The Crimson Bookshelf

FEARING that the American short story would be doomed if brilliant unheard of authors were denied the opportunity to have their stories published. Whit Burnett and Martha Foley, with encouragement from Edward J. O'Brien, undertook the un-remunerative task of publishing a new magazine, "Story," to contain almost exclusively stories which had been rejected because the authors were unknown, or which were refused because the style or material was considered unorthodox by editors in the leading magazines in the United States. This was a bold step since so many little magazines have started in the past decade, and have failed almost immediately--of course such brilliant failures can only be attributed to the lethargic public.

Whit Burnett and Martha Foley, I fear, have been more successful with the magazine than they have been with the anthology which contains only a few outstanding short stories. First, I shall touch briefly on the self-conscious authors who treat sex sensationally, and badly; into this category come Bruce Brown, Erskine Caldwell, James Stern, and George Albee. The last man mentioned describes pithily and dully the reactions of a seventeen-year-old boy when he is assured that he has contracted syphilis from a girl whom he loves. "Week-End," by Carlton Brown is an amusing description of the awakening of youth, written in an impersonal vein by a man who does not attempt to analyze and explain each movement of the characters; he presents a vivid picture of his characters and allows the reader to draw all the inane conclusions.

"Visit With The Master" by Theodore Pratt is the most satisfactory short story in the anthology because the author has the faculty of building up a unique situation with a masterly touch of irony. George Pendleton is an idealistic young writer who emulates the style of the great master of literature, Alfred Pillsbury. He has received a most cordial invitation to visit Mr. Phillsbury, and as he approaches the villa of the master, he dreams of the pleasant conversations he will have with the master.

He is surprised to find that the master is digging in a small pile of manure when he meets him; he is more surprised when the master tells him that Susette, the maid, is his latest passion. Pendleton's dreams become nebulous. He is hurt when the master bluntly informs him that his novel is worthless, hurt because he realizes the master speaks the truth. Theodore Pratt's story is one of the few pieces in the anthology which will hold your interest and which shows no signs of padding.