THE CLOUDED SKY

Angry, middle-aged glider pilot Ritchie Harrington , an Australian, has a heart of barbed wire which does not seem to fence off his love life. That tiger- empered and often spiteful Ritchie is also likable is a credit to the author's way with words and high-wind storytelling. A building contractor, contrary Harrington's first love is not his wife but his glider, and he has his eye on a big cross-country trophy. His new partner in his firm is an architect named Charlie, and suddenly Ritchie is in the middle of a marital tempest because Charlie's wife the best friend of his former mistress. In addition to his personal embarrassing entanglements, the new building they are putting up threatens them both with a crippling loss. And so the soap suds. But the story closes with a big race which turns out well. The race is very exciting indeed, with every thrill explicit, and the characters are effectively drawn.