A QUICK LOOK AT 18 BOOKS

LITERARY
All the Books of My Life, by Sheila Kaye-Smith (Cassell, 15s.).
WE read hooks, but too rarely about books and hook-people. The late Miss Sheila Kaye-Smith, unlike the writer who once said " I don't read books; I write them, " loved books and felt their influence deeply. Her reader today can share her delightfully described experience, and profit from it.
Everyman's English Dictionary, by D.C. Browning (Dent, 10s. 6d.).
It is difficult to beat this dictionary for price, print and pocket. A thousand new words have been added to this edition.
Friends at Court, by Henry Cecil (Michael Joseph, 12s. 6d.). Henry Cecil has already made his name as a novelist and a " light " authority on the strange processes of the law. A sequel to " Brothers in Law " and as good.
RELIGIOUS
The Popes : The History of How they are Chosen, Elected, and Crowned, by Zsolt Aradi (Macmillan, 25s). THAT the Holy Father should live long is the prayer of all the world. But in the course of nature a time must come when the Roman See will be vacant. In this book, a regular contributor to the Osservatore Romano tells the full story of what happens. It is not a very long book and seems rather expensive; but it seems accurate.
The Splendour of the Church, by Henri de Lobar, S.I. (Shoed & Ward, 18s.).
IN this book the great Jesuit writer both professes his own love and understanding of the Church and helps others to widen and deepen their own love and understanding. It is a book out of the ordinary run of spiritual writing. It demands to be read slowly and in meditative mood. It is a hook to keep among the treasures of even the smallest library and to be taken down again and again.
Nuns Are Real People, by Sister Mary Laurence, O.Y. (Blackfriars, 10s.6d.).
HOW many people misunderstand the life of contemplative ---nuns, especially non
Catholics but many Catholics, too. Fr. Hilary Carpenter in an introduction shows that such nuns are neither eccentrics, nor ordinary people, but " real " people, and the letters of which the hook is comprised finely exemplify how true this is in practice. If one thinks one already knows the truth about nuns, here is the book to lend to others — and to read on the way. There is much to learn.
The Practice of the Presence of God and The Little Flowers of St. Francis (S.C.M., 8s. 60.).
THE first of these valuable spiritual texts is less known than the second, but one may audaciously hazard the view that Brother Lawrence is even more up-to-date. Those who have not made the acquaintance of this humble 17th century friar have a spiritual treat in store. And he is just the person for the busy, overburdened man and woman of today.
Meditations for Layfolk, by Bede Jarrett, O.P. (C.T.S., 12e. 6d.). Fr. Bede Jarret needs no introduction. One of the half-dozen host spiritual writers of our time, these apt meditations are available again.
A Directory of Catholic Schools and Colleges 1956 (Paternoster, 311. 6d.).
Another edition of the invaluable and up-to-date guide to our Catholic schools which is indispensable for parents and most useful for all priests.
HISTORY
THE story of the Grand Monarque's love for the niece of Cardinal Mazarin, Marie Mancini. Reasons of State prevented their marriage. Mrs. Sutherland has retold the old story effectively, helping the ordinary reader to get to know a page of history the easy way.
Victor Hugo, by Andre Manrois (Cape, 80n.).
ANDRE Maurols manages to combine the best-seller art with the far more important gift of delicate insight into human nature and a charming style. Gerard Hopkins, the translator, comes as near as anyone to being able to render into real English a French writer of great distinction. Victor Hugo's life must fascinate any imaginative reader. This is a must for the reading list.
London Through the Ages, by Dorothy Margaret Stuart (Methuen, 15s.).
THE author is an expert and practised historian who knows how to make history come alive for children — and grown-ups. London is given a new dimension for the imaginative reader, of any age, in these pages.
The Kersten Memoirs, 1940-1945 (Hutchinson, 21s.).
THERE are few more fascinating reading subjects today than the goings-on inside Nazi Germany. Dr. Kersten met the leading Nazi personalities in his professional capacity, and a doctor can often break through the crust of fear and acting. He used his chances to save large numbers of potential victims of his brutalised patients. A book not easily put down.
TRAVEL
Let's Halt Awhile,' by Ashley Courtney (Collins, 9s. 6d.).
F guide books today there is a profusion, but the home country is sometimes overlooked. This one is well-illustrated and is useful for information about the better hotels. Brief descriptions of all tourist localities. Popular price.
in and Out the Andes, by Sister Maria del Bey (Scribners, 279.6d.)
THREE nuns in a lorry bogged in a sandy trail on the dustcover gives a good idea of what is to come. Here the mission trail of the Maryknoll workers moves from Bolivia through Peru down to Chile and back to Panama and the Caribbean. American humour and vividness, compounded with the Catholic missionary ideal, make the book a must for those who can afford it.
Abroad on the Cheap, by Wendy Hall (Faber, 108.6d.).
THE ten-and-six spent on this book may save many pounds on your summer holiday abroad. Anyone who has lived abroad or has become a regular visitor knows that experience can cut 25 per cent. off one's expenses. The best book cannot hope to equal experience and knowledge of the language, but it can help a lot. We recommend this book that fills a real gap.
Men of Saint-Pierre Martin, by Jacques Attout (Werener Laurie, 18s.).
SPELAEOLOGY or pot-hole exploring is one of the latest of the crazes of adventurers who want to know more and take risks in doing so. The author is a Belgian priest who acted as chaplain in the exploration of the pot-hole of Pierre Saint-Martin on the borders of France and Spain. His story of his spiritual and scientific interest in a hobby and in the raising of the body of a famous victim is well worth reading.
LEGAL
OBSCENITY AND THE LAW, by Norman St. John-Stevan (Seeker & Warburg, 25s.) This study of an intrinsically most difficult subject in which morality, law, politics, literature and aesthetics are involved, is written by a trained Catholic legal writer. It seems to us extremely well done, though the author would not expect necessary agreement with all his own suggestions The book is rather a point of departure and, we think, of particular value to Catholics who wish to he thoroughly informed of the status quaestionis as it is today.