T. S. Eliot

'Obviously something more than a successful play, it is the practical demonstration of a patently conceived theory of dramatic form, and as such of high historical interest.' Times Literary Supplement'Eliot has attempted here something very daring and well worth doing. He has taken the ordinary West End drawing room comedy convention - understatement, upper-class accents and all - and used it as a vehicle for utterly serious ideas.' Observer

'Literary criticism is a distinctive activity of the civilised mind.' With Eliot's dictum in mind, Professor Kermode has selected from the whole range of his critical writings, some of them dating back to before 1918. There are essays of generalisation, appreciations of individual writers, and a section of his social and religious criticism. All the famous and most influential essays are drawn upon, with extracts from many others, and there is an important Introduction by Professor Kermode, with valuable notes.

The Confidential Clerk was first produced at the Edinburgh Festival in the summer of 1953.'The dialogue of The Confidential Clerk has a precision and a lightly felt rhythm unmatched in the writing of any contemporary dramatist.' Times Literary Supplement'A triumph of dramatic skill: the handling of the two levels of the play is masterly and Eliot's verse registers its greatest achievement on the stage - passages of great lyrical beauty are incorporated into the dialogue.' Spectator

'The term culture ... includes all the characteristic activities and interests of a people; Derby Day, Henley Regatta, Cowes, the twelfth of August, a cup final, the dog races, the pin table, the dart board, Wensleydale cheese, boiled cabbage cut into sections, beetroot in vinegar, 19th-century Gothic churches and the music of Elgar. The reader can make his own list ...'In this famous essay T. S. Eliot examines the principal uses of the word, and the conditions in which culture itself can flourish.'So rich in ideas that it is difficult to select two or three of them for comment ... it is a natural history of culture.' Sunday Times

The inspiration for the iconic musical Cats, T. S. Eliot's classic and delightful collection of poetry about cats. These playful verses by a celebrated poet have delighted readers and cat lovers around the world since they were gathered for publication in 1939. As Valerie Eliot has pointed out, there are a number of references to cats in T. S. Eliot's work, but it was to his godchildren, particularly Tom Faber and Alison Tandy, that he first revealed himself as "Old Possum" and for whom he composed his poems. This captivating edition is a curious homage to felines young and old, merry and fierce, small and unmistakably round. Also includes Edward Gorey's charming pen and ink illustrations. Gorey gives a fresh intepretation of "Mr. Mistoffelees," "Growltiger," "The Rum Tum Tugger," "Bustopher Jones," "Skimbleshanks," "Macavity: the Mystery Cat," and a variety of other memorable feline strays all of whom have been brought to life on the stage in the hit musical Cats.

A modern verse play about the search for meaning, in which a psychiatrist is the catalyst for the action. "An authentic modern masterpiece" (New York Post). "Eliot really does portray real-seeming characters. He cuts down his poetic effects to the minimum, and then finally rewards us with most beautiful poetry" (Stephen Spender).

The Waste Land is a poem by T. S. Eliot, widely regarded as one of the most important poems of the 20th century and a central work of modernist poetry. The poem first appeared in the United Kingdom in an issue of Eliot's The Criterion and in the United States in the November issue of The Dial. It was published in book form in December 1922.