Mordecai Richler. The Best of Modern Humour (1983)

      Mordecai Richler. The Best of Modern Humour (1983) Nothing dates as fast as taste in humour. Here it is a mere quarter century after Richler's collection appeared, and most of the pieces already seem dated. That is, their humour is lame, jejune, and superficial. Richler likes the New Yorker type, and while not all the pieces in here were first published in that magazine, many of the later ones read as if they should have been. Richler is a satirist, and most of the pieces he has selected are satires. The oldest ones, from the turn of the 20th century, are the best, I think. Lasting humour reveals itself with age, as current concerns and fashionable twitches recede into the misty twilight of history. Leacock’s “Gertrude the Governess” opens the collection,, and it is by far the best piece in it. I won’t keep this book, as I no longer feel the need to have such representative anthologies by me. They are really reference works. ** (2007)

Ngaio Marsh. Death in a White Tie (1938)

      Ngaio Marsh. Death in a White Tie (1938) The fourth Alleyn mystery, IIRC. Lord Robert Gospell is killed on his way home from a party. He has been helping Alleyn gather evidence about a blackmailing racket. A charming man, much more intelligent than his looks and manner suggested, he was a much loved figure in Society. The killer was the blackmailer. Marsh is in fine form here, she has a satirical eye as well as a very good sense of character. the puzzle is well done, and we hardly notice that Alleyn behaves more like a private detective than a policeman. Agatha Troy appears on the fringes of the case, which gives Alleyn an opportunity to avow his love for her, which she eventually returns. So that’s all right. A pleasurable read (for the second or third time). **½ (2007)

 

David E. Stephens. Iron Roads: Railways of Nova Scotia (1972)

     David E. Stephens. Iron Roads: Railways of Nova Scotia (1972) Stephens ran the Musquodoboit railway Museum for a while, but it has long been defunct. This little book, clearly an amateur’s production, summarises the history of NS railways, with nicely reproduced photos, and rather sketchy maps. A few typos mar the text. The book has been superseded by more thoroughly researched texts, but is still of interest to any one who wants a brief introduction to Nova Scotia's early railway history. ** (2007)

Mel Gordon. Lazzi (1983) & Susan Kelz Sperling. Poplollies and Bellibones (1977)

      Mel Gordon. Lazzi (1983) A compilation of stage business bits used in the Commedia. Of interest to scholars, as they say, and perhaps to actors studying improv. * (2007)

      Susan Kelz Sperling. Poplollies and Bellibones (1977) Sperling has not only collected “lost words”, she has devised rimes, dialogues, and catechisms using these words. Lovely. Dad made notes of related Austrian and German words, and I’ve made a few too. A Poplolly is a little darling, or mistress. A Bellibone is a pretty girl. A book for the words shelf. *** (2007)

L. H. Sparey. The Amateur Lathe (5th edition, 1972)

     L. H. Sparey. The Amateur Lathe (5th edition, 1972) I did not read this book, but I did dip into it, enough to know that there might be a time when I may want to refer to it for advice. The author covers every aspect of using the lathe, with remarks on other machine tools where appropriate. Vertical drills and milling machines can be considered lathes set on end, so it is true to say that the lathe is the universal machine tool.
     Sparey gives a very brief history of this tool, enough to whet one’s appetite for more. I can’t judge the quality of the book’s contents. It went into five edition between 1948 and 1972, with this copy being the 5th impression of 1980, which suggests that there was a large demand for it. The plain and clear writing, and the layout of illustrations close to the relevant text, make this a model of a technical book. *** (2007)

Chuck Shepherd et al. Beyond News of the Weird (1991)

     Chuck Shepherd et al. Beyond News of the Weird (1991) Chuck Shepherd for several years ran a newsletter gathering strange news. I have a nearly complete collection. The criterion for inclusion was publication in an actual newspaper, with as much detail as possible. He asked people to send him clippings; I did this for a while, and my reward was this book and my name listed as a contributor to his efforts. The newsletter morphed into a syndicated column and a web site. His collections show that reality is weirder than urban legends. I read this one over two days. It’s definitely a potato chip book.
     Samples: In Jasper, Texas, a panty bandit was arrested after 11 months of stealing panties; many of the victims were too embarrassed to report the thefts. (p.11) The owner of the Whispers nightclub in Columbia, Missouri, sent letters to fraternities touting his bar as a place to meet “drunk, horny women”. (p.64) Three teenagers in East Wenatchee, Washington, dug up a corpse because they wanted to take photos of themselves with it. (p.73) In June 1990, about 7,000 King penguins stampeded near McQuarrie, Tasmania, and died in the crush. (p.114) Eight inmates broke out of jail in Nashville, Tennessee, and found themselves in the women’s cell block. They stopped to have sex with their fellow prisoners, and were apprehended by the guards, of course. (p.166)
     As you can see, these events would make good starting points for fictions, if they weren’t so unlikely. Good book. ***
     Update 20200508: News of the Weird still exists. Find it here.

Louis A. Safian 2,000 Insults for All Occasions (1965)

     Louis A. Safian 2,000 Insults for All Occasions (1965) Just what the title says. A handful are bizarre enough to raise a smile, most are more less lame. Demonstration that “witty insult” is generally an oxymoron. Taste in humour has changed since the 60s; actually many of the more obnoxious one-liners show a 50s sensibility, or even earlier.