An Aspidistra in Babylon: Four Novellas.

London: Michael Joseph, 1960; Boston, Toronto: Little, Brown and Co. (An Atlantic Monthly Press Book), 1960, with title The Grapes of Paradise. Four novellas that continue the exploration of unhappy love found in The Nature of Love (1953) and Death of a Huntsman (1957).

The Spectator calls Bates "a supreme anecdotalist, endowed with vast self-confidence and the gift of imagery ten times the size of life." The Times Literary Supplement says "as always, Mr. Bates has produced an immensely readable, uncomplicated and expert book" while also commenting that "Mr. Bates is assured of his readers, and this assurance gives a comforting air of ease to even hackneyed material."

Reviews:
Books and Bookmen (March 1960, p. 31, attached)
Hudson Review (Spring 1961, p. 133, Benjamin De Mott, attached)
New Statesman (February 20, 1960, p. 263, Naomi Lewis, attached)
New York Times (October 23, 1960, p. BR4, James Stern, attached)
Spectator (February 12, 1960, p. 228, John Coleman, attached)
Times (February 11, 1960, p. 13, attached)
Times Literary Supplement (February 12, 1960, p. 93, Marigold Johnson, attached)

Contains: An Aspidistra in Babylon, A Month by the Lake, A Prospect of Orchards, The Grapes of Paradise.

ID: 
a89
Title: 
An Aspidistra in Babylon: Four Novellas.
Genre: 
Novella Collection
Page Count: 
240
Publisher: 
Little, Brown and Company
Michael Joseph
Year of Publication: 
1960
AttachmentSize
a89 Books and Bookmen.pdf743.71 KB
a89 Hudson Review.pdf41.09 KB
a89 New Statesman.pdf576.49 KB
a89 New York Times.pdf70.14 KB
a89 Spectator.pdf311.6 KB
a89 Times.Pdf1.19 MB
a89 TLS.pdf215.69 KB