I WAS DANCING

After fifty years as a vaudevillian, ""Waltzing"" Daniel Considine, 78, returns to his home town. He appears for a short visit in the middle of the night at the home of his only son, Tom, after an absence of 21 years. The ""visit"" lengthens into a year while Tom and his wife grow more restive, catering to the whims of a selfish old reature whose only concern is his own well-being. They decide to send him to ""St. incent's Smiling Valley"" home for the aged and the story is devoted to ""Waltzing"" man's efforts to outwit the younger generation and maintain his comfortable berth at someone else's expense. Eventually after the old man has run through all the strategies available to him and after there has been a long overdue showdown between him and his son, ""Waltzing"" Dan realizes he has lost the battle. But he tries to keep up bold front for the benefit of his cronies who are a peculiar lot in their own rights... thin its rather modest limits, this is an effective and occasionally sharp novel.