“Geraldine Bonner has a good plot in ‘Treasure and trouble therewith,’ although not an especially attractive one. ... All her pictures of California are vivid and sympathetic, but the character drawing is unskilful.”
“Miss Bonner has endeavored, with commendable success, to combine realism with the stirring incidents and dramatic situations of the story of plot and action. Especially good are the chapters which deal with the earthquake.”
“In spite of the complete lack of plausibility, the book affords a certain measure of diversion.”
BOSANKO, W.Collecting old lustre ware. (Collectors’ pocket ser.) il*75c (3½c) Doran 738 A17-1002
The editor in his preface says that he believes this to be the first book on old English lustre ware ever published. He adds: “Yet there are many collectors of old lustre ware; it still abounds, there is plenty of it to hunt for, and prices are not yet excessive. By the aid of this informative book and the study of museum examples a beginner may equip himself well, and may take up this hobby hopefully, certain of finding treasures.” There are over forty-five illustrations.
“Simple, practical handbook.”
BOSANQUET, BERNARD.Social and international ideals.*$2.25 Macmillan 304 (Eng ed 17-28213)
“This volume is a collection of essays, reviews, and lectures, all of which, with one exception, were published before the war, and most of which on the face of them reveal that fact. ... Though the contents of the volume seem at first sight to be fortuitously put together, there runs through them unity of spirit, thought, purpose, and manner.” (The Times [London] Lit Sup Jl 12 ‘17) “Most of the pages (14 out of 17 are reprinted from the Charity Organization Review) discuss the principles which should govern our handling of social problems with the view of displaying ‘the organizing power which belongs to a belief in the supreme values—beauty, truth, kindness, for example—and how a conception of life which has them for its good is not unpractical.’” (The Times [London] Lit Sup Je 21 ‘17)
“We may single out, as of special importance in this new volume, Mr Bosanquet’s idea of the growth of individuality and his idea of the structure of political society. In the chapter on ‘Optimism’ he points out that the mistake of its opponents is the acceptance of their momentary experience as final. ... Criticism, confined to a few sentences, must obviously be inadequate. ... If there are omissions in Mr Bosanquet’s analysis of fact, his ideal also appears to be too simple.”
“It is a great privilege to listen to a wise man and a real logician, who is at once a wit and a humanitarian. Dr Bosanquet was not for nothing a fellow in moderations. The whole book is full of sound common sense.”
“Written in a strain of reasoned optimism.” M. J.
“Here we have the precious kernel of wisdom in the hard nut of paradox. No doubt, justice and kindness, beauty and truth are the things that matter most, and it is no small service to direct our thoughts once again to them. But how to embody and realize them in the maze and tangle of our actual world, that is a problem apparently too great for any single thinker.” R. F. A. H.
“If we are tempted to say that these pages show his aptitude for making simple things look difficult, they reveal also the meaning of life. They disclose to those living the humblest of lives that they may enter if they will—the door is ever open—to regions the highest and purest. ... If the book contained nothing else than some of the observations in the last chapters as to true pacifism and patriotism, it would make every reader its debtor.”
BOSSCHÈRE, JEAN DE, il. Christmas tales of Flanders. il*$3 Dodd 398
Popular Christmas tales current in Flanders and Brabant, translated by M. C. O. Morris, and spiritedly illustrated partly in color and partly in black and white by Jean de Bosschère.
“The engaging color-work of Mr de Bosschère is full of brilliancy, and makes of this Christmas book a rich gift from a country now sorely stricken.”
“A very charming book for young people, and so interestingly illustrated that their elders will find it almost equally attractive. All the pictures have humor, dexterity, force, and appreciation of character.”
“This handsome and well-illustrated book is one of the most attractive we have seen this season. ... Some of the drawings seem to us a little scratchy, but they will all be clear to a child. They lack the tortured straining after originality and the purposeful ugliness which modern art has occasionally thrust upon the nursery.”
