Gay But Wistful
Levy, Newman. Gay But Wistful. First Edition. 1925. Book is in very good condition; dust jacket is in good plus condition—spine is faded, and there is tear between spine and front cover
Like Louis Auchincloss, Newman Levy was a practicing attorney who also wrote books. Mostly Levy published collections of satirical light verse. Light, however, does not mean unsophisticated, and his poems focus on the conundrums of upscale urban living. His musings here include marriage vows kept only because the pair of potential adulterers never meet, a society doyenne ostracized for accidentally using a knife with the salad course, etc. Timeless.
With trembling hands to life you cling.
You strive for riches, fame, applause.
The bells of hell go ting-a-ling--
There isn’t any Santa Claus
--Ballad of Disillusion