Ford Madox Ford's novel, The Good Soldier, first published in 1915, is highly regarded by critics and practising writers - Graham Greene was a devoted admirer who constantly returned to it - but has never become a

popular favourite. John Bayley recently called it the most overrated novel of modem times, while Ruth Rendell has described it as one of the great novels of

the century. That kind of disagreement about a book is a sign of life, more so

than unbroken acclaim and a safe classic status. Having recently reread The

Good Soldier, for, I suppose, the third or fourth time in my life, I unhesitatingly go along with Ruth Rendell's opinion. It is a great novel, if on a small scale, almost unbearingly moving in places, where the intricacies of form are at one

with the subleties of feeling. Martin Stannard's new critical edition in the

Norton series does the book ample justice. It admirably shows the process of composition of The Good Soldier and the problems involved in its publication. It is immensely interesting to learn, for instance, from Ford's revisions that he altered the character of the 'good soldier' and Edwardian gentleman, Edward

Ashburnham, to make him more of a sentimentalist and less of a libertine. The

last part of this edition contains a representative selection of critical opinions.