“The stories are sometimes abrupt in their inconclusiveness; homely and almost entirely unromantic. Sometimes a disagreeable hint of cynicism obtrudes itself; but this may have been left on our minds by the association with M. de Bosschère’s illustrations. They are completely unsuited to their purpose.”
BOSTWICK, ARTHUR ELMORE.American public library. il*$1.75 (2c) Appleton 020 17-17641
This is a new edition, revised and brought up to date, of a book written by the librarian of the St Louis public library and first published seven years ago. “As a matter of mechanical necessity, no doubt, the revisions and additions have limited themselves to such changes as could be made, here and there, without requiring any considerable resetting or recasting of the pages, so that the former pagination is retained, except that two pages have been added to the index. The table of contents of the first edition has also been reprinted without change, though a few of its details do not apply to the new edition, and a few details in the new edition find no place in the reprinted table of contents. Among alterations made necessary by recent developments, several of importance arrest attention in the chapter on ‘The library and the state.’ A useful list of American library periodicals takes the place of the old list of library clubs.” (Dial)
“The only comprehensive manual in its special field.”
BOTHWELL-GOSSE, A.Civilization of the ancient Egyptians. (Through the eye ser.) il*$2 (7c) Stokes 913.32 17-1644
The motto of the series to which this book belongs is “Look and understand.” A publisher’s note has this to say of the purpose of theseries: “Its central idea is the treatment of subjects of general interest in a plain manner, relying to a large extent on a profusion of illustration to elucidate the text.” There are over 150 illustrations in the present volume, accompanied by descriptive text, with chapters on: The Egyptians, their temperament and domestic life; Education; Professions and occupations; Amusements; Architecture—pyramids and temples; Sculpture and painting; Science—engineering skill; Medicine; Science—astronomy; Government and laws; Religion; Literature.
“Of value chiefly for its excellent illustrations.”
“Special attention is given to ancient home life.”
BOTTOME, PHYLLIS.Derelict. il*$1.35 (2c) Century 17-14180
“The derelict” is a story that has been running as a serial in the Century Magazine this year. It is a study of the situation that results from the efforts of a well-meaning young woman to rescue a girl from the underworld. Emily Dering, engaged to Geoffrey Amberley, intentionally throws her protégé in his way. It is part of her program for Fanny’s reform, and when the girl suddenly turns about and goes back to her old life, she of course does not understand the nobility of purpose that lay back of the act. The story, which is only a long short story, is followed by seven others, also reprinted from the Century: The liqueur glass; “Mademoiselle l’Anglaise”; An awkward turn; The syren’s isle; “Ironstone”; The pace; Brother Leo.
“Of all the stories in this excellent collection of eight, ‘The liqueur glass’ seems to one reader at least by far the best—not only the best of these, but outstanding among the myriad output of the year.” F. A. G.
“The things that pleased us in ‘The dark tower’ were its economy of utterance and its simple relation of a story whose characters made its telling worth while. In this connection the only story that is really worth the reader’s attention—judged by Phyllis Bottome’s own standard of work—is the title piece.”
“Miss Bottome’s manner is of the well-bred school, with a family resemblance to Mrs Wharton’s and Miss Sedgwick’s, her work has the finish and proportion which, in fiction as elsewhere, are the reward of the artist in contrast with the improvisator.”
“A strong and piquant flavor of personality breathes from all her pages and gives to them a unique tang—something that is always a blessed thing to find in fiction of any sort.”
“With one or two exceptions they have grim and tragic plot-ideas, but the author has a sense of humor and her art is of the finest. ‘The liqueur glass,’ for instance, might have been written by Edmond de Goncourt.”
BOTTOME, PHYLLIS.Second fiddle.il*$1.35 (2c) Century 17-28800
“You know, a secretary is a kind of second fiddle. ... I like being a second fiddle.” So speaks Stella Waring, secretary for seven years to Professor Paulson, the great naturalist, and later to Mr Leslie Travers, expert accountant. Stella’s father was a dreamy antiquarian, and her mother a gentlewoman who “did not manage anything and when she was very unhappy said she was in tune with the infinite.” So the three girls, Eurydice, the “suppressed artist,” Cicely, who studied medicine, and Stella, had to fend for themselves. The story concerns itself mainly with the business life and the love affairs of Stella, more especially her affair with Sir Julian Verny, who is invalided home from the front.
