Evening star., 1936-11-07
i'm THE CURRENTte MAGAZINES
The Sky Comes the Stands Tell What's What Astronomy
Reviewers for Periodicals Place Widely Different Estimates
Latest Volumes by Gilbert Seldes and Stuart Chase

1t Is when we come TO fiction, hows
ever, that the fine independence Of
ones fellow reviewers Is most vividly
demonstrated. In each of the three
periodicals above named there Is a
preferred list Of novels. These lists
comprise 80 works Of fiction. One title
appears on two of them. The other 80
are mentioned only once. 3
1t seems only fair to name the book
SO signally honered. 1t is George Mill
burns Catalogue" q novel Of an
Oklahoma town, distinguished only in
that it has a unique mechanical struc-
ture. Harpers and the Mercury listed
1t. Scribner's did not.
Scribner's list, to the reviewers
taste, is vastly better than the other
two. Here it is:
"AbSaloml Absalom!" by William
Faulkner; "A World I Never Made"
by James Farrell; The Right to
Heresy,' by Stefan zweig; Exit Bran
don," by Sherwood Anderson: Death
of a Man" by Kay Boyle; The War
Goes On" by Sholem Asch; "A
Prayer for My Son. by Hugh WAL
pole; Green Margins" by E. P.
O'Donnell; The New Caravan
Great Laughter" by Fannie Hurst,
and "Sagittsrius Rising" by Cecil
Lewis.
Yet, while finding this a superior
list, the reviewer cannot possibly &C
Ill Che trs0tflA
certainly throw out the Walpole, the
Hurst and the Caravan. 1t is over
whelmingly plain that where any
number of critics are gathered TO.
gether in the name Of criticism, there
will be exactly that same number OF
opinions.
TURNING from consideration OF
the complicated professional out
look on books (Which every one knows
are written only to help kill time, any
way, unless they be written to give
information, when an encyclopedia Is
handier) one takes up the weeks list
of best-sellers and learns what the
public thinks.
Here are the novels which have won
its highest award-its good cash sales
Gone With the Wind" by Margaret
Mitchell: "A Prayer for My Son." by
Hugh Walpole; Far Forest" by
Frances Brett Young; white Oak
Harvest" by Mazo de Ia Roche. Hon
or Bright" by Frances Parkinson
Keyes; White Banners" by Lloyd c.
Douglas.
OF these, reviewer has had praise
only for Gone With the Wind but
this is significant. for it proves that.
in great stories, critics and public will
find themselves agreeing after ali. For
Gone With the Wind is the only
book on the list which can be called
a great story. and its sales-and hence
its popularity-have lowered above
those of the rest. At the same time.
almost all critics have highly recon-
mended it.
The non-fiction works on the best
seller list are the following: The
Nine Old Men," by Pearson and Allen;
American Doctors Odyssey" by Vic
tor Heiser; Live Alone and Like It."
by Marjorie Hills; The French Quar-.
ter" by Herbert Asbury; Best Plays"
edited by BurIs Mantle, and Three
Worlds" by Carl Van Doren.
There seems to be no exception to
take to this public judgment, except
in the case of Live Alone and Like
It," which is a foolish, although an
inevitably popular, thing. 1t usually
happens, however, that in non-flction
there is more nearly general agree
ment between popular and professional
opinion. But. Of course, non-fiction
sales are vastly lower than fiction
sales, in all but exceptional cases.
Hence the agreement is necessarily Of
small significance.