28 JULY 1984, page 26

When The Herm Turns

Andrew Brown Girls and Boys Sara Stein (Chatto £9.95, £4.95) S ex as a route to self-knowledge was one of the sillier ideas of the Sixties; the generation that was tempted by it......

Elephant And Rattlesnake

Peter Quennell Dr Johnson and Mrs Thrale: The 'Anecdotes' of Mrs Piozzi in their Original Form Edited and with an Introduction by Richard Ingrams (Chatto & Windus/The Hogarth......