“The tale is told with Miss Bottome’s customary fluency and charm: Stella stands out as the living and original characterisation of the book.” H. W. Boynton
“The chief charm of the story is in the telling—the dash, the sparkle, the ready humor, and the quick, fine understanding.” R. T. P.
“It is a pity that Phyllis Bottome should waste her efforts on intellectual cream-puffs. A great deal of the psychology in ‘The second fiddle’ is accurate; but where could such happy endings possibly evolve? And how could one lovely, normal girl be all but surrounded by a set of caricatures.”
“For the human development of ‘The second fiddle’ is based upon the sound, and often neglected, psychological fact that sympathy is not pity; that out of love and understanding—and out of nothing else in the world—do human beings raise their hurt comrades from pain and defeat to human brotherhood and sanity and triumph once more. That is the theme of ‘The second fiddle.’ And it is that that lifts the book from the conventionality of its incident and the mere pleasantness of its romance to a place among novels that are not only readable but worth reading.”
“The great charm of the book—and its charm is not insignificant—lies in the unfolding of Stella’s personality, in delicious bits of humor tucked in like little surprises, and in most human love-making!” Doris Webb
“The author supplies a certain note of pathos, offset by humor and pointed wit.”
BOUCHIER, EDMUND SPENSER.Sardinia in ancient times.*$1.75 (4c) Longmans 937.9 17-23952
Sardinia merits attention, the author says, “alike for the primitive civilization of which the architectural and artistic remains are numerous and varied, for the flourishing Phœnician colonies which fringed the southern and western shores during several centuries, and for the proof here given of the stimulating and consolidating effect of Roman rule even amidst unpromising surroundings.” His account is carried down to the year 600, with chapters devoted to: The prehistoric age; Legendary history; The Carthaginian supremacy; Natural products and commerce; The republican province; Carales; The early empire; The chief cities of Sardinia; The later empire; Architecture and the arts; Religion.
“Mr Bouchier has essayed the difficult task of writing a technical work in a popular style. The scholar will long for more critical apparatus, the layman will be bewildered by scientific details. Still both will find much that is worth while and valuable.” J. J. V.
“Mr Bouchier admits the insufficiency of materials, so far, for any complete history, but he does succeed in giving a fairly connected idea of the fortunes of the island and its people in rough outline.”
“Mr Bouchier is doing useful work in writing monographs on the Roman provinces. After dealing with Spain and Syria, he has now summarized all that is known of ancient Sardinia.”
BOULTING, WILLIAM.[2]Giordano Bruno; his life, thought, and martyrdom.*$3.75 Dutton 17-13237
“It is not an exaggeration to say that in the writings of Giordano Bruno, one of the most amazingly fertile of thinkers, are to be found the germs of all subsequent vital philosophicthought. ... [In this biography] there are chapters that deal with his birth and parentage, with his boyhood, and with his monastic life in the south; there is a satisfactory account of his early reading (in the classics, in the scholastics, in the Neo-Platonists, and in the writings of contemporary thinkers) and of his first wanderings, which were an inevitable consequence of that reading; a chapter is devoted to an analysis of the budding philosophy of his early works; the renewed wanderings are recounted; the seven books printed in London are explained; the further travels are retold: the final books are outlined; and then the trial and death of the restless and daring thinker are described.”—Am Hist R
“Notable is this book, not only because of its subject, but also because unmistakably its preparation and writing have been a work of solicitude of the heart as well as solicitude of the mind. The book is admirable both in its plan and in its execution. The usefulness of the book would have been greatly increased had it been provided with a critical bibliography of the literature relating to Bruno.” E: M. Hulme
“The volume contains a useful analysis of Bruno’s principal writings.”
