SOME BOOKS OF THE WEEK.
Walks in this column does not necessarily preclude subsequent ream]
To Verdun from the Somme. By H. E. Brittain. (John Lane. 2s. Gd. net.)—Mr. Harry Brittain gives a very readable and pleasant account of his pilgrimage to Verdun, undertaken in tho capacity of escort to the distinguished American lawyer and man of letters, Mr. James Beck, to whom the cause of the Allies owes so much. The book affords us a glimpse of the war from the Anglo-American point of view ; and as Mr. Brittain evidently took with him to France " a heart that watches and receives," this record of his impressions makes interesting and sympathetic reading. The several chapters of his book present to us as many different aspects of the front. Few features of the battle line seem to have escaped his quick observation. Whether he describes the dusty desolation of the Femme feed, or the waste wilderness of that ruined countryside ; the feats of French and American airmen at " Y and X," or artillery activity on the Somme ; Paris, optimistic and confident of ultimate victory, or a motor run through the Argonne ; or perhaps best of all, his ex- periences in the invincible fortress of Verdun itself, where a lun- cheon was given in the visitors' honour, Mr. Brittain treats his sub- ject with a freshness and simplicity which will make a sure appeal to his readers. Possibly one of the most interesting divisions of the book is that which deals with a visit to the Russian lines, and gives a short account of a Russian " church parade," at which the congrega- tion was representative of anywhere " from Korea to the Caucasus."
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