NOVELS AND OTHERS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1008, 24 December 1910, Page 10

NOVELS AND OTHERS.

"Tales of Men and Ghosts;". By Edith ■■ Wharton. London: Macmillan aii'd Co. 2s.' Cd. ; .:; ■' . . "The Human . Chord." By Algernon 'V. Blackwood. London: Macmillan and Co. 2s. 6d. v.- ;.V'.. v: ;. "Princcss, Flower ' Hat."' 'By Mabel '.Osgood :Wrigbt. London: Mac- .. . millan and .Co. 2s. Gd. '. /.V :/h A'Thß.-Devil: : and-tlio Deep Scai". 'By--sw( ••'Jfeßhoda:,-B«)iightoD.;.' London :. Mic- : •r.'.'.:: :,' inillan.and, Co; 25.',"6 d .! : , ; "A .Snail's Wooing." - By E. M. SneidKynnersley. London: : Macmillan .. • •' and Co. 2s. 6d. , "Alongshore.'' By Stephen Reynolds, "if London: Macmillan^and Co. 2s. 6d.

: .'The first on our list.of the five books ye': choose from the -batch of .new additions, to their Colonial Library which Messrs. Macmillan. send,us .is .the; most, worthy and'artistic item that has been added for a very long time to what is, by a general measure, the best series of new fiction now issued from the London publishing houses. Mrs. Wharton is one, imd-.she is' neai-y ihe ' sest of' tlioso English or American: authors whose; skill: is : enormous, arid equal, in both the noveJ .'and - the short story. In. her novels sho is' as careful, and -as ..thoughtful-' of. tho-last little point of ; her technique, as Winston Churchill iii. his latest and best work. Her short stories aro as. fine as those of Henry James;. shrewder than Kipling's, even counting "Actions, or Reactions"; as heedful of, tho ultimate aim as Anatole Franco's; as actual and economical, at ner very, best, as. Do Maupassant's. Jiut Airs. Wharton's art is'in no need of praise at,this time of day. The "ghosts" aro such "revenants"—it wquld be more correct to say "assistants," or perhaps "attendants"—as those implied in Ibseii's great play. 'Ihere is a "ghost"—an. influence, a! waiting force, : ; an effective instinct—in every story. It is-only'a "real" ghost in . "Afterward".; but there is a spirit, tho spirit of things good, in "The Blond Beast," the tale of the-secretary who suddenly threw aside his rotten grip on fortune; the'spirits of shrinkinnbut striving agony and vanity in "Tho Bolted Door" ; the spirit of the-world'b ironical control of a woman's heart in •-Hie Letters'.';. 0 f 'which .nothing higher can be said than' that, in the matter of handling,. it is'little behind any of the best, of ,the.longer, contes of Maupassant..- To simple souls tho book has qualities , that will make it a light; for tlioso who can enjoy/ponder and, re-reading, enjoy more keenly f'l-' j? '?• • 1 ? oro t.lw" "Mrs. Wharton's •latest —it is a solemn event.;

AYe were considering/what, wo should say , of "The. Human Chord" when wq encountered Mr. Hilairo Bclloc's". astonishing and enthusiastic review of Mr. Blackwood's/ new tale in the . Westminster Gazette." With niost that is material m Mr. Belloc's review wc are in complete disagreement; but only; stating a fact when ho savs that the book 'is not susceptiblo to analysis, or, for that matter, to description.'' Mr. Blackwood has-settled down to deal in the eerie—or, if one must be rubbishy and up-to-date, tho psychic —but ajiybody can read and love and enter wholly into either the glonous Jirnbo' or the fairydom of ,i! le . sducatlo5 ducatlo ' 1 , of Uncle Paul." I„ The Human Chord," Mr., Blackwood has_ sought to go further, and, greatly as his style aids liim, the result Ts simply confusion. He sets out to fix a dramatic-romantic episode upon tho baajs of the idea that sound—-tho vihration of the air—combined with, or producing, self-liypnotism, can be, not merely so far as the subject is concerned, but. actually, creative. Now, a scientist or a hodman can easilv believe in faiiries, and hold credible'"The! House of Fright" or "the crank between to-dav and to-morrow," but Blither scientist nor hodman can be-

lieve in the creative force of sound, or feel any reality about the sensations woven about any such idea. Mr. Blackwood should have left every contact with reality out of his book. If bo had made it all a dream, it would have been a fine; fantasy. As it is, it boars tho same relation to "Jimbo," exactly, as the scnu-dolirium of • influenza as' you |io awake boars, to ,a fantastic dream when,you are..deep:in..sleep. Tho ono is morbid,■ irritating,-, unnatural, unreal; tlie other is normal, sweet, natural, and, really .sensible.'. So the effect of '•'The Human Chord," ior all its fine writing and its brave essay at conveying .unusual and high emotions, is to lleavo tho reader confused and worried, with , gleams from deep depths or great heights flickering through his indignation at what lie will probably call the improper' liberty . Mr. Blackwood has taken with the public's sympathies.

