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This book consists of twenty-four papers, with an Editorial Introduction by J. D. Sutherland, a Preface by Robert P. Knight, and an Introduction by the author which gives a survey of the contents and links together the various papers. There is an extensive bibliography and index.
This is not a book, arranged in coherent and sequential chapters concerned with a series of specific topics; it is a collection of papers previously published in various Journals, arranged chronologically, dating from 1951 to 1964, though they are listed as "chapters".
It is too large a volume to handle or read easily, (it is impossible to read in bed, where many analysts do their homework) and it could well have been divided into two volumes, 1951–1959 (11 papers) and 1961–1964 (13 papers). This would have made little interference with the continuity, even where some papers on one theme would appear in the first and others in the second volume. It would, incidentally, have marked the flow of the work, for the output in the last five years exceeds that of the first nine.
Completely to have re-cast the work would not only have been an impossible task, but very little would have been gained by it. As it stands, it is enormously impressive, an invaluable work of reference, and extremely good reading.
It would benefit by some pruning. This is a matter partly of numerous cross-references (resulting from its being a collection of papers), and partly of Searles's style of writing. He often says the same thing twice or three times over in ways so different that he seems to be saying two or three different things, and it only becomes clear on repeated re-reading. This induces a tendency to begin "skipping", and presently one finds that an important point has been missed.
Searles is over-generous in his references to the writings of others. He gives very good measure: the bibliography which runs into about 270 items (including many references to poetry, drama, philosophy, etc., as well as works b