“By all the known laws of style and thought Mr Brooks ought to have lived 100 years ago. The peculiar appeal of what he has to say comes from the fact that he is essentially archaic. He talks about the most modern things from an 18th or early 19th century point of view. ... Not the least entertaining feature of ‘Pippins and cheese’ is the skill with which Theodore Diedricksen, jr., has illustrated the pages.”
BROOKS, EUGENE CLYDE.Story of corn and the westward migration. il 75c (1c) Rand 633 16-23150
The author tells the story of corn from an interesting point of view, linking it up with the history of the westward movement of population in our country and the settlement and development of the Mississippi valley. The first chapters of the book are of a more general nature, treating of The struggle for food, Mythical stories of our food-giving plants, Food a factor in civilization, etc. The work is a companion volume to “The story of cotton,” and the two together, the author says, “should make a good course in elementary economic history for the last year of the grammar school or the first year of the high school.” The author is professor of education in Trinity college, Durham, N.C.
BROWER, HARRIETTE MOORE.Piano mastery; second series. il*$1.75 (3c) Stokes 786 17-25989
A second series of talks with pianists and teachers, including conferences with Hofmann, Godowsky, Grainger, Powell, Novaes, Hutcheson and others. In all, there are twenty-four interviews, each offering from a different angle, colored by a different personality, some big truth or truths about the development of piano art. The chapters will prove stimulating, inspiring and instructive to students.
“Not less interesting and valuable to the student and music lover than the first series.”
BROWN, ALICE.Bromley neighborhood. il*$1.50 (1c) Macmillan 17-18592
“If a ‘neighborhood’ story can be said to have a heroine the outstanding, central figure of Miss Brown’s new novel is not either one of its young women ... but Mary Neale, middle-aged and mother of the two young men whose loves and ambitions, foibles and missteps furnish much of the skeleton of the story. ... But the Neales are only one of several families that inhabit the country neighborhood of Bromley, in New England, and all the others, the Greenes, the Brocks, the Gleasons, and their neighbors are pictured in the same detailed and graphic style, with little threads of quiet humor running through and the interaction of their individualities upon one another and the reaction of each to the environment form the story.”—N Y Times
Reviewed by H. W. Boynton
“It is a story of the spirit rather than of the flesh. ... In a story of New England life we expect to find the sort of New Englanders we meet there. But there are practically none of these in ‘Bromley neighborhood.’ Its people might have existed and their happenings might have come to pass anywhere in the wide world, but least of all in New England.” E. F. E.
“The book is excellent in character drawing and has the plot material for several good short stories. As a long story, however, its construction breaks down.”
“Perhaps the men and women of Bromley neighborhood are a little too consistent, even for New England, where consistency is said to be so common a jewel as to pass unnoticed; perhaps Miss Brown is a shade unsympathetic toward those characters in whom the spirit of New England has shrunk and crystallized into something different. But on the whole, the people of Bromley neighborhood are real people with reactions that are, on the whole, true—deadly true.”
“Surely one of the best American novels of the year.”
“Miss Brown burns with a clear flame of indignation against the mood of the American government and the American people during the first year of the war. She respects only those who refused to be bound by official neutrality, who saw where our part lay and tried to do it. And she sees the war as a great purifier and solvent. ... As for the story proper, the tangled love story of Hugh and Ben Neale and Ellen Brock and Grissie Gleason, it is, like all of Miss Brown’s longer narratives, plainly a fiction. The truth is, she cannot paint a full-length portrait of a man. The women of this story are truly characterized.”
“Miss Brown’s virulent pro-ally bias can be excused. She is as much entitled to her opinion as one holding the reverse to his. But the artificiality of the whole plot, the excessive limitations of her characters, are not so excusable.” Clement Wood
“Miss Brown excels in this rich and glowing interpretation of New England character and temperament. Scarcely does she have her equal among writers of recent years. ... Once in a while she falls short in her interpretation into action, or rather, allows a character so to offend against probability as to rouse the reader to indignant protest. But when she does this it is because of her need of some crucial action in her plot and it usually takes the form of allowing one of her women characters to embark upon some adventure of sex that outrages all human probability. This new novel has just such a flaw in the sudden marriage of Ellen Brock.”
