens with Wagner, a youth of 16 sitting
late at night in his attic room in Leipzig suf-
fering from erysipeas, and torturing his wearied
mind over score. Soon he Jared forth from
Leipzig. driven by dreams and ambition to
Magdeburg, where he was called "the young
eagle; to Berlin, where "Verboten" was
written everywhere in life; to Riga, as or
chestra director, where he had his first inspira-
ton for THE Flying Dutchman"; to London,
where he Experienced the dull, dreary empti-
ness OF an English Sunday: to Paris, where he
went hungry and failed to find fame, but began
the composition of "Tannhauser" and "Lohen-
grim then back to Germany, where at Dres-
den, the production of his "Rienzi' established
him as composer of a probably great future
OF Wagncr's first marriage, to Minna Planer,
in 1886, Wagner himself wrote to his brother
that his beloved was the only feminine being
in the world who up to now has inspired any
interest" in him. But Hans Reisige- comments:
What was it to him that he had let himself
be dragged in the train of popular actress
a prince consort! To marry! At %
without money and an assured future
With mountain of debts behind him. !"
To marry a girl who was four years older than
he. girl who loved him? Yes, no
doubt, but one who did not hesitate to accept
money from other admirers at the same time
marriage between two people who have
already tortured each other to death in a
h1Ind vrI,o ov,lx,
so long with each other in a terrible row that
she, never a match for the cutting tongue of
her future husband, had gone into mysteries.
Marriage between two people who even
at the open door of the parsonage, where they
were waiting to announce their wedding, en-
gagged in an alteration which suddenly led to
the most spiteful expressions so that the pastor
could not believe his own ears" In view Of
this beginning, it is not surprising that the
marriage was not happy nor that Wagner's
second wife, Cosima, daughter of List was
the one who had upon his life the greater and
more hopeful influence. The enthusiastic style
in which Restless Star is written harmonizes
well with the character of the subject of the
biography.
THE ODYSSEY OF HOMER Newly translated
into English prose, by T. E. Shaw New
York: oxford University Press.
A NEW novel, the choice of most of the
book clubs? No, only the twenty-eighth
English rendering of Homer's Odyssey" but
done SO beautifully so satisfyingly, that anyone
would be wise, if necessary, to omit the read
ing Of couple Of popular novels in order to
read about these adventures of Odysseus. The
translator, T. E. Shaw, who, by the way is
Lawrence Of Arabia" states his aim to be q
straightforward translation" but it is far more
than this. it IS rich, full of color, strangely
modern, in spite Of the gods and goddesses.
IT, :..k--
the Oldest book worth reading for its story and
the first novel of Europe. Gay, fine and vivid
it Is: never huge or terrible"
Mr.. Shaws imaginary picture of the author
OF the Odyssey (Was it Homer?), deduced
from q four-y year study of the original and
given in his predatory note is entertaining. "I
found book worm no longer young, living
from home, q mainlander, city-bred and do
meStic. Married but not exclusively dog
lover. often hungry and thirsty. dark haired
Fond OF poetry, great If uncritical reader Of
the 1had, with limited sensuous range but an
exact eyesight which gave him all his pictures
lover Of old bric-a-brac, though as muddled
an antiquary as Walter Scott. =. 1t is fun to
compare his infuriating male condescension to-
ward inglorious woman with his tender charity
Of head and heart for serving men" We
gather that the translator has had FUN" with
his whole task-a different kind of fun from
Arabian adventure and intrigues, but still fun
For him Odysseus, Penelope, Telemachus Nau-
sicaa, Eumaeus Menelaus Eurycleai and the
others are all people, not just myths or SYM
bols We are perhaps little shocked-in the
parts Of our minds where tradition lurks-to
find him calling Penelope "sly catfish wife,"
Odysseus "cold- -blooded egotist," and Tele-
machus, "priggish son who yet met his mas
er-prig in Menelaus"
When the old servant Eurycleia climbs to
Penelope's chamber to announce to her mis-
tress the long awaited, often despaired of, re-
turn Of the wandering husband, she does so
with "a cackle Of laughter" and "circ inspect
Penelope" disbelieving, Grossly replies: "Of
with you below, Instantly, to the womens quar-
tiers. Had any other of my house-maidens