“Though we believe that Bruno’s philosophy has never before been so well interpreted, so popularized, in English as by Mr Boulting, it is the excellence of the portrait of the man himself which distinguishes this biography.”
“In our judgment Dr Boulting’s scholarship is scarcely equal to the task he has undertaken. He is laborious, painstaking, widely read in the literature both ancient and modern which is germane to his subject, and he is inspired with a genuine though somewhat wayward enthusiasm for it; but alike in his appreciation of Bruno’s thought and in his presentation of its relations to the thought of other thinkers, both before and after, he seems to us to be wanting in the ‘judicium’ and the restraint of the true scholar.”
BOURNE, RANDOLPH SILLIMAN.Education and living.*$1.25 (3c) Century 370.4 17-13424
Brief papers reprinted from the New Republic. Mr Bourne is author of a work on “The Gary schools.” He is also one of those disciples of John Dewey who are engaged in spreading the Dewey ideals of education thruout the land. They view education, not as a preparation for life, but as identical with living. Among the subjects under discussion are: Education and living; The self-conscious school; The wasted years; Puzzle—education; Learning out of school; Education in taste; Universal service and education; The schools from the outside; What is experimental education? Communities for children; Really public schools.
“The fairest, the most impartial, description of the numerous educational experiments now making in America. His marshalling of them is impressive; his review of them, concise, lucid, constructive. One may therefore assert that ‘Education and living’ is the best handbook for teachers that has thus far appeared. The only serious fault to be found with this book is that it is either too comprehensively titled or too exclusive in confining itself almost entirely to the grammar and the high schools. Furthermore, the author is too brief and cursory in his treatment of the colleges.” Bayard Boyesen
“Mr Bourne has made some searching analyses of our imperfect education system. But he has allowed himself to echo many innuendoes neither convincing nor entirely pertinent.”
BOUTROUX, ÉMILE.[2]Contingency of the laws of nature; tr. by Fred Rothwell.*$1.50 Open ct.
“This essay was presented as a thesis for a doctor’s degree to the Sorbonne by its author in 1874. Nearly fifty years have passed, and now it is brought into English with a special preface by the author. The two leading thoughts of the work may be stated in the language of its author. ‘The first is that philosophy should not confine itself to going over and over again the philosophical concepts offered us by the systems of our predecessors with the object of defining and combining them in more or less novel fashion: a thing that happens too frequently in the case of German philosophers.’ Philosophy, he holds, should keep itself in touch with the realities of nature and life; it should be grounded on the sciences. So he has sought to replace a philosophy essentially conceptual by one moulded upon reality. Secondly, to his mind all systems can be divided among three types, materialistic, idealistic and dualistic. He says: ‘These three points of view have this in common: they force us to regard as a chain of necessity, rendering illusory all life and liberty.’”—Boston Transcript
“As long as M. Boutroux criticizes the assumption of an ultimate mechanical explanation of phenomena he is contributing to our understanding of experience. When he substitutes rather arbitrarily another ultimate he makes his argument lose most of its point.” J. R. K.
“This book abounds in shrewd insights and in keen criticisms of the half-baked monistic philosophy which underlies current popular science.” M. R. C.
BOWEN, MARJORIE, pseud. (MRS GABRIELLE MARGARET [CAMPBELL] COSTANZO).William, by the grace of God. 2d ed*$1.50 Dutton 18-83
“A story of the rising of the Netherlands against Philip II of Spain. The siege and relief of Leyden, and the assassination of William of Nassau, are prominent episodes; and there are glimpses of the massacre of St Bartholomew and the death of Coligny.”—Ath
“Tedious and lacking in ‘go.’ The Spanish governor of the Netherlands was Luis de Requesens, not ‘Resquesens.’”
“Whatever her faults of taste, this writer shows a power of projecting character which is rare among her fellow-workmen in this field.”
