Word: morleys
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...warned Mr. Morley in our review of his last book--"Where the Blue Begins"; and in spite of the assertions of several of our literary friends to the contrary we still maintain it to be a masterpiece--we warned Mr. Morley to beware of too many "odds and ends" books. We sent up storm signals after reading Don Marquis' "Revolt of the Oyster" and F. P. A.'s "Overset". But he has gone right ahead regardless. Now he must weather it through as best he can. Of course we cannot raise much of a tempest, for our spirit has been...
...furbelows that would be worthy to set off a finer dress. It is small wonder that sometimes these pieces are gathered together and swept into a volume, where they may play a sort of public journal to the authors, and buoy up the notorious "sense of accomplishment". Humanly Mr. Morley has every excuse in the world...
They shine poorly in contrast with some of the short essays in this volume itself--as if Morley, realizing that all was not well, had inserted at judicious spots some of his arm-chair rather than word-desk writings. And there we found another difficulty at once. The book has two levels; one literary, one semi-journalistic, and we bounced around between the two for quite a time before we got used to the changes of pace. (There is a line mixed metaphor to serve as an opening for you, Chris...
...years of age. It contains some things we have wanted to say ourself for a long time, but have never quite dared to for fear of being called crude. "An Oxford Symbol"--we may as well tell you beforehand that it is a corkscrew--is done in the best Morley style; Dame Quickly and Glssing add their bit; and the chapter on "Sir Kenelm Digby" is a rare delight, with its recipes and its appreciation of old quaintness. . We should like, for our own part, to see more of Sir Kenelm in the future--and we would be curious...
...fact remains--and this hurts us worse than it does you, Chris!--that the book is undeniably "spotty", and that Mr. Morley has done and can do much better work. After which final blast we shall call in our storm, and wait hopefully for another and more sturdy launching...