MR. SMYTHE is one of the few English mountaineers. besides
Whymper who have earned their living directly or indirectly through their climbing. Whymper was an engraver ; Mr. Smythe is a writer and a photographer, and there are periods (the present time is necessarily one of them) when his material wears a little thin. One or two of the photographs in The Mountain Vision may have been used before, and the text, dealing with subjects such as Mountain Peoples, Everest, Fear, and the Beauty of Flowers, sometimes has a familiar ring. But we have come to expect one or two volumes from Mr. Smythe each year, and he has done his best not to disappoint his admirers. There are some new stories in the book (especially in the chapter on solitary climbs), some fresh reflections on mountain scenery, and some photographs well worth looking at. As a Christmas present the book will be welcome even to those familiar with Mr. Smythe's work, and those who share his enterprising views on British rock-climbing will especially enjoy his account of an " expert's " comment on a somewhat unorthodox ascent of Lliwedd by the West Buttress: " Why, you've been up a bit of Route Two, some of the Avalanche, a portion of the Roof," and so on, ending: " You haven't done a climb at all."
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