“No novel by Alice Brown, not even ‘The prisoner,’ is more mature or richer in character depiction than ‘Bromley neighborhood.’ It would indeed be difficult to name any American novel of the year which is more thoroughly well worth reading.”
“A very fine novel, a better sermon on the recovery of the lost values of American citizenship.”
“The work contains diverse elements—some richly truthful and others sentimentally romantic.”
BROWN, ALICE.Road to Castaly, and later poems.*$1.50 Macmillan 811 17-7033
The earliest copyright date of the poems brought together in this book is 1893. It is in part a reprint of a small volume with the same title issued a number of years ago. Later poems have been added. Among these are a short poetic drama, “The immortal witnesses,” and a sonnet sequence, “The book of love.”
“The volume shows no lack of craftsmanship in the handling of a variety of poetic forms. ... It is the sincere and sometimes inspired singing of a poet. ... Her shorter poems are without exception her best.” R. T. P.
“The distinction of Miss Alice Brown’s poetry is its originality; Miss Brown is remarkable for her power of finding new themes and of saying new things about old themes.”
“Without classing Miss Brown among great or incisive poets, I can warmly commend ‘The road to Castaly.’ First of all, she has utterance, the plastic mouth. There is a perfect leafage of phrase, a sun-flecked and wind-tossed abundance, over which her fancy plays with what I can best describe as a hovering fondness. Again, her work is notable for the rarity of imperfections—itself a high rarity in current American verse of any grade.” O. W. Firkins
“Originality, daring, delicacy—these are the qualities that mark this book of verse from beginning to end. ... Yet the mastery is not complete; a certain obscurity clouds many of the poems, and the fascinating series of sonnets called ‘The book of love,’ which one feels ought to be the author’s best work, is for this reason unsatisfying.”
“One is accustomed to think of Alice Brown as the author of the prize play, ‘Children of earth,’ and as a successful short-story writer, rather than as a poet, but this book will not fail to convince her readers of her great natural gift for poetic expression. The poems in this collection are diverse of theme, thoughtful, and reverent of mood and strong with a certain dramatic propulsion.”
BROWN, CHARLES REYNOLDS.Master’s way; a study in the synoptic gospels.*$1.75 (1c) Pilgrim press 232 17-2209
A series of papers reprinted from the Congregationalist. The author says, “This is not a ‘Life of Christ.’ It contains a series of studies based upon the more significant actions and utterances of the Master as we find them reported in the synoptic gospels.” They are designed especially for those engaged in Sunday school work or leading Bible study classes. “They were not written for the critical scholar.” The author is dean of the School of religion at Yale university.
“Dr Brown has sufficient keenness of insight, freshness of statement, and real power of interpretation to make his collection of ‘lesson helps’ worth preservation in this permanent form. ... This is the work of a teacher.”
“Filled with a sympathy which finds in love’s boundlessness a hope for all mankind, this collection of Doctor Brown’s sermons comforts as well as inspires.”
“Delightful and full of suggestions.”
“To a remarkable degree it correlates the events and the ministry of Christ with present-day problems and needs. ... The best modern scholarship appears throughout the book. The author is very balanced in his judgments and presents both sides of the disputed questions.”
BROWN, DEMETRA (VAKA) (MRS KENNETH BROWN).Heart of the Balkans.*$1.50 (3½c) Houghton 914.97 17-14034
In these papers, some of them reprinted from the Delineator and the Century, the author describes a journey taken thru the Balkans in company with her brother. The date of these travels is not given, but they were probably taken in one of the interims of the first or second Balkan wars. The author was most interested, as she states, in the women of these countries. Contents: Wild Albania; Romantic Albania; Through the lands of the Black-mountaineers; The eagle and the sparrow; Servia, the undaunted; The gypsies of the Balkans; The Prussia of the Balkans; The sons of the Hellenes; Saloniki, the city of histories.
