There is, I regret to say, very little news for this column, at the time of going to press. The only book not included in the last notes which may have escaped your attention is ON A DARK NIGHT (10/6), by Anthony West. It deals with a modernistic hell, wherein the adventures of two men are described. One is a lawyer, who has been instrumental in bringing about the conviction and consequent execution of a German war criminal, and the other is the war criminal. In this hell their activity is linked, they progress together through concentration camps, through a hell of misdirected, unproductive energy. The lawyer goes on to a hell - of luxury where torture is by satiation, until he returns to join his war-criminal-companion in a hell of faith, and passivity. In other words, this overpowering depiction of a hell is very similar to our own modern world .. This book will not appeal to the science-fictionist, nor to the lighter fantasy fan, but it will have a definite appeal to the more serious reader, and to the "horrific" enthusiast.

Two other books which may be of interest are CLOVIS, by Michael Fessier (Allan Wingate, 7/6) which is a tale of an intelligent parrot, and for the POE enthusiast, a translation of Marie Bonaparte's THE LIFE AND WORKS OF EDGAR ALLAN POE is available from IMAGO Publishing Co. at 35/-.

Most enthusiasts now know that reprints of E. R. Burroughs early tales are appearing from Metheun at 6/-, TARZAN OF THE APES and THE RETURN OF TARZAN being currently available; a collection of Algernon Blackwood's work under the title of TALES OF THE UNCANNY AND THE SUPERNATURAL is in print at 12/6.

For those who missed the USA edition, THE LOST CAVERN and Other Tales, by Gerald Heard (Cassel 9/6) is a very good buy. This contains four long-short stories, two being religio-fantasy, and the others science-fantasy. The title tale is one of the better subterranean yarns available, dealing with intelligent bats, and THE THAW PLANE, the second of the s-f theme, covers the melting of the polar ice with atomic power, and its consequences.

Data entry by Judy Bemis

Updated June 29, 2015. If you have a comment about these web pages please send a note to the Fanac Webmaster. Thank you.