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~A Qntic Separates the Qood and the 'Bad By Henry Montor Of the books which have streamed from the presses during the past year, which are most likely to enduret If hich can still be read with profitf These questions are answered in this comprehensive review of literature by Mr. Montor, whose first standard of measurement is quality and who disregards the clamor that surrounds books at the moment of their appearance. Marvin Lowe nth ai. He preferred anonymity under the cloak of Ben Shaher. I T has become traditional, at the end of each year, to select the ten foremost books in the fiction field and a similar number in the non-fiction list. But only exaggerated enthusiasm or deliber ate distortion would make it pos sible to compile so extensive a se lection for the twelve-month pe riod that has passed. I he need for economy and deep concern with practical mat ters have relegated literature to an even more minor place in men’s thoughts than it normally occupies. Yielding to the necessities of the situ ation, publishers have radi cally reduced the number of they issue; moreover, thrv have hesitated to experi- ment: the authors who sold 1,1 the past were preferred for publication now. It is possible that great master- pteeeN languish in desk draw- fr s waiting for the light of the day when prosperity shall rp tu n. But the year 5693, # 1 u - 1 ' rs-ckoned in Jewish tra ction, seems, in retrospect, quiti poor and colorless in com parison with the product of pre- v iou years. b it a year that saw' the publi- car " n of so powerful and beautiful a b >k as “God’s Angry Man’’ is regarded as significant, for £ n *rks the emergence of Leonard Lhr ich, youthful, promising even comment at the end of the year. Four arc fiction. Six arc non-fiction. The enthusiasm for a great many of these is unrestrained; the others are chosen because of a belief in their documentary value though not in their literary distinction. In addition to Khrlich’s great book, the fiction list includes “Josephus” by Lion Feuchtwanger, “Solal” by Albert Cohen, and “This People” by Ludwu'g Lcw'isohn. For the past four years, the name of Feuchtwan ger has been included in any compilation of the year’s best books. He has scholarship and he commands a simplicity of style that places him far above the majority of his numerous German-Jewish colleagues. “Josephus,” the first of two books deal ing with the period in which the great Jewish historian lived, has done much to recreate an interest in the life and personalities of ancient Judea. The political hostilities, the sociological prob lem, the racial philosophies of the era are made to assume an immediate importance comparable to the concern which we show w ith developments in our own day. There is no other Jew writing in our day who makes Jewish history so vivid Virginia Hirsch Interprets the history of a Southern Jewish family. Fannie Hurst Imitation of Life,” poorest novel in years. :icr r expression of his poetic ■alents. This disturbing, violent °>°- aphy of John Brown and his ’. m - enveloped in the mood of ICT n, but essentially embedded in " l>r ry, is regarded by your com- n ; er tator as the outstanding book 01 ’ ie year. It has all the qualities ot f iduring fiction, for it treats of Stefan Zweig He yields to none of the superficialities of anyone. Lewis Brow'ne Popular but hardly signipcant. Franz Werfel Lost much through discursiveness. an important theme with understanding and compas sion, and yet always main tains the serenity and the craftsmanship of a superb artist. This reviewer finds it pos sible to select only ten books that are worthy of extended Ludwig Lewisohn Devoting him self to the study of Hebrew. and Jewish character so important. To Lion Feuchtwanger must go an incalculable amount of credit for restoring to hosts of Jews a new under standing of their past, and a new desire for shar ing in the future of their people. But. Feuch- wanger cannot be dismissed as a polemist or' prop agandist. He is, first, the narrator who blends history and fiction to make incomparable ro mance. Albert Cohen's “Solal” is another illumination of the Jewish mind and spirit. One cannot con ceive of any American delving so deeply and so precisely into the heart of the Jewish people, as exemplified in that mystic adventurer, Solal, who had empires in his grasp and relinquished them as a gesture of self-despisement. It should be a matter for extensive investigation as to why no American Jewish writer has realized the possi bilities for great narrative in the psychological ramifications of the Jewish mind. To be sure, every year sees the (Ptease turn to page 19) T '-'a SOUTHERN ISRAELITE * [9]