“She gives much information, shows the contrasts between the various peoples and has many original points of view.”
“The author is remarkably successful in grasping and presenting the diverse characteristics of these neighbor-peoples.”
“It would make a poor guidebook indeed, but it is something better. Her word pictures of the physical appearance of each land are suggestive and touched with beauty.”
“The author is a Greek, born in Constantinople, a woman who has studied both the political and racial characteristics of her country and who has also a style charmingly individual, picturesque, and a diction worthy of her native land.”
“Particularly valuable in this fascinating book is the presentation of the characteristics of the women of the various countries. If anyone wishes to get a vivid first-hand account of these countries in brief compass that is more engaging than most fiction, this little book to him can be recommended.”
BROWN, EDNA ADELAIDE.Spanish chest.il*$1.35 (2c) Lothrop 17-23755
This book for boys and girls, by an author who can always be depended on for a fresh and absorbing story, describes attractively scenes in the island of Jersey. Two English girls, thrown on their own resources, decide to let rooms to tourists and are fortunate in obtaining as their first lodgers a delightful American family. Edith the younger of the two English girls, immediately makes friends with Frances, the American, and Estelle, the older, is at once attracted to Mrs Thayne. The two American boys, Win and Roger, find interests to their liking, Win in historical research and Roger in outdoor adventure and exploration. The party make friends with the residents of an old manor house, associated with the stay of Charles II on the island, and are allowed to investigate its secret passage ways. The finding of the chest, once the possession of Prince Charley, is the culminating incident.
“It is not a love tale; it is not a story of adventure; it is not a story of mystery and ghosts, and yet these features are suggested, giving a distinct charm that makes it readable for older persons, as well as the younger generation.”
“The Channel islands are unfamiliar ground to most American readers, and the peculiarities of Jersey in general, and of St Helier’s in particular, are well brought out by the author, and even the little colloquialisms that she introduces are worth noting.”
BROWN, GEORGE ROTHWELL.My country; a story of today. il*$1.35 (2½c) Small 17-23648
This is said to be the first novel to come out of our war with Germany. The plot and the way in which the story is developed recall Phillips Oppenheim. The hero, Wilhelm Hartmann, known as Billy, and his twin brother, Karl, are Prussians by birth, though their father has become a loyal American citizen. After the father’s death, Karl returns to Germany for his education and becomes thoroughly Prussianized, while Billy, through the influence of Prussians who hope to use him later, though he is ignorant of this at the time, is appointed to Annapolis and later promoted to a position of importance in the United States navy. The crucial point in the story comes when Billy, already obliged to pay the penalty of a dual nationality in suffering the distrust of his fellow officers, meets his twin brother, who has returned secretly by submarine as the official representative of the Kaiser and tells Billy that he is the Kaiser’s man, that he owes his appointment as assistant chief-of-staff to the commander-in-chief to Prussian influence and that it is his duty to save Germany by betraying the American navy. HowBilly deals with his brother and how he saves and finally wins the girl he loves is ingeniously told.
“The story is a thrilling one and offers a serious idea or two besides.”
BROWN, HAROLD WARNER.Electrical equipment; its selection and arrangement, with special reference to factories, shops and industrial plants. il*$2 McGraw 621.3 17-5558
“The book supplements, and does not duplicate, existing recognized texts which describe electrical apparatus or present the principles of design and application or give various performance data. Its aim, in contrast, is to show how to apply principles and data elsewhere accessible.”—Engin News-Rec
“Non-electrical men who have problems in the selection and use of electrical equipment put up to them, will welcome Mr Brown’s lectures.”
