Reflections

First edition hardcover with unclipped dust jacket in very good condition. Jacket is slightly scuffed and sunned. Edges are a little creased. Board spine ends are bumped. Binding is sound and pages are clear. LW

Like the recent Last Stories , this is a collection of previously uncollected material--in this case essays, reviews and travel pieces from the entire length of the author's 60-year writing career (the earliest written while he was still at Oxford). The material varies considerably in interest and quality, though it is surprising to observe that from the start the eye for the telling, often sordid detail was at work, the knack for establishing atmosphere in a deft stroke or two. The travel pieces are superbly crafted essays, combining politics and sociology seamlessly with history and scenery: on Indo-China before the Vietnam War, on old and new Cuba, on Haiti, Paraguay, a haunting evocation of Goa. Greene also wrote passionately and despairingly on the possibilities--and mostly failed promise--of film; a movie critic in the '30s, he was one of the best. A collection like this does not add to his reputation but is interesting, nonetheless, for the consistency of his dour vision.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Best known for the novels Brighton Rock, The Power and the Glory , and The Heart of the Matter , Greene wrote over 40 books before his death in April 1991 and throughout his life was one of England's best-loved and most prolific writers. A number of his reviews, travel pieces, and essays have now been collected in book form. Entertaining and informative, this volume includes Greene's thoughts on such diverse subjects as the political climates in Cuba, Haiti, and Chile; the French war in Indochina; used bookstores; and Indian writer R.K. Narayan. Through these pieces, written over a period of 70 years, we can see Greene's development from student to outspoken critic and insightful advocate of democratic causes. Highly recommended for all who wish to sample short and varied works of a first-rate writer.
- Nancy R. Ives, SUNY at Geneseo
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.