“One cannot quite escape the feeling that the brave William, the cunning Philip, have been taken out of archives, dusted off, and dressed up into fiction, the former in white, the latter in black. But aside from this common failing of historical novels, ‘William, by the grace of God’ is a book of more than average veracity and vividness.”
“A picture of the times and an historical narrative rather than a novel.”
“The narrative is given frankly in the form of a romance, not a history. The author has already treated several historical personages by this method and is unusually successful in recreating the atmosphere of past times.”
“An admirable novel.”
BOWER, B. M., pseud. (BERTHA MUZZY SINCLAIR) (MRS BERTRAND WILLIAM SINCLAIR).Lookout man.il*$1.35 (1½c) Little 17-22305
“A worse than foolish escapade in the environs of Los Angeles, and Jack Corey suddenly finds himself in danger of arrest for manslaughter. His flight to Feather River canyon in northern California follows. He secures the position of ‘lookout man’ on the summit of Mount Hough, and here, in the little house of glass, the ‘observatory’ for forest fires ... he starts upon a new life. ... Then fate ... sends Marion Rose to him. Her coming to the Toll house had been almost as sudden, as had been his to the great peak towering above it. Only in her case the haste was legitimate. An unexpected opportunity to share with friends a certain mining claim, which is of course to bring wealth to them all. ... She and Jack become ‘comrades.’ And indeed Marion proves herself a real one, when the ‘lookout man’s’ identity being discovered, a peculiar complication develops.”—Boston Transcript
“A pleasant, entertaining little story.”
BOWER, B. M., pseud. (BERTHA MUZZY SINCLAIR) (MRS BERTRAND WILLIAM SINCLAIR).Starr, of the desert.il*$1.35 (2c) Little 17-13075
It was her father who sent Helen May down into the desert to herd goats. He was worried about Helen May’s health and all neglectful of his own. The doctor had ordered a change of climate and out-of-door life for the girl, and the father, buying a relinquished claim in New Mexico, made arrangements to carry out the doctor’s orders. Then he died, and Helen May and her young brother, Vic, feel that his wishes must be complied with. They know nothing of desert life and less of goats, but they find a good friend in Starr. Starr is something of a mystery for a time. He is really a secret service man engaged in heading off a Mexican revolution. Circumstances make it appear to him that Helen May is involved in revolutionary plots, but this mistake, fortunately, is easily explained.
“A thrilling tale.”
“The machinery of the narrative creaks a bit at times, but the style is so far superior to that of the average performance in this kind that one may willingly consent to be fooled in the matter of plot.”
BOWERS, EDWIN FREDERICK.Bathing for health; a simple way to physical fitness.*$1 (4c) Clode, E: J. 613 17-8215
The bath as a preventive and as a curative agent is the subject of this book. Contents: Civilization and the bath; Bathing and morality; Why man needs the bath; The bath tub route to health; Baths as “big medicine”; Cold baths and common sense; Bathing for beauty; Smoothing ragged nerve edges; Sea and surf bathing; Fomentations, cold compresses and wet packs; “Hydrotherapy”; Sunstroke, icy tubs and heat prostration; Turkish and Russian operations, etc.
“Neither faddish nor extreme.”
BOWERS, R. S.Drawing and design for craftsmen. (Handcraft library) il*$2 McKay 740 A17-1322
The chapters of this book are so arranged as to form a series of consecutive lessons, beginning with a treatment of the simple principles of drawing and working up gradually to the application of principles in practical design for woodwork, glazing, stenciling, metalwork, etc. The illustrations, of which there are over 700, “have been prepared and selected with a view not only of elucidating elementary principles, but of providing a storehouse of motifs, suggestions, styles, and treatments of which the craftsman will be glad to avail himself.”
“His text abounds with practical hints and suggestions which should prove very helpful to the student.”
“The book would be suitable for self instruction, would also offer suggestions to teachers of drawing and design.”