“Unique in that it attacks the subject from the standpoint of the mechanical engineer. To facilitate study, data references are confined mainly to the ‘Standard’ and the ‘American’ handbooks, while Alexander Gray’s ‘Principles and practice of electrical engineering’ is depended upon for theory.”
“Primarily intended to guide college students in laying out their work and to assist mechanical and electrical engineers in selecting electrical equipment, and in this capacity it should find a wide field of usefulness.”
“Helpful book, the first to deal definitely with this subject.”
“The tables given in the chapter on Motor applications are a very important part of the work.”
“Author is connected with the engineering department of Cornell university.”
BROWN, IVOR.Security.*$1.25 (1½c) Doran
The way of dons, the way of men, the way of women, and the way of the world are the four divisions of this novel. John Grant, an Oxford don at the opening of the story, is just beginning to find the peace and security of the life intolerable. His father’s death, which brings him a comfortable fortune, provides a way of escape. He goes to London to plunge into the world of men with a friend who is a champion of labor. But he is not built for the hazards and excitements of such an existence. He leaves it and marries, expecting to find in marriage the peace and security for which he again longs. But his wife also has married for security, and like himself she finds that it palls after a time. She tries a way of escape which, strangely enough, results in drawing the two, husband and wife, together in a mutual understanding.
“So far as the hero himself is concerned, we hope recognition of the fact will grow among readers that, like many well-intentioned capitalists, he is attempting to improve at one end the situation he is helping to create at the other. ... Security is certainly never attained, though if the hero had any real aim in life, perhaps it was that. A better title would have been ‘The slacker’s progress.’”
“‘A thoughtful and sincere piece of work.’”
“The talk of the labour men is as good as the talk of the dons. ... Our conviction of the author’s knowledge begins to wane in ‘The way of women,’ and it evaporates rapidly in ‘The way of the world.’”
BROWN, KATHARINE HOLLAND.Wages of honor, and other stories. il*$1.35 (2c) Scribner 17-24278
The stories in this book are divided into three groups, representing three geographical divisions of our continent. The four stories of the first group: The wages of honor; The master strategist; “Crabbed age and youth”; and Brewster blood have scenes laid in the east. Following these are three stories of the Mississippi country: The ragged edge of forty; Raw prose; Briarley’s real woman. The third group consists of three stories of Mexico: Billy Foster and the snow queen; Millicent, maker of history; On a brief text from Isaiah. With two exceptions the stories are reprinted from Scribner’s Magazine.
“Ten readable short stories. They all have a high moral tone.”
“Magazine readers are already well acquainted with the clean and dignified style characteristic of the author. There is nothing to offend and much to interest and provide pleasant reading in these three hundred pages.”
“Rather subtle and a little too slow for the average novel reader. The three stories of Mexico are interesting, especially the first, in letter form, and they present a new view of the Mexican peon.”
“They are all stories with happy endings, irrespective of the logic of the situation.”
“A man cannot write a story of a sewing society that will convince women and a woman cannot write of violent masculine physical labor, in a way convincing to men. Thus, in ‘The ragged edge of forty,’ Miss Brown, though she has her technical details and a correct background, writes a story that leaves the masculine reader with the unsatisfied sense that she didn’t know what she was writing about. ‘Billy Foster and the snow queen’ has, in many ways, the greatest appeal in the book.”
BROWN, PHILIP MARSHALL.International realities.*$1.40 (3c) Scribner 341 17-3489
The author says, “Since the great war began I have been conscious, with many others, of the urgent necessity of a thorough reconstruction of the law of nations in accordance with the big facts of international life. I have set myself the task of endeavoring to ascertain the fundamental values in international relations. The method followed has been to select certain of the large problems of international relations and treat them as separate topics illustrating and elucidating some of the basic principles of international law.” Some of the papers are reprinted from the North American Review. Contents: International realities; Nationalism; The rights of states; The limitations of arbitration; International administration; Ignominious neutrality; The dangers of pacifism; Pan-Americanism; Democracy and diplomacy; The substitution of law for war.
