21 MARCH 1998, page 40

Not A Very Jolly Lot

David Crane THE COLLEL 1 ED SHORT NOVELS by Paul Theroux Hamish Hamilton, £20, pp. 434 0 nly the very best short-story writers measure up to the demands of a collected edition......

Of Rats And Men

Andro Linklater THE SOCIAL ANIMAL by W. G. Runciman HarperCollins, £14.99, pp. 230 even years ago, Lord Runciman was awarded the ultimate accolade of Great- ness and Goodness,......