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Rosebud, v. 1, issue 4, April 1945
Page 11
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Jules, the Maquis, was externally different from Jean. Yet he had the same basic cynicism and the same violent hate of the Boche. If the energy expended on hate over here could be directed into other channels it could be very productive. Jules was denounced by some one as a collaborator and he had to leave. I don't think he was pro-German, but he might have been -- and in this funny world the "might have been" has the ascendency over "is". That sacred cow of fandom, Esperanto, even cropped up once. I asked a maquis what could be done to prevent war. His answer was a universalanguage: Esperanto. "Look," he said, "our betters say thus and so. Our nations go to war. You and I meet on the battlefield. If we have one thing in common - a language - we ask each other 'why?' and we throw down our arms." Of course, he excluded the Germans from this -- over here they aren't people, but beasts. *********************************** A BOOK REVIEW by Tigrina ("The Strange Case of Miss Annie Spragg" by Louis Bromfield.) ((publishing date not provided by reviewer.)) Actually, this story could be said to have two settings: one in the picturesque village of Brinoe, in Italy; and the other one in the American middle west in the early days of the pioneers. Incongruous as this may seem, the story unfolds smoothly and coherently, nevertheless. It concerns a Miss Annie Spragg, elderly spinster, who is found dead in her humble place of residence in Brincoe, with the miraculous mark of the crucifixion appearing upon her body. From this point, the readers learn of the unbelievable events leading up the death of this peculiar and eccentric old woman. From her erratic girlhood life in Iowa, when she was constantly under the subjection of her father, a lust-crazed itinerant roving preacher, who founded and became the leader of a religious cult practicing polygamy, it is no wonder that she became a bit queer. Yet she and one of her brothers decide to seek their fortune in the world, since their father's mode of life and erratic behavior disgusts them. Yet, from her father, Annie Spragg inherits her penchant for reverting to strange and ancient religious rites. As a result of her wanderings Annie Spragg finally settles down in Italy. In the second chapter of the book she is announced as dead, but by the manner in which she seems to influence the lives of others dwelling in the village of Brinoe, she might very well have been among the living. This is an adeptly written book, and the characters (and I do mean characters!) one encounters within its pages are most vividly described, and will be sure to read the reader's interest as much as the actual story. -11-
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Jules, the Maquis, was externally different from Jean. Yet he had the same basic cynicism and the same violent hate of the Boche. If the energy expended on hate over here could be directed into other channels it could be very productive. Jules was denounced by some one as a collaborator and he had to leave. I don't think he was pro-German, but he might have been -- and in this funny world the "might have been" has the ascendency over "is". That sacred cow of fandom, Esperanto, even cropped up once. I asked a maquis what could be done to prevent war. His answer was a universalanguage: Esperanto. "Look," he said, "our betters say thus and so. Our nations go to war. You and I meet on the battlefield. If we have one thing in common - a language - we ask each other 'why?' and we throw down our arms." Of course, he excluded the Germans from this -- over here they aren't people, but beasts. *********************************** A BOOK REVIEW by Tigrina ("The Strange Case of Miss Annie Spragg" by Louis Bromfield.) ((publishing date not provided by reviewer.)) Actually, this story could be said to have two settings: one in the picturesque village of Brinoe, in Italy; and the other one in the American middle west in the early days of the pioneers. Incongruous as this may seem, the story unfolds smoothly and coherently, nevertheless. It concerns a Miss Annie Spragg, elderly spinster, who is found dead in her humble place of residence in Brincoe, with the miraculous mark of the crucifixion appearing upon her body. From this point, the readers learn of the unbelievable events leading up the death of this peculiar and eccentric old woman. From her erratic girlhood life in Iowa, when she was constantly under the subjection of her father, a lust-crazed itinerant roving preacher, who founded and became the leader of a religious cult practicing polygamy, it is no wonder that she became a bit queer. Yet she and one of her brothers decide to seek their fortune in the world, since their father's mode of life and erratic behavior disgusts them. Yet, from her father, Annie Spragg inherits her penchant for reverting to strange and ancient religious rites. As a result of her wanderings Annie Spragg finally settles down in Italy. In the second chapter of the book she is announced as dead, but by the manner in which she seems to influence the lives of others dwelling in the village of Brinoe, she might very well have been among the living. This is an adeptly written book, and the characters (and I do mean characters!) one encounters within its pages are most vividly described, and will be sure to read the reader's interest as much as the actual story. -11-
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