BOWERS, R. S., and others.Furniture making. (Handcraft library) il*$2 McKay 684 (Eng ed 16-10852)
This book gives “designs, working drawings, and complete details of 170 pieces of furniture, with practical information on their construction.” It is a book for the advanced workman, as it does not concern itself with the elementary processes of woodworking. These will be treated in a later volume of the series. There are over 1,000 illustrations.
BOWIE, WALTER RUSSELL.Master of the Hill: a biography of John Meigs. il*$3 (3½c) Dodd 17-28879
The biography of a schoolmaster. John Meigs was for thirty-five years head-master of the Hill school in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. His life story is here written by one who was associated with him first as a pupil and later as one of the teachers in the school. Contents: Schoolmaster and man; John Meigs’ ancestry, and his antecedents at the Hill; Boyhood and youth; The beginning of the venture; Lights and shadows; Ideals for the school; The making of men; The life within; Final achievements and a finished life; Victory.
“The author has succeeded in making us glad that a man like John Meigs lived among us, and that he lives in this book. Doubtless this is in part due to the fact that Bowie is himself an old Hill boy and former Hill master as well, and brought to his task not only the authority of personal knowledge, but the ability to write well.”
“It is enough for us to say here that this book, written by one who was first his pupil and afterwards a teacher in his school is pervaded by his spirit of absolute sincerity. It is appreciative, warmly affectionate, even at times eloquently enthusiastic, but it is not indiscriminating.”
BOWMAN, ISAIAH.Andes of southern Peru: geographical reconnaissance along the seventy-third meridian.il*$3 (3c) Pub. for the Am. geographical soc. of N.Y. by Holt 558 17-1921
This work by the director of the American geographical society, is an outgrowth of the Yale Peruvian expedition of 1911, under the direction of Hiram Bingham. The author’s part in the expedition was the mapping of the country between Abancay and the Pacific, a stretch of two hundred miles. The book is divided into two parts. The first, Human geography, is devoted to native life, economic products, climate, etc.; the second to Physiography of the Peruvian Andes. There are seven topographic maps and many diagrams in addition to the noteworthy illustrations from photographs.
“The originality of thought and content, the brilliancy of style, the many original maps and diagrams, the wonderfully beautiful half-tone illustrations, all combine to make this work a noteworthy contribution to geographic science and to our knowledge of Peru.” G. B. Roorbach
“Mainly scientific in its plan and purpose, this study of the mid-southern section of Peru makes a considerable appeal to general interests on account of the information it gives regarding the inhabitants of that region.”
“While a physical geographer might be better equipped to make use of the valuable information collected in this book, there are many pages interesting to the casual reader.”
“Mr Bowman has made repeated journeys in South America, of which, unfortunately, no sufficient account is given in the volume before us, though they have deservedly brought him a gold medal from the Geographical society of Paris. His explorations have thrown much new light on the Andes, long known but never so well described as in his book. A series of contoured maps by K. Hendricksen, topographer of the expedition, are cartographic oases in an uncharted desert.”
BOWMAN, JAMES CLOYD, ed. Promise of country life.*$1 Heath 808 16-12269
“‘The promise of country life,’ is the attractive title of a book of descriptions and narrations to be used as models in an agricultural course in English. ... The work has been carefully planned. The author says in his preface: ‘The first group of selections has to do with the type of individual who is most at home in the country. The second treats of the pleasures which may be found in solitude; the third shows how various types of men have found enjoyment in a rural environment; the fourth contrasts life in the city with life in the country; still another describes man’s mastery over the crops of the fields and domestic animals.’ ... The selections have been chosen from such well-known writers as John Burroughs, Hamlin Garland, James Lane Allen, Corra Harris, Guy de Maupassant, and Lyoff N. Tolstoi.”—School R
“Good for general reading and for high-school libraries that would not have many of the authors represented.”
“A book of this sort may well exercise a real influence in opening the eyes of young people to the real opportunities and genuine charm of country life.”
“In his effort to appeal to farm boys, Mr Bowman has happily broadened his appeal to American boys and girls. The selections, without being erudite, are full of the call of the woods and the by-lanes and the out-of-doors.”
