Norman's old-world courtesy

 Don't you love the story of Norman in John H. Wyndham's book "The Ultimate Freedom"?

Wyndham's careful and kind description of his friend shows a gentle respect and camaraderie between the two men, even as they bore the deprivations of life as prisoners-of-war.

Norman "was a cultured man with several degrees, who, in private life, held a high position in government ... [and] ... was well versed in Oriental and European philosophy" (p. 38).

The lowly garb afforded the prisoners could not diminish the glow of "his old-world courtesy [which] shone like a precious stone among the prisoners and even the Japanese, whose processes of thought he seemed to understand thoroughly" (p. 39).

How precious were moments of levity to the prisoners-- and how beautifully drawn is the way Wyndham relates Norman's reluctance to come clean with a delicate issue.

Julie Swannell