BY WITH TO & FROM

A representative selection of Lincoln Kirstein's written work, with brief introductions by the editor. ``People have trouble figuring out who I am,'' Jenkins quotes Kirstein. ``They can't make out if I'm a P.R. man for the City Ballet, or if it was all some kind of accident, or if I'm just a rich boy who tagged along.'' Kirstein is, of course, the ``visionary patrician who brought George Balanchine to the United States'' and who co-founded the New York City Ballet. He was also, Jenkins points out, a force in founding the Museum of Modern Art; has been involved in theater, history, and music; is an art collector and enthusiast, ex-literary editor, published essayist and poet. Jenkins and Kirstein have arranged these wide-ranging—in both time and subject—selections into five sections: personal essays and memoirs; dances; photography and painting; film, literature, and theater; and individuals. Thus we can sample Kirstein on everything from the historical development of classical ballet to Marilyn Monroe: ``Extravagant claims need not be made for her capacities as the complete actress; she never had the chance to develop them. But as a classic comedienne of grace, delicacy, and happy wonder, she certainly has had no peer since Billie Burke or Ina Claire.'' Most of this material has been previously published elsewhere, and Jenkins's introductory and biographical notes are brief. But for those intrigued by the range of Kirstein's interests, this is a fine introductory volume.