A warm .welcome is assured for anytiling by tho lady who did us the service .of . introducing. to us the commuter's wife. In "Princess Flower Hat" sho is in lier proper field, and an enchanting book it is. Anymore more adorable .than the dear, little lady who sets up a country: house when in her earlier thirties'is• rarely met with; and there is surely .no temperament to which the Princess's struggle with tjie garden, and .the liens and johnny Todd will not be joy and balm after heat and striving and fever. ,'Tlie book is full of tho most charming people imaginable.

■ Miss Broughton, the punctual, the indefatigable,, has an assured ' public, and in her latest novel—the. last is perhaps a score away yet—she 'is more Miss-Broughton-y than ever. Always defective. in her art : in many particulars, she yet has the right sense of story-telling. .In "The Devil and the Deep Sea" she; , weaves a story about •the people in an hotel. of ■ the Riviera. Miss Susan Field passes .from pity to love, for an invalid guest of the hotel, and her ship is steering, straight for happiness when; she finds that her has deceived her in'a certain way. Tlie reader will'have the pleasure of ing a few. questions that- Miss Broughton sees'fit to leave. unanswered, and the book ,is certainly .worth reading. ■

• Under the queer .titlo of • "A' Snail's Wooing" Mr. Sncid ICynnersley. tho author of the well-remembered and very pleasant ''H.M.I:Some ..passages in' .the life of one of H.Jt. Inspectors of Scbcols,";;£ives us a short novel of love amongst-, the. Alps:. ,The result, is a. bright . and entertaining, blend of humour, love, and mountaineering.

|. Mr. Ste'pheti'Reynolds. is,so well established prophet, and ' interpreter. of tho longshoreman and longshore:dom that his new volume of sketches needs no further introduction to . the discriminating- reader than the title page. ' Many of the sketches have already appeared in; tho "Nation" and "Westminster Gazette." Mr. Reynolds has been called "the Conrad of the' Shallows" (Conrad -is ' a blue water man), and he certainly knows the sea margin 'and . the fisherman. as no ■ other writer does. He is.au accomplished stylist, a keen'observer/ a patient i scientist, a, lover of tlio ...beaches, aiid "shore water, and a philosopher. /Tho only people who. are unlikely, to sink down into the spirit of the book: are. the children of the deep blue highways; but it.is still the lubber, and the longshoreman who aro the majority in all .thingsV -AVe. are given s'onio fine shore studies and some strong and' vivid portraiture,- and 'tlio collection of' sketches, is topped off, with a very shrewd plea .for the application to the fishermen of tho principle of small, holdings on land.' Put- this, way, the idea seenis/so obvious that we wonder it was : not. grasped long ago British. states'men;; A Wok,to. b4,i;ery;'thaiikfui for. :

| "Horio Tiki Dialogues!" . 'By A. A. Grace. Gordon and Gotcli. Is. > There-aro: many ,odd things about this ■book.' Itis dedicated ,"td the pressmen of Now,. Zealand" ;it hes''ail .'.inset of eight pages,. consisting ,of press opinions upon an earlier, volume , of. Mr. Grace's, together with a brief bui glowing account of. the author himself, and'a reprint of one- of Andrew Lang's .articles ■in the "Morning Post"; a typewritten page is pasted - in.-to . inform, tlie public -that Mr. Grace seeks'a post on an Australian journal; and. there are. four pagjs of .'Government advertisements. - All this, we have said,'-is.rather.odd, but it is purely .'the 'business of Mr. Grace and his . Those'who expect something as good as "Folk .Tales of the .Maori" in. the-present littlo v.olume will bo .disappointed.: -Hone ..Tiki is , the lay hgure with. whom Mr.; Grace diseusscs topics of the day:—King George, the Kiij'vett.case, the Governor,-the Native Lands Department,'laud so on. : They are amusing enough-now and then, but the humour is a-little-thin. And do Maori's say "ploof" for "woof" and "pfeller". for "feller" ? Or "likee" and "makee" for "like" arid "niake" ? This is ..tho language, respectively, of the Australian black" and . tho Chinaman! Mr. Grace, however, has some ability ill handling the machinery of. the dialogue, '.but he must not' tako too seriously the absurdly extravagant eulogies that some of- his local critics have heaped upon his really good work in tho "Folk Tales." ■

