Caliban. By W. L. George. (Methuen. 8s. 6d. net.)— The
Caliban of the title is Richard Bulmer, a great newspaper proprietor who is represented as a rival to Lord Northcliffe. He is entirely self-made and achieves his success by writing about the trivialities in which the public are interested instead of the great questions of policy which it would seem from this book are of interest to no one, not even to statesmen. In his youth Balmer contracts an unfortunate marriage with an upholstress from whom he separates as she is quite incapable of keeping pace with his meteoric career. The woman, whom he really loves, marries someone else, after considerable hesitation, and Bulmer realizes with stupefied incredulity that for once he is not to have his own way. The whole book is a curious and detailed portrait of one man, the modern conditions which alone render his career possible being cleverly sketched as a background to the central figure.
READABLE NOVELS. —The Widow's Cruse. By Hamilton F9fe. (Leonard Parsons. 7s. 6d. net.)—A most ingenious and diverting story, in which the unsympathetic wife of a literary mall persuades herself and the world on the appearance of his posthumous novels that hers has been the influence which has inspired these works. She obtains a final triumph through a seance conducted by a venal medium.-0 Perfect Love. By
• Autumn Crocuses. By Anne Douglas Sedgwick (Mrs. Basil de Selincourt). London: Martin Seeker. igs. itet.1
Lady Troubridge. (Methuen. 8s. 6d. net.)—The story of an intolerable young person married to a man whose health breaks down owing to his war service. The final triumph of the hero is not quite credible.—In the Claws of the Dragon. By G. S. de Morant. (Allen and Unwin. 7s. 6d. net.)—Describes the marriage of a French woman to a Chinese noble. The account of life in a Chinese country palace gives a avid picture of the mixture of self-control, love of beauty, and great cruelty which apparently characterizes Chinese family life.
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