“Though unduly obsessed by ‘realities,’—which is to say, existing phenomena—and unnecessarily patronising in tone toward the ‘emotion and sentiment’ of those who seek a more idealistic and visionary solution, it is nevertheless a valuable analysis of the bases of international law.” Nathaniel Pfeffer
“His book will serve to clear up some misunderstood points, but his personal predilections are apparent and his ‘common sense’ reduces all considerations to a somewhat materialistic basis. Much of this was written for magazines, and a part of it has a slight political-campaign flavor.”
“It is no dispassionate study as proved by such headings as Ignominious neutrality and Dangers of pacificism, but in pointing out the tasks immediately practical, especially in relation to South America, it is suggestive and inspiring.”
“Professor Brown of Princeton, in writing of international relations and the ‘law’ that more or less guides and governs them, has the advantage of adding considerable experience in diplomacy to his professional study. He served as secretary of legation and as chargé in the Near East, especially at Constantinople, and as minister to Honduras.”
BROWN, WILLIAM ADAMS.Is Christianity practicable? lectures delivered in Japan.*$1.25 (4c) Scribner 261 16-23974
Dr Brown is Union seminary lecturer on Christianity in the Far East and the lectures that make up this book were delivered in Japan. The question that serves as title is considered with reference to the present war. The author’s answer is that Christianity has never been tried. It has been tried as an individual religion, but has never been applied to national or international problems. The responsibility for the war is laid to the fact that the leaders of all the so-called Christian nations have assumed the impracticability of Christianity. In this they have been sustained by public sentiment. The five chapters of the book are: The world crisis as challenge and as opportunity; The Christian interpretation of history; The Christian programme for humanity; The duty for to-morrow; What the church can do.
“A courageous, candid, and constructive book—courageous, because it consists of lectures in the Orient upon the most embarrassing question of Christian apologetics; candid and constructive, because without artificial or question-begging theological premises, and working only with real facts and ideals, the author has produced a clear and simple apologetic adapted to build up genuine Christian conviction.” E. W. Lyman
“These lectures were delivered in Japan, and ought to have a wholesome influence in counteracting the baleful effects of jingoism both in Japan and in America.”
“The volume is a distinct contribution to the literature of social Christianity.” Graham Taylor
BROWN, WILLIAM ALDEN.Portland cement industry; with notes on physical testing. il*$3 Van Nostrand 666 (Eng ed 17-17970)
“A practical treatise on the building, equipping, and economical running of a Portland cement plant.” (Sub-title) A short introductory chapter and a historical sketch of the industry are followed by discussions of: Manufacture—raw materials; Design and construction of a modern Portland cement plant; The rotary kiln; Power plants; Costs and statistics, etc. The author is a member of the South Wales institute of engineers, and the book has been written to encourage the development of the Portland cement industry in Great Britain to meet the competition of Germany and the United States after the war.
“The book itself is a very good categorical description of the manufacture of portland cement, with special detailed reference to the individual parts making up the cement mill. More attention is paid to the factory itself and to raw materials than to chemical investigations, although there are six chapters on the technique of testing.”
“The book before us is eminently practical, and deserves serious consideration because the author has had important American experience, and is now managing a large modern cement works in South Wales. Some notes on physical testing constitute a valuable feature.” J. A. A.
BROWNE, BELMORE.White blanket. il*$1.25 (2c) Putnam 17-31026
A sequel to “The quest of the golden valley.” George Draper and Fred Morgan, the two boys of that story, spend a winter in Alaska with George’s uncle, who is prospecting for gold. In addition to helping establish a valuable mining claim, the two boys have many adventures and brave great dangers. The author, who is an arctic explorer, is utilizing his experiences in the north in this series of books for boys. His familiarity with the country is further shown in the drawings he has made to illustrate the story.
