If wishes were horses

The theme of this book is the search for happiness or power which in one form or another is the mainspring of most people's lives. Simon Wesendorf is a composer of successful musical shows, but he is considerably more than an influential tycoon of the entertainment world. Adored or envied, he is the focal point of a numerous family whose squabbles, demands, antagonisms, and affinities are sketched with the author's usual humour and insight into the interplay of character. In the lives of those around him, Simon likes to play the part of Providence, seeking to grant their wishes, not always with the happiest results. He becomes involved in some of the problems which so crucially beset the young people of today. But it is in regard to his own brother, like himself a musician, and to Karola Seifert, the artist, that Simon's own characater is seen to develop, and his own destiny, together with the secret wish that has always haunted him worked out. His complex relationship with Karola gives continuous tension and excitement to the narrative which beneath its brilliant, mundance surface sometimes affords glimpses of more profound values.