Best of the Paperbacks

Fact:

Thrilling Cities, By (The

late) lan Fleming. This excursion from James Bond fiction into fact contains seven of the 13 articles the author was commissioned to do for the London Sunday Times in 1959-60. The thrilling cities covered are Hong Kong, Macao, Tokyo, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago and New York. The articles are, of course, not ordinary travel pieces and some of them are said to have scandalised the staider readers of the Sunday Times when they appeared in that August journal, although the editorial blue pencil had expurgated some passages. These expurgations have been restored for the present book. (Pan; 6/-.)

The Pan Book Of Dreams,

by Muriel Grey. This “illuminating study of the world of dreams” has 2,000 dream interpretations. For example, if you dream of a plough (do people dream of ploughs?), it means that “emotional problems will be followed by great happiness in love and marriage”. There are 1,999 other examples—from “abbot” (a serious situation will call for careful thought); to “Zulu” (better health and a trouble averted). (Pan; 6/-.) BRM, by Raymond Mays and Peter Roberts is the factual account of the men and the background that produced the car that was designed to put Britain back in the inter-

national racing car business. Strictly for addicts. (Pan; 9/-.)

Zoo Quest To Madag

ASCAR, by David Attenborough.

As with other of his safaris, the author went to Madagascar for BBC television and this book is an adjunct to the films he made. It is interesting not only to animal lovers but for his description of the giant island of Madagascar —or Malagasy as it has become since it gained independence from France a couple of years ago. The 1,000 mile long island was once joined to the African continent —but that was at least 50 million years ago. As a result of its separateness, the island has few of the animals of Africa —no apes, antelope, elephants or carnivorous beasts of prey. It has some ancient animals of its own. however—hence the interest of zoologists. (Pan; 6/-.) Fiction:

Dragon Tree Island, By

Norman Lewis, who sets out to prove that you haven’t got to go to the Pacific to find a feudal island

paradise. This one occurs “some where in the Canary Islands”.

Apart from hot-blooded beauties of Spanish descent, the characters in clude a far from frigid English artist. (Fontana.) ARABELIA, by Georgette Heyer.

A Regency romance in which a country parson’s daughter goes to London disguised as an heiress. (Pan; 6/-.)

The Long Summer Of

GEORGE ADAMS, by Weldon Hill, is a very long novel about a small-town American family afflicted by passion and the summer heat.

This author also has the best-seller Onionhead to his credit. (Pan; 8/-.)

The Small Back Room, By

Nigel Balchin—one of the first of this author’s best-sellers; a war-time job about bomb-disposal and the psychological build-up that goes with it. (Fontana.) Thrillers and Crime:

The Crust On Its Uppers,

by Robin Cook. Crime with humour when three escapees from high society leave their environment for big-time crime. (Pan; 4/-.)

Assault On A Queen, By

Jack Finney. Five adventurous men and one woman raise a World War I submarine from the sea bed and bail-up the Queen Mary. (Pan; 6/-.) CRpOKED HOUSE, by Agatha Christie. This is the author’s own special favourite—the one she most enjoyed writing. (Fontana.)

The Fifth Pan Book Of

HORROR STORIES, selected by Herbert van Thai. (Pan; 6/-.)

The Colour Of Murder,

by Julian Symons, was selected by the Crime Writers’ Association as the best crime novel of 1957. THE

Killing Of Francis Lake, By

the same author in 1962 is also first class. (Fontana.) ONE WAY, by Allan Prior—a prison escape story with Dartmoor itself playing a large part in the plot. (Pan; 4/-.) SAMANTHA, by Dorothy Eden, who has produced a Victorian period piece cleverly laced with intrigue. (Hodder; 4/-.) (Our copies from Wm. Collins (Over seas) Ltd., Sydney.)