“A first-class book with a background of reality.”
BROWNE, JOHN HUTTON BALFOUR.Recollections; literary and political.*10s 6d Constable & co., London
Mr Browne, a Scottish lawyer, author of “Forty years at the bar” and of many other volumes, is a brother of Sir James Crichton-Browne. He shows a strong bent towards philosophy and was for several years a reviewer of philosophical books for the magazines. His “Recollections” abound in anecdotes, many of them not new.
“His thumb-nail appreciations of politicians and others are sometimes acute, occasionally amusing, and in certain instances likely to be dissented from by many readers. ... Does not appear to have much sympathy with efforts at social reforms. ... On pp. 113-14 there are some references to the United States which it would have been better, we think, to delete. On p. 203 ‘Aubernon,’ in a copy of a letter from Lord Bramwell, should be Auberon.”
“He has no doubt about his likes and dislikes, and expresses them with a frankness that leaves little to be desired, and deals some shrewd knocks at the idols of the present generation. ... These recollections give us a vivid picture of a shrewd, able, alert, and highly critical mind, keenly interested in many subjects outside the law.”
“These recollections are such as might have been published by that busy, canny old gentleman Polonius, but for the hasty action of Hamlet. ... They are not legal, but political and literary—a record of unimportant elections lost; of writings that have been forgotten by the writer himself; and of sentiments that have nothing novel or striking to commend them.”
BROWNE, PORTER EMERSON.Someone and somebody. il*$1.35 (2½c) Bobbs 17-14136
“The collision of a Long Island railroad train with an automobile in which his two tight-fisted uncles are riding raises the hero from the status of book agent to millionaire. Notwithstanding that he is a college man, he is singularly ignorant of the usages of good society. But he is physically attractive and soon learns the ways of the world into which fortune pitches him. Coincidentally with his leap from poverty to affluence, the heroine’s position is reversed. ... One day, however, she discovers that the hero’s uncles had mulcted her father of his fortune. She marches directly to the young man and demandsher money back. ... He consents. But before he is able to carry out his good intention, the news is brought to him that his confidential agent has ... absconded [with his fortune].” (Springf’d Republican) Both young people, however, contrive to outwit ill fortune, and the book ends happily.
“There is a keenness even under the froth in a story of the type of this present one, and we have the impression that under it all he is rather laughing at those who read it. ... He deliberately puts aside the serious mood, unless it be true that his very burlesquing is serious. He gives us every kind of a fictional misfortune and then ends his story by arbitrarily bringing all right again.”
“Perhaps Mr Browne’s experience as a playwright is responsible for the manner in which the situation develops. ... His pointed humor is very diverting, and although the romance does not always move voluntarily, there is no lack of lively interest throughout.”
BROWNELL, WILLIAM CRARY.Standards.*$1 (4½c) Scribner 801 17-13754
The author discusses standards in art and literature. The tendency of the present day is to discard standards of all kinds, and to point out the dangers of such a course is part of Mr Brownell’s aim in this little book. There are seven chapters, dealing with: Measures of value; The public; Taste; The individual; The inner life; “Modern art”; The cause of art and letters.
“A brief monograph, admirable in its technique and apparently intended to supplement his concentrated little essay on criticism.”
“A thin volume of masterly essays with a rich and widely varied vocabulary that well serves to project intellectual and art pyrotechnics.”
“There can never be too much of the refined and much-experienced criticism such as Mr W. C. Brownell’s essay on ‘Standards,’ which we all read in Scribner’s Magazine and are glad to have now as a book.”
“His pages sparkle with wit and wisdom in happy combination. The reader feels the sway of a loyal, candid, deeply self-respecting nature and of a mind disciplined by the study not only of what literature discloses of life, but of that still richer revelation which actual living brings to the soul that can receive it.”
