Great

Bernard Levin is the undoubted literary champion of the cause of indexing, and has written many doughty words on their behalf. He must forgive us, then, if we take his vaunted sentiments to their extremes and regard his latest book, The way we live now, merely as an adjunct to its index.
Nine pages, double-column, this index reads well, with sturdy 4-line prefatory note, and pleasing division into interesting subheadings. Concentration may even be marred by the beckonings of the text referred to; one may be distracted to turn to see what is written of:

bosom-baring; buttocks, baring; church collections,
timing; Cloud-cuckoo-land; History: as sieve; insult,
communicating; music: and social class; ugliness and art.

And of course our eye falls eagerly on:

indexes: outstanding . . .; useless.

As well as entertaining the reader, this index is cunningly used to reinforce points made by the author, citing burial, traitor's and funeral, traitor's as well as
Maclean, Donald (all the same references); and criminals, fashionable; murder, fashionable; smart behaviour; all leading to the same article. And how the tone of another article is mirrored in the simple cross-reference:

Black wood, Caroline, see Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, Lady Carolinel

Once lured from the index, we may even linger with the text (a selection of Levin's articles from The Times and The Observer, 1982-4), finding the writing beautiful, the wit coruscating, the subjects varied and captivating. The mood varies from relish and incredulity, as at some of the entries above, to true human compassion and bitter denunciation—Berlin, Jewish persecution; communism and freedom; life: hatred of; and suicide; terrorism.

After all, though, indexers may with equal pleasure approach the book from the front, finding on its first page the most graceful acknowledgement: "The index is again the work of Oula Jones, of the Society of Indexers, who has brought to what is always an exacting task, and too frequently a thankless one, all her skill, patience and good humour'. To quote the author on the subject of acknowledgements—'O si sic omnes'l ( )