Two on T. E. Lawrence

BOOK REVIEWS terton's later work; we are encouraged to recognise a line of thought that follows directly from the belief that all of creation is to be valued by virtue of its existence. Although the novel continually hints at Chesterton's most accomplished work, it remains a flawed piece of writing. The use of language may look forward to the sort of expression that marks the mature Chesterton as a brilliant, if unorthodox, stylist, but it is far from consistent. Moreover, the characters in this novel lack depth and the construction of the narrative is both episodic and disjointed. That this should be so is not surprising—Chesterton was only twenty or so when he wrote Basil Howe—but it is worth pointing out in the face of the virtually unqualified praise with which some critics have responded to the book (see, for example, the Chesterton Review, 27.3, August 2001). The novel is the work of a young and inexperienced writer and, as such, is unlikely to win many new converts to Chesterton. Yet for those with an interest in one of the most important figures of the Edwardian period, the book is of considerable value, revealing, as it does, a great deal about Chesterton's early years. As a consequence, I am sure that there will be many, like me, who wish to express considerable gratitude to Denis Conlon for bringing this previously forgotten work to light. Mark Knight Roehampton University of Surrey Two on T. E. Lawrence T. E. Lawrence Correspondence with Bernard and Charlotte Shaw 1922-1926. Jeremy and Nicole Wilson, eds. Woodgreen Common, near Fordingbridge , Hants: Castle Hill Press, 2000. £75.00 T E. Lawrence Correspondence with Henry Williamson. Peter Wilson, ed. Prologue and Epilogue by Anne Williamson and a Foreword by Jeremy Wilson. Woodgreen Common, near Fordingbridge, Hants: Castle Hill Press, 2000. £75.00 THE SHAW CORRESPONDENCE is the first, and the Williamson correspondence the ninth, in the fifteen-volume T. E. Lawrence correspondence series that Jeremy and Nicole Wilson are editing and publishing under the Castle Hill Press imprint. Although it is impossible ever to have a complete set of the thousands of letters sent to and from Lawrence, the series reflects the Wilsons' dedication to making Lawrence materials available in as accurate and complete a form as is possible at this time. Like the 1997 Castle Hill Press edition of the 1922 "Oxford text" of Lawrence's memoir Seven Pillars ofWisdom, this series of letters lays the groundwork for a critical understanding of Lawrence. 467 ELT 45 : 4 2002 Clearly influenced by Lawrence's own William Morris-inspired taste for fine printing, these handsome volumes are high-priced but very worthwhile purchases for those who can afford them, especially research libraries . Many of the most important of the Lawrence letters to Shaw and, to a lesser extent, the Lawrence letters to Williamson, have been published earlier in readily available collections of selected letters edited by David Garnett (1938), Malcolm Brown (1988), and Harold Orlans (1993), but the fullness of the Castle Hill correspondence volumes allows us to watch the curve of each relationship as well as the play of remark and response between the correspondents. The annotation of the letters is spare and unobtrusive, remaining largely confined to matters of fact rather than interpretation, so the emphasis rightly remains on the correspondents themselves. Of the two volumes, the Shaw correspondence is much the more interesting , both in literary and human terms. This is the raw record of the relationship that Stanley Weintraub characterized very well so long ago in his Private Shaw and Public Shaw (1963). It begins with Lawrence's hero worship of G.B.S. and his need for literary advice. To this, Shaw responded positively. He even copy-read Seven Pillars of Wisdom for Lawrence , wrongly convincing him that the original introductory chapter should be cut (it has since been restored in most editions). Shaw's exposition of his own system of punctuation and his criticism of Lawrence's use of semicolons in his letter of 7 October 1924 are delightful, and Lawrence reciprocated by including in the final edition of Seven Pillars a reference to his own...