BRUBAKER, HOWARD.Ranny, otherwise Randolph Harrington Dukes. il*$1.40 (2c) Harper 17-20177
“A tale of those activities which made him an important figure in his town, in his family—and in other families.” (Sub-title) The sixteen chapters about the doings of this representative American small boy, during the year when he was “eight-going-on-nine” are written from the adult point of view. They appeared originally in Harper’s Magazine.
“Howard Brubaker has been a real boy, but more to the point, he has the faculty of making his readers boys again. ‘Ranny’ is excellent reading.”
BRUCE, EDWIN MORRIS.Detection of the common food adulterants.3d ed rev and enl*$1.25 Van Nostrand 614.3 17-31161
This third edition of a little volume published in 1907 “has been revised so that it contains the latest and best tests for the common food adulterants.” (Preface) Contents: Dairy products; Meat and eggs; Cereal products; Leavening materials; Canned and bottled vegetables; Fruits and fruit products; Flavoring extracts; Saccharine products; Spices; Vinegar; Fats and oils; Beverages. In addition to the general index, there is an index to authors and tests.
BRUCE, HENRY ADDINGTON BAYLEY.Handicaps of childhood.*$1.50 (3c) Dodd 136.7 17-29498
The author states that he has written this book “to amplify and supplement his ‘Psychology and parenthood.’” “Its general aim, accordingly, is to present additional evidence in support of the doctrine, that, in view of the discoveries of modern psychology with regard to individual development, the mental and moral training of children by their parents ought to be begun earlier, and be carried on more intensively, than is the rule at present. But whereas in ‘Psychology and parenthood’ the emphasis was chiefly on the importance of early mental training, the chief concern of the present book is to demonstrate the importance of early training in the moral sphere.” (Preface) Much of the material here presented has already appeared in the Century, Good Housekeeping, McClure’s, Harper’s Bazar, Every Week, and the Mother’s Magazine. The book includes chapters on Stammering, The only child, and Fairy tales that handicap. This latter points out the danger to many children of fairy tales that reek of brutality and gore.
“A work of manufacture rather than of literature, but none the less rather interesting reading for an hour or two and, if liberally seasoned with the salt of skepticism, perhaps not unprofitable reading for parents. The salt is needed for the author’s naïve acceptance of Freudian ‘discoveries’; apart from this prepossession, his suggestions are not lacking in sanity.”
“Simple in expression and eminently readable, this discussion of child psychology is based on full knowledge and sound thinking.”
BRUCE, WILLIAM CABELL.Benjamin Franklin, self-revealed.2v*$6 (3c) Putnam 17-29818
A biographical and critical study of Franklin based largely on his own writings. All of the aids of modern scholarship have been employed to make the work accurate and exhaustive. It is the many-sided Franklin who stands revealed in these pages. The first volume inquires into Franklin’s moral standing and system, his religious beliefs, family relations, American, British and French friends, and estimates Franklin, the philanthropist and citizen; the second volume portrays his personal characteristics, looks at Franklin, the man of business, statesman, man of science and writer.
“The volumes throughout are distinguished by keen critical insight and by a deep understanding of human nature, added to which are a fine sense of proportion and a literary manner which renders the work eminently readable.” E. J. C.
“Here are two volumes which, with literary finish, careful accuracy, and critical insight, consider every side of this remarkable man. They abound in citations from Franklin’s writings, especially his private letters, and thus reveal his personality as no mere biographical pages could.”
“It is detached, impersonal, detailed, and it discusses Franklin’s foibles and flaws on every side, in all their manifestations and in all their relations to his family, friends, and period.”
“An admirable piece of work—every page sparkling with the interest that attaches to a unique character.”
“The author belongs to that school of American writers on biography and history who have never taken to heart the maxim that the half is greater than the whole.”
