24 MAY 1924, Page 22

BOOKS OF REFERENCE.

This indispensable compilation is now in its eighty-seventh year. Evidently British publishing has fully recovered from the effects of the War, for the total number of books published last year is only one hundred below the record established in 1918, and the new publishing season has begun with exceptional vigour. Works of fiction naturally predominate, but the classified analysis of publications shows a remarkable increase in juvenile and religious books during 1923, and these are closely approached by poetry and sociology. A notable feature of the year has been the number of highly priced limited editions.