MY THREE FAVORITE NOVELS

From over 30 novels, are these really Priestley's three favorites? The choice of Angel Pavement (1930) and Bright Day (1946) certainly rings true; these are his most somber works, the former an evocative, realistic panorama of dailiness in an impersonal city, the latter a somewhat autobiographical account of a serious writer wading through the sell-out world of show-biz success. But what is Sir Michael and Sir George (1966) doing here? Without a Priestley introduction, it's hard to place this dated, though still humorous enough, slice of social criticism aimed at Arts Council bureaucracy. Elsewhere Priestley has expressed a more understandable fondness for Lost Empires (1966), which would have filled out this trio beautifully, but never mind. Two-thirds of The Best of Priestley is a grand package--and a bargain to boot.