BRUNNER, EDMUND DE SCHWEINITZ.New country church building. (Library of Christian progress) il 75c Missionary education movement 17-17093
“Edmund de S. Brunner, who has been successful in community leadership and who knows churches from every angle, including that of the pulpit, ... has packed into these 140 pages a comprehensive survey of architectural and spiritual needs. Eleven plans are submitted for country churches, incorporating in varying degree, from simple to elaborate, suggestive arrangements for Sunday-school rooms, boys’ and girls’ club rooms, gymnasium, etc.; and several other plans deal with parish houses or community buildings.” (Springf’d Republican) The Federal council’s commission on church and country life has indorsed Dr Brunner’s volume.
“While the volume is meant for country churches, it has much of value for town and city parishes.”
“It is not a technical book, but it should be valuable to the architect, though it is written for the country minister, the country layman and the rural social worker. The sketches and plans by James Grunert are most suggestive. Particularly interesting is the section by Mrs Brunner upon the kitchen.” S.
BRYAN, WILLIAM JENNINGS.Heart to heart appeals. il*$1 Revell 308 17-12620
“These selections from the Bryan speeches and writings are varied and all-embracing. The topics include Government, Imperialism, Equal suffrage, The liquor question, Peace, Ideals, Labor, Trusts, and many more.”—Boston Transcript
“As one glances through the pages of this book it is bound to embody merely the fond and lingering memories of a man whose talents and political efforts have largely spelled failure.”
Reviewed by H. M. Kallen
“They afford many glimpses of history, with side-lights revealing a personality widely recognized as dominant and picturesque.”
BRYANT, MRS LORINDA (MUNSON).American pictures and their painters. il*$3 (4c) Lane 759.1 17-16076
This work “is designed to provide a working basis for the appreciation of American art. To accomplish this I have attempted especially to trace the careers of the leaders in their respective eras—artists who even now are modern old masters. ... Naturally it is too early as yet to judge the younger artists correctly, consequently only a limited number are here represented; those are included who indicate the trend of thought in art to-day.” (Introd.) Beginning with a chapter on West, Copley, Peale and Trumbull, the author traces American painting down to the present day, closing with a chapter on Ultra-modern art. The book is illustrated with over 200 reproductions of paintings.
“The author has been responsible for a series of quite a half-dozen books embodying various phases of this subject, all of which have found readers. ... The work is broad and comprehensive, and the many illustrations are equally so, and add greatly to the interest of the work.”
“The author’s appreciations are characterized by both fairness and interest. The 230 illustrations are chosen with discrimination.”
“The illustrations afford only a fair idea of the pictures, for it must be confest that they are somewhat flat and leave much to the imagination.”
“The text is delightfully written, with just enough chattiness to lift it out of the ruts of guide-books. One welcomes the chapter on ultra-modern art, inasmuch as upon the spirit of unrest manifest in it largely depends our artistic progress.”
“One studies the volume rather hopelessly in the search of the key to the sequence of names. The pictures are so good that they might stand as the raison d’etre of the volume with the letterpress added as commentary.”
BRYCE, MRS CHARLES.Long spoon.*$1.40 (2c) Lane 17-23341
The title of this book is taken from the old proverb, “He must have a long spoon that must eat with the devil.” The scene is laid in Wales. The heroine, Thirza, has married Sir Hugo Averill as a means of support, only to discover that he is a brute with a partially unbalanced brain. Two men fall in love with Lady Averill: George Blount, who has rented Sir Hugo’s fishing, and Oswald Gerrard, Sir Hugo’s land agent. The story goes on to tell how Lady Averill resorts to necromancy to solve her difficulties, and what comes of it all in the end.
“Terse and full of action and sustained interest. ... To introduce necromancy in a novel is daring and difficult, for if the subject is not treated with great tact it so easily distorts and cheapens. Mrs Bryce has done her work cleverly.”
BRYCE, JAMES BRYCE, viscount.Some historical reflections on war, past and present.*1s Oxford 172.4