A SENSE OF STYLE: STUDIES IN THE ART OF FICTION IN ENGLISH-SPEAKING CANADA W.J. Keith Toronto, ECW Press, 1989. 235pp, paper, ISBN 1-55022-092-9 (cloth) $26.00, 1-55022-094-2 (paper) $16.00 Distributed by University of Toronto Press. CIP Post-secondary/Adult Reviewed by Louise Reimer. Volume 18 Number 3 1990 May Citing the need for literary criticism to "go back to basics," W.J. Keith, a professor of English at the University of Toronto, chastises much of modern critical approach for its tendency to pretension and irrelevance. In A Sense of Style, Keith turns toward more traditional analysis in a discussion of ten Canadian writers of fiction: Margaret Atwood, Robertson Davies, Mavis Gallant, Jack Hodgins, Hugh Hood, Margaret Laurence, W.O. Mitchell, Alice Munro, Howard O'Hagan, and Ethel Wilson. Keith focuses on literary style, the author's individual "manner of expression," rather than on the more limited (in his view) thematic and nationalistic emphases of much previous critical writing on these authors. His discussions of recently published works are welcome, although the references to Atwood's Cat's Eye are too tantalizingly brief. The essays are a pleasure to read, a blend of insight and erudition expressed in graceful prose. Of particular value as examples to students of literature are Keith's meticulous close readings of selected passages. Educated readers will find much in this volume to enhance their reading of these ten authors. Novices may encounter bewilderment rather than enlightenment, however, for Keith assumes a basic knowledge of critical language and ideas (for example, the reference to Northrop Frye's theory of modes and the use of terms such as "metafictional"). While A Sense of Style is sure to raise the hackles of proponents of various schools of modern criticism, it has much to offer as a mainstream study of Canadian literary style. Recommended for the collections of post-secondary and large public libraries. Louise Reimer, Edmonton Public Library, Edmonton, Alta.