Evening star., 1936-10-17

a
Author of "The Door in the
Grimming" (Putnam'S).
mistress work Is translated, and to
hope that it has the Offices OF SO excel
lent translator as this one-for that
should not be lost TO sight.
IN PURSUIT OF LAUGHTER. BY
Agnes Repplier. Boston: Houghton
Mittiin Co.
IN THIS new collection Of essays the
gifted pen of Miss Repplier is given
to tracing the sad course Of poor hu-
manity in pursuit of laughter. For
Laughter, who once lived with US on
intimate and constant terms, suffered
Punishment at the end of the Middle
Ages and, bereft, We have pursued him
ever since, sometimes grimly, some
times extravagantly, often foolishly.
but always without success. Or so
Miss Repplier says, at any rate.
Her essays consider the case OF
human mirth in the hard medieval
times. in the wishfully named "Merrie
England" of Elizabeth. which, she
says, was never merrie; in the scam
dalous days of the Restoration and the
succeeding reigns Of the eighteenth
century, when Sheridan, Byron. Hood,
Hook and Sydney Smith were its min
isters, and down through the days OF
Artemus Ward and Mark Twain in
this country to the twentieth century.
She finds the pursuit continuing and
still unsuccessful. The robust mirth
which was part of life in the Middle
Ages has never been recaptured.
The collection is completely delight
full. You will want to read it at
sitting.
THE STONES AWAKE. BY Carle-
ton Beals. Philadelphia: j. B. Lip
pincott Co.
A MONG the many novels which have
been written about Mexico, one
by Carleton Beals must be received
with respect, for Mr.. Beals has proved
himself an authority on that country.
His record as a witness of revolutions
south of the Rio Grande Is impressive
and his past works have been widely
acclaimed for their scope and accuracy.
His present work attempts to set
forth the whole revolutionary struggle
which has taken place in Mexico since
1910 through the medium OF the people
of a single typical village. He accord
ingly presents poems. the land owners,
the straw bosses, the American capi-
talists and the church in definite types.
The desire for land, freedom and edu-
cation he makes the issues. Through
the adventures Of one girl, Esperanza,
he carries his reader through the vio-
lent scenes OF social upheaval which
are now history. Through Esperanza's
own life he typifies the rise OF the
poems. for she is introduced as an
illiterate child and ends her career as
the enlightened head of the school in
her village.
The book Is designed to cover so
much territory that 1t reads at times
almost like a scenario. Viewed as his
tory, however, it would seem to be
good sympathetic picture of the late
trouble.
BRIEF KINGDOM. BY Gerald Breck-
enridge. Garden City: Doubleday
Doran & Co.
THE "brief kingdom" Of this book Is
the time spent by a young city
man as owner of a weekly newspaper
in little town in Virginia. Driven by
depression, he undertakes to exc q
living out Of editing this publication.
He does not stay long. but while he Is
there he becomes acquainted with the
village life, and the book Is q record
of this acquaintance.
The printer who works for him, the
local merchants, the mayor, the post
Office crowd-all these are duly
painted In. There Is tragic episode
with young woman who, similarly,
is an alien to the town and who gives
the young editor companionship and
understanding. When she dies, he feels
that he can no longer stay in the
place. He relinquishes his brief king
dom" and turns back to the city.
It Is essentially book of character
portraits. The author Is o former
Washingtonian and undoubtedly knows
his rural Virginia background.
TO MY FATHER. BY Charles Werten-
baker. New York: Farrar g. Rine-
hart.
THIS book, by q former Washing
tonian and writer for The Star,
has been chosen by its publishers as
one of the finds Of the "Discoverers" !"
The DISCOVERIES. lest you have not
heard, are department Of Farrar &
Rinehart given over to bringing out
first novels. ITO My Father" Is q
third novel, but. the publishers in
form us, the DISCOVERIES have now
broadened their field to include dis
tinguished work by authors who have
already published. Possibly brilliant
firsts are harder to come by than was
anticipated.
The present selection Of this enter
prise is q good, lucid work Of con.
ventional sort, the photographed
novel. It tells the story Of . young