''Happy Alchemy'', first published by

McClelland and Stewart McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is owned by Penguin Random House of Canada, a branch of Penguin Random House, the international book publishing division of German media giant Bertelsmann. History It was founded ...

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, is a collection of writings by Canadian novelist

Robertson Davies William Robertson Davies (28 August 1913 – 2 December 1995) was a Canadian novelist, playwright, critic, journalist, and professor. He was one of Canada's best known and most popular authors and one of its most distinguished " men of letters" ...

. The collection was edited after Davies' death in

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

by his literary executors: his wife

Brenda Brenda is a feminine given name in the English language. Origin The overall accepted origin for the female name Brenda is the Old Nordic male name ''Brandr'' meaning both ''torch'' and ''sword'': evidently the male name Brandr took root in areas ...

and daughter

Jennifer Jennifer or Jenifer may refer to: People *Jennifer (given name) * Jenifer (singer), French pop singer *Jennifer Warnes, American singer who formerly used the stage name Jennifer * Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer * Daniel Jenifer Film and televisi ...

. ''Happy Alchemy'' consists of various of Davies' unpublished speeches, book reviews and essays. It touches on themes, subjects and interests that were near to Davies' heart: in particular, theatre, opera and music.

The book

The book opens with a quotation from the English poet Matthew Green:
"By happy alchemy of mind
They turn to pleasure all they find."

Companion volume

''Happy Alchemy'' was preceded in

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

by a companion volume, '' The Merry Heart''.

References

1997 non-fiction books Books by Robertson Davies McClelland & Stewart books Books published posthumously Books of literary criticism Canadian essay collections Speeches {{lit-criticism-book-stub