Reviewed by E. F. Geyer and R. L. Lyman
“In schools and on the country book shelf it is worthy of permanent place.” H. W. F.
BOWSER, THEKLA.Britain’s civilian volunteers. il*$1.50 Moffat 361 17-14033
“Some eight years ago there was started in England an organization known for short as the V. A. D. Now at the time, members of the Volunteer aid detachments who took seriously their training in hospital work and canteen service were looked on with mild amusement. But when August, 1914, came there was the nucleus of that tremendous body of workers on whom the Red cross and the medical staff have depended and without whom their work could not have been done. ... The book is an unadorned account of the many sorts of work done in France, Belgium and Great Britain by these volunteer workers, men and women.”—Ind
“Some such methods will surely develop here, in making practical the immense and as yet not wholly regulated force of our National league for woman’s service and other civilian organizations. ... The pages have the intense interest that belongs to the story of great endeavor.”
BOYAJIAN, ZABELLE C., comp. Armenian legends and poems. il*$8 Dutton (*21s Dent, London) 891.54
“Miss Boyajian has gathered examples of genuine Armenian art and literature, to show the world what contributions the horribly persecuted people of that country have made for its enrichment. Lord Bryce prefaces the work with a brief encomium of their poetry and painting, which he rightly says is less known than it deserves to be. This hint at its value is supplemented by a somewhat extended chapter by Aram Raffi on the epics, folk-songs, and medieval poetry of Armenia. Miss Boyajian, the daughter of an Armenian clergyman formerly British vice consul at Diarbekir and herself an artist of fine abilities, furnishes a dozen illustrations reproduced in soft and exquisite colors.”—Boston Transcript
“Examples of folk-songs, medieval poems and lyrics by various nineteenth century authors are included, some of them from Alice Stone Blackwell’s versions. ... Most of the translations are made by Miss Boyajian, who dedicates the volume to ‘The undying spirit of Armenia,’ and who devotes all the profits from its sale to the cause of her countrymen. It is a worthy cause and magnificently upheld.”
BOYD, ERNEST AUGUSTUS.Contemporary drama of Ireland.*$1.25 (2½c) Little 822 17-7566
This is one of the first volumes to be issued in the Contemporary drama series, edited by Richard Burton. The aim of the series is to give in separate volumes an account of the contemporary drama in various countries. In this volume, devoted to Irish drama, the dramatic movement is shown to be related not only to the literary revival in Ireland, but also to the general revival of interest in the theatre which stirred the later nineteenth century. There are chapters on: The Irish literary theatre; Edward Martyn; The beginnings of the Irish national theatre; William Butler Yeats; The impulse to folk drama: J. M. Synge and Padráic Colum; Peasant comedy: Lady Gregory and William Boyle; Later playwrights; The Ulster literary theatre; Summary and conclusion. A bibliography is given in an appendix.
“Of more use to study clubs than to the casual reader. Has a good bibliography with dates, and a full index.”
“The only thing that is lacking in this little book is the element of style. To write without eloquence about such masters of the art of eloquenceas Lord Dunsany, John M. Synge, and William Butler Yeats is to cheat the reader of the better half of criticism.” Clayton Hamilton
“In his review of Yeats’s works Mr Boyd is eulogist and apologist rather than critic, but he writes with a keen appreciation of his indisputable poetic gifts. In a kindly but just and searching criticism of Lady Gregory’s plays, Mr Boyd, while fully recognizing the value of her zeal and ability to the cause which she has championed, rightly concludes that the majority of them are not important contributions to literary drama or in harmony with the aims of a national theatre.” J. R. Towse
“Mr Boyd’s book, for all that, makes a valuable guide to the American or English reader, whose standards and preconceptions are always voiced in the judgments of the author. One cannot help feeling that importance is being given to things really little, and that Mr Boyd planned a definitive handbook and executed it accordingly.”
