The Pleasures of Reading

It might have been better if Charles Jackson had written this book first and The Lost Week-End second. That is, as far as his own career is concerned. As for the good of our country, nothing could have been more timely than The Lost Week-End. It stirred into life a great public awareness of the problem of alcohol. It made people everywhere ready and willing to read more and to learn more about the problem, and unquestionably made it easier for many alcoholics to seek help.