3 NOVEMBER 1967, Page 25

Non-fiction

The Story of Our Heritage V. M. Hillyer and E. G. Huey (Nelson, nine volumes, 10 gns).

A scrappy encyclopaedia of world history, pure

and applied art which dares to call itself The Story of Our Heritage whilst ignoring literature

and music (neither Shakespeare nor Beethoven appears in the index). The Art, Architecture and Sculpture volumes have continuity and are

readable; the History sections dart about in an alarming manner and can be used only as lucky dips. Hundreds of illustrations in line and colour are the main attraction of this venture.

Oliver Cromwell I. E. Levine (Macdonald I6s). Deficient in warts, perhaps, and over-

simplified, but in this book one can keep track of the life of the hero, whereas in Edgar Holt's Giuseppe Mazzini (Dobson 18s), a more scholarly work, the complexities of European politics tend to obscure the man.

Mallory of Everest Showell Styles (Hamilton 21s). A professional account of the 1921-24 Everest Expeditions and the drama of those momentous pioneer ventures. Yardsticks of Science Series edited by David Fishlock (Deutsch 18s each volume). An

imaginative and rewarding attempt to break down the barriers which exist between the sciences by showing that scientific progress in all fields is dependent on developments in the skills of measurement. Timothy Johnson's Rivers of Time and Fred Wheeler's The Sizes of Things augur well for a series which assumes basic scientific training on the part of the reader.