“It is to be regretted that in dealing with such a fascinating topic he cramped himself by a somewhat dry and commonplace style, but even with this handicap the work is of some value for the information it furnishes regarding a noteworthy dramatic movement. As a popular hand-book it fulfils its function satisfactorily.”
BRACQ, JEAN CHARLEMAGNE.Provocation of France.*$1.25 Oxford 944.08 16-24205
“Professor Bracq, holding the chair of French literature at Vassar college, has undertaken, in this interesting little volume, to tell in simple language the story of the provocation and aggression to which France has been subjected by the German government in the last half century, and to describe the general dignity, calmness, and good faith with which the French republic has met this course on the part of Germany. ... Professor Bracq is himself in close sympathy with the pacifist movement in France, of which the Baron d’Estournelles has been the leader.”—N Y Times
“By the author of ‘France under the republic’ (A L A Catalog 1904-1911). ... From the French point of view, of course, but temperate and supplied with reference to sources.”
“Professor Bracq writes temperately of Germany’s treatment of his country, but nevertheless with tense feeling.”
“There is no doubt of the enthusiasm and patriotism of Dr Bracq, but it is a question whether he might not have served his end better had he observed more reticence of feeling and precision of phrasing.”
“For all the facts he cites he gives careful reference to his sources, and any student can, if he wish, verify the author’s statements. Professor Bracq has given in a couple of hundred pages an excellent summary of the history of the last half century.”
“Prof. Bracq’s book, though written from the French point of view, may be recommended to those who wish to know historical facts.”
BRADFORD, GAMALIEL.Naturalist of souls; studies in psychography.*$2.50 (4c) Dodd 804 17-24248
Mr Bradford gets the title for his book from Sainte-Beuve’s description of himself: “I am a naturalist of souls.” “He discusses in the first chapter the psychographic method in the writing of biography, endeavors to define what it is and what it is not, considers the material to be used and the manner of using it, and defines psychography briefly as ‘the condensed, essential, artistic presentation of character.’ It differs, he explains, from ordinary biography in that it discards the chronological method of treating its subject’s life and uses the material facts as a means of illuminating the inner life.” (N Y Times) Contents: Psychography; The poetry of Donne; A pessimist poet (Leopardi); Anthony Trollope; An odd sort of popular book (Burton’s “Anatomy of melancholy”); Alexander Dumas; The novel two thousand years ago; A great English portrait-painter (Hyde, earl of Clarendon); Letters of a Roman gentleman (Pliny, the younger); Ovid among the Goths; Portrait of a saint (Francis of Sales). The author states that only the last three portraits “are elaborate specimens of psychography working consciously.”
“Using the same delightful method which made his ‘Portraits of women’ a joy to readers of discriminating taste, Mr Bradford analyzes and reveals further personality.”
“Delightful studies with a strong appeal to every thoughtful reader.”
“Mr Bradford writes the sort of essay that is born of enthusiasm and affection. He is a humble and not unsuccessful follower of the great unconscious psychographers, Tacitus, Saint Simon, Sainte-Beuve, and, though he is not mentioned as such, R. L. S.”
“As psychographic studies they are arranged with a sort of crescendo effect. ... Mr Bradford’s exposition of his developed method of writing biographical studies throws light upon and adds interest to the long series of such portraits he has published, first in the Atlantic Monthly and afterward in book form.”
BRADLEE, FRANCIS B. C.Eastern railroad. il*$2 Essex inst. 385 17-21687
“Much local history that is of more than local interest is to be found in ‘The Eastern railroad: a historical account of early railroading in eastern New England’ by Francis B. C. Bradlee. The author has not merely collected the details of the successive stages of financing and organization through which the Eastern railroad passed between 1836 and 1884, when it was merged with its old rival, the Boston and Maine. He gives these necessary facts both in the text and in several tables in the appendix. But he also is at pains to picture the conditions of early railroading and to show the impression, if one may call it such, that the railroad made upon the community at various periods.”—Springf’d Republican