15 NOVEMBER 1940, Page 22

THIS is another of Mr. Newman's amiable travelogues, true descen-

dants of that minor Edwardian classic, Round the World on a Wheel. Mr. Newman travels by bicycle for five shillings a day, usually choosing for his excursions countries under the dictatorial threat. The demands of Italy gave him the cue for his latest journey in the summer of 1939. It is the sort of book one used to read pencil in hand—to note this or that village for a future holiday. Now Europe seems as remote as Africa. Will we ever cross the Channel again? The places Mr. Newman so agreeably describes are lost in storm and as an obituary writer, Mr. Newman—with his bicycle George—seems a little light-weight.