25 JUNE 1927, Page 25

COCK-A-DOODLE. By C. E. Lawrence. (Duckworth. 7s. 6d. net.)--Can fairies

and the lower middle classes mingle ? As Mr. C. E. Lawrence presents his story it is amusing but extraordinarily unconvincing. It is impossible to suppose that even the weakest man who was in intimate relations with the exquisite fairy Dolores should have allowed himself to be married by a commonplace landlady. The book may be interpreted in two ways—either as an allegory showing the ebb and flow of man's lower and higher attributes, or as an extravaganza, but in this latter phase it is not very successful.