This, That

And The Other

Quite a miscellaneous collec tion of books have turned up in

PlM’s reviewing department

lately, so we’ve had a brief look at each of them.

Short Stories

(Joast To Coast, 1963-1964,

is a collection of modern Aus tralian stories, selected by Dr.

Leonie Kramer, Associate Professor of English at the University of

Nsw.

It has, in previous years, been an off-beat collection, but this years crop has been tempered by the inclusion of such authors as John O’Grady ( They’re A Weird Mob), and Lesley (Why Can’t The English?) Rowlands.

The collection of 24 short stories presented in this edition, ranges from the macabre to the lightly satirical and, on the whole, they make interesting reading.—J.McD.

(Coast To Coast, 1963-1964. Angus

and Robertson Ltd. 25/-.)

Russian Autobiography

Fyou have been taking an interest in Russian literature in the last few years, you will no doubt know —as the publishers point out on the dust jacket of his autobiography.

Story of a Life —that Konstantin Paustovsky is “recognised as the greatest figure among living Russian writers”.

This, then, should make you lick your lips in anticipation of reading Story of a Life, particularly as it is described as his masterpiece.

The book covers Paustovsky’s childhood and schooldays in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, which was a great intellectual centre in pre revolutionary Russia.

It brilliantly evokes the country side and brings to life many of the people of Paustovsky’s early days,

among whom was a geography master called Cherpunov, who was a great admirer of the Russian explorer Miklukho-Maklai. (Miklukho-Maklai, who was partly of Scottish descent, landed on the north-east coast of New Guinea in 1871 to make various scientific in vestigations. ) One day Cherpunov pointed to an emaciated, bearded portrait of Miklukho-Maklai on the wall of his schoolroom and said: “He was a great Russian, Miklukho-Maklai. He was a traveller and a humanist. I don’t suppose you know what a humanist is, but it doesn’t matter, you’ll understand later. He was a great scholar, and he believed in man’s essential goodness.

“He lived all by himself among the cannibals of New Guinea, un armed and slowly dying of fever.

Yet he managed to do so much good to the savages, he showed them so much patience and kindness, that when our corvette, The Emerald, finally came to pick him up and take him back to Russia, they crowded on the beach, wailing and stretching out their hands and call ing him back: ‘Maklai! Maklai!’

“So remember: with kindness you can achieve anything. . , .”

This passage, besides giving a Russian-eye view of a New Guinea explorer, is also a good sample of the quiet, philosophical tone of

much of Paustovsky’s book.

RL.

(STORY OF A LIFE. Harvill Press, London. 31/-. Our copy from Wm.

Collins (Overseas) Ltd., Sydney.)

Farcical Novel

BACK in the early 19th century when King George 111 was king of England and John MacArthur was a big name and rather trouble some fellow in New South Wales, King George 111, in a fit of pique against MacArthur, proclaimed that whoever ruled Parramatta ruled Australia.

The proclamation, however, was not discovered until about 150 years later when Britain was clean ing up her statute books—and the effect of it was that the unwilling Mayor of Parramatta became the rightful ruler of Australia. . .

This, at any rate, is what happens m Mayor's Nest, a farcical first novel by a Parramatta-born Aus tralian, Tony Morphett, who shows a good deal of promise as a

humorous writer.-

RL.

(MAYOR’S NEST. Jacaranda Press. 22/6.)

Verse Makers

Randolph stow, author and poet, selected and edited Aus tralian Poetry 1964, an annual event produced by Australia’s oldest established publishers, probably without much profit to themselves.

Whether or not an interest in poetry is growing in Australia is a moot point; but at least the names of some Australian poets can now be recognised without much trouble.

Poetry Australia, a small magazine edited by Dr. Grace Perry, is also now making some sort of impact.

In any event, Poetry 1964 reprints several poems that first saw the light of day in the magazine—which should please the energetic Doctor who manages a medical practice, a home, family, and writes verse.

One of her own poems also appears in the 1964 collection.

Also there are such familiar names as James McAuley, Douglas Stewart, Rosemary Dobson and Judith Wright—who recently won a £5,000 Britannica award for poetry.

JT.

(POETRY 1964. Angus and Robertson. 15/-.)

Adventurous Whaler

DURING the last few years, Aus tralian historians have been delving more and more into the lives of the lesser known figures of their country’s history, with exceptionally readable results from time to time.

Dr. K. M. Bowden’s Captain James Kelly of Hobart Town is one of the less readable efforts, but is a most scholarly study and useful reference book.

Kelly, who was born in Parra matta in 1791, was an adventurous seaman who became the first man to sail round Tasmania in a small boat. Whaling voyages brought him wealth, and at one time he was master of a whaling and sealing fleet operating out of Hobart.

At the age of 16, he made a sandal wooding voyage to Fiji in the ship King George, when sandal wood taken direct to China fetched from £9O to £lOO a ton, or £5O a

ton in Sydney.

RL.

(Captain James Kelly Of

HOBART TOWN. Melbourne University Press. 35/-.)

For Ten-Year-Olds

THE life of today’s Arnhem Land children provides the back ground for eight more stories by Ann E. Wells. Because the stories all concern the legends and myths surrounding the sun, moon and stars the book is called Skies of Arnhem Land. It is a companion piece to two other books by the same author.

It is attractively illustrated by Margaret Paice and, as children’s books of this type go, is reason

ably priced.

JT.

(Skies Of Arnhem Land. Angus

and Robertson. 16/-.)

Odd Ball

Science-Fiction Noviel,

Froomb, by John Lymington, is about the breaking of the time barrier and the exploration of life after death. The title is short for “Fluids running out of my brakes!”

“Explorer” John Brunt is offered the chance to enter the Hereafter.

He is scientifically killed but remains

radio-controlled so he can be re turned to life after 24 hours.

He learns of an impending disaster in his time and attempts to change the world’s fate.

This book gives an unusual twist to an old theme; it has sex and a finish that leaves you wondering.

It’s good escape reading for those

who like this sort of thing.-

J.Mcd.

(FROOMB. Hodder and Stoughton. 20/-.)

Mining Diamonds

A LITTLE written-about, little known region of the world, South-West Africa, provides the back ground—and almost the principle “character”—in the latest adventure story from Geoffrey Jenkins.

Jenkins doesn’t concern himself with any of the new heart-burnings of the African continent; he con centrates on one of the old ones— diamonds.

River of Diamonds describes a revolutionary attempt to mine diamonds from under the sea off the Namib Desert, where vast and valu able quantities of the stones are already being mined. The syndicate which wishes to do this, early comes up against a 30-year-old mystery in the person of the larger-than-life figure of Fred Shelbourne. Shelbourne holds a concession passed down from the former German Government through a man called Caldwell who had disappeared in the Namid 30 years before. Shelbourne had been with Caldwell at the time and the suggestion is that he murdered him for his concession.

This book is good adventure stuff, made even more enjoyable by the authentic background. The area con tains the richest diamond fields in the world, discovered many years ago by Dr. Hans Merensky, in the face of overwhelming professional scep ticism. The islands off the barren coast are used for their guano deposits and these, the offshore seas and the mainland coastline itself have, in the last 150 years, been the scene of recorded natural phenomena that are indeed much stranger than

fiction.-

JT.

(The River Of Diamonds. Collins.

22/6.)