THE SAINT: Alias the Saint by...

THE SAINT: Alias the Saint by Leslie Charters (Carroll & Graf: $3.95; 179 pp.). Long out of print, these two adventures introduce a new generation of readers to one of the great detectives of the ‘30s. Elegant, suave and irreverent, Simon Templer resembles Philo Vance more than Sam Spade: In “The National Debt,” he appears “arrayed in green pajamas and a staggering silk dressing gown that would have made Joseph’s coat look like a suit of deep mourning.” Charters’ polished descriptions will engage readers who only know his famous character from the old Roger Moore TV series.