Evening star., 1937-01-16
TAKES REFUGEE BACKGROUND
Question Raised Whether American ANaon Entry Is Not
Observation-Disclosures Is Minor Masterpece-Downfall
of Nicholas-Thesaurus of East

SHOULD amend l1ht 10 Tedu pSCduSc |
of partisanship, for obviously to deal
with Parnell In the detached and |
analytical manner would be to kill |
the tale. 1t would be flying in the |
very face of a rare writer's providence.
1t would be base ingratitude for |
a story Of almost unparalleled lush
ness.
And so we have the classic treat
ment here once again-the villain |
Gladstone, referred to as the Grand |
Old Man, to be sure, but only in what |
one comprehends to be a tone OF
scathing irony; the JUDAS Healy, the |
weak disciples, the Gethsemane scene |
of committee room Is. the broken |
heart. the shameful defeat all of it. |
And why not? A good tale will always |
bear retelling.
THIS Is MY AFFAIR. BY Lola Kinel.
Boston: Little Brown & Co.
THIS is the story Of the life of the
author, young Russian uprooted
by the revolution and forced to support
herself in the words of her publisher,
by her wits 1t is a tale of wander
ings about postwar Europe, Of jobs as
a translator and journalist, of various
emotional experiences, of emigration
to America, of q Hollywood marriage
and divorce. 1t is done in that vein
| OF artleSS self-preoccupation which is
common in works of this kind written
by women. In other words, it is an in
! tereSting narrative told in an irritating
manner
Comment may be made on the cir
cumstance that few women, writing
their lives, distinguish between artistic
| frankneSs, which is desira BILE, and con-
fidential revelations, which are not.
And this comment does not apply to
subject matter. There would seem to
be no reason why the autobiography
of woman should not be as complete
| as she sees fit to make it, The criti-
cism instead is aimed entirely at man
| ner. For where writing is concerned.
! there seems to be a fixed feminine
inability to achieve impersonality.
There is, of course, the fact that 1t
is always more difficult for a woman
to achieve that condition than it is for
a man, and that custom plays its part
| in the fault; in life a woman is usually
| judged as woman first and only sec
ondarily as human being-if at all.
But for this very reason, it might be
urged that when women speak for
| themselves, they do it as human beings:
that, when they tell of their emotional
| disappointments. they do it with OBJ
jectivity and resist the lurking tempta-
ton to become momentary heroines
of drama.
Miss Kinel does not always drama
tize herself but at times she does, and
| it is exactly at those times that her
narrative loses its impresSiveness. 1t
is too bad, for her history is quite as
| interesting as that of a number of
male autobiographers who have re-
Gently placed themselves on record be-
fore the reading world, and certainly
1t Is pertinent postwar document.
| 1t should be said here that certain
! chapters of Miss Kiners life-those
dealing with her work as a translator
for Isadora Duncan-are currently
running in the Atlantic Monthly.
These are perhaps the most felicitous-
ly told passages Of the book.
NICHOLAS II. PRISONER OF THE
PURPLE. BY Mohammed Essad-
Bey. English version by Paul
Maerker Branden and Elsa Bran
den. New York: Funk & Wag-
nails.
WE HAVE here an interesting book
about an uninteresting man
about man, indeed, whose remark
able achievement in nonentity was
the most interesting thing about him
that is, the last Gar of Russia
The book is interesting in that it
is sympathetic and tolerant. 1t makes
what seems to be sincere effort to
unearth the impaSsive autocrat's per-
s0nal Interpretation of his autocracy,
and places on him an auctorial inter
pretation based on the world in which
he lived. rather than the world of
western civilization.
That Nicholas was superstitiouS, in
different, hesitant and weak. the
author makes no effort to deny. But
from this admission he follows the
line of examining the influences which
worked on the Car to make him what
he was, rather than that of execrating
him for not being something different. |
Such an examination is due, histor- |
ically, although no doubt the sympa-
thetic tone of the present writer will
offend adherents of the regime which
brought about Nicholas downfall.
That Russia itself was supersti- |
tious, indifferent, hesitant country |
would seem to be the conclusion to |
which the book comes, indicating that |
in Nicholas 1t had characteristic |
ruler who might, If allowed sufficient |
time, have moved his unwieldly do |
main a little in the progressive direc- |
ton. That the revolution brought the |
blessings Of progress somewhat more |
rapidly to the Muscovites is not TO be
denied, but whether the attendant |
suffering In the long run might not |
have been less Is question that the |
author leaves significantly open.
The book has a tendency to imply |
reverence for mere forms which is re-
grettable. But in so far as it confines |
itself to the character of Nicholas, it |
is a sober and worthy document.
IT'S THE CLIMATE. BY Charles
Horace Rathbone. Jr. New York:
Richard r. Smith.
THIS Is q series of short stories |
written by an artist about life on
the Caribbean Islands. As is to be |
expected, the stories are vivid, color
full, with pictorial quality and an
attention to detail that makes both |
actors and scene live for the reader. |
The stories are all short, all we'll writ |
ten, all on different themes. and with |
different strata of island society for |
motives. They touch on the tragedy |
of the white islanders with colored |
blood, on the misfortunes of the COL
ored islanders who 90 aWay and come |