Books: Word Tamer

THOUGHTS IN A DRY SEASON by Gerald Brenan Cambridge University Press 177 pages; $14.95

The only thing wrong with this book of delights is its title, taken from T.S. Eliot's Gerontion: "Thoughts of a dry brain in a dry season." Despite the calendar, which says he is 84, Gerald Brenan has a luminous mind and an ageless talent. His collage of quotes, aphorisms and observations, in the style of Cyril Connolly's short masterpiece, The Unquiet Grave, deserves a permanent place on the night table. Opened at random, it will provide a refreshment, and occasionally a shock, on nearly every page. Brenan can...

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