"Personal Magnetism.". By Rev. Thomas Tait. ChristcllurchWhitcombe and Tombs. . > This nicely-produced little , pamphlet of 32 pages, by the minister of St. Paul's, Christchurch, will bo welcomed by others than members of the Presbyterian body. Mr. Tait has nothing really new to say upon tile importanco of character, -which is his theme, but ho writes very clearly, and 1 wc simply cannot have, too many antidotes , to the fluent and fuddled doctrines of the sentimental Sciolists. and lost quacks who appeal so successfully to the ignorance and flightiness of "tile age. His argnm'ent is summarised in these sentences (p. 3): "There can be no success without strength of will and concentration; but, without self-knowledge, these splendid powers may be used to very little purpose; and without the inspiration and discipline of Christian lovei they may be. directed to such selfish and unlovely ends as cannot but make impossible the peculiar charm of a magnetic personality." That is the kind of cool, clean and sober 'do'ctfino of which we cannot have enough in the face of tlio tide of vulgarity, lawlessness, and levity that is threatening thq. base of honour in the human spirit today. . "Teddy and' Trots in Wonderland." By Agnes Grozier Henderson. London:. Ward, Lock and Co. (S. and W. Mackay). " : To many children these delightful twins will bo old friends, since they had their queer and delightful adventures in the "Wonder Book." Tlio collection of their experiences into one pretty volume was a happy thought, for we can think of no more delightful book for children at this gift season. Grown-ups, for that .matter, will be able to test their fitness to live on this earth by measuring their enjoyment of the wonderful happenings and people in Blue China Country and the L'and-of-do-as-you-like. The original pictures of Mr. Maybank are all here, and Maybank is the Heaven-appointed limner of freaks nud gnomes and fairies. His work has long been known and treasured by connoisseurs of t'niry and brownie pictures, and his brilliant pen and his whimsical spirit aro at t.l.oir very best with the queer little folk— the gnomes, the brown mugs, and the green cheeses —that inhabit the country in which Teddy and Trots had such a glorious timo.

"My Lady Notlia." By Stanley Wey- . mail., London: Ward, Lock and Co. i (S. and W. Mackay). "Laureneo Clavering." By A. E. W. Mason. London: Ward, Lock and Co.' (S. and W. Mackay). Publishing'is so rapid and voluminous a business nowadays, and the flood of fiction co tivorwhel'ming, that "My Lady Notlia" and "Laurence Clavering" aro almost liko .n<jw books. The admirers of their clover authors will at any rate be. glad to renew old acquaintance with this new edition, and those .'who have not read these novels will Jiavo little excuse lor hot doing so now. For the volumes are printed and bound very'handsomely,' in exactly the same style as the average 6s. or 3s. 6d: novel,, and are issued, at 2s. (it will be 2s. 6d. here).

"Les Miserables." "Gulliver's Travels.'' "Oliver Twist." The World Library of Famous Books. London: Ward, . Lock and Co. (S.. and W. Mackay.) . -To make a list of'the different series of "cheap reprints" that British publishers have showered upon the public would bo a'Jong business. There is almost no end to them —no end to theso stout, well-printed,. well-bound, welledited issues of the. best productions of tho great English writers.of the past; and yet the public demand for them appears to keep up.. .It is tho golden age of tho book-buyer. For a sovereign lie can procure himself a library that a doz?n years ago-ho could not buy for ten pounds, if, indeed; he could buy it at all.- Amongst these! 'fine feats of British publishing, none is greater than the ."Everyman Library" of Dent, or "The World's Classics," by • Ward, Lock and Co.'s. "World Library of Famous Books" is quite in tho front rank. The three, sample volumes sent us indicate only slightly tho range of which" has amongst its authors Carlylo, De Quinccy, Darwin, Thackeray, Dickens; George Eliot, Sir, Ualter Scott, Hawthorne, 1 victor Hugo, Mark Twain,: and - crowds' of other great names. .Tlie binding is lieat green cloth, with gilt back—pleasant to look at and easy to handle. . The , printing is particularly fine—sharp, clear, new type—arid each volume lias a good woodcut of the author.

"Bells and Bees.'.':. Verses by Louis Esson. Melbourne: Lothian.'2s. 6d. Mr. Esson, .whose work is familiar to readers of tho ''.'Bulletin," and often very pleasant,. has brought' together on y a . small number of verses for publication in tho ■ soberly-smart little volume,issued by .Lothian.','We ' like, but cannot greatly-praise, : tlie ■. "bush impressions" Sir,. Esson gives us, but there is some adniirablo work, in tho. Fantasies.", AYho. could resist the suggestion that the kookaburra laughs because long ages since ho saw iW tangled ivas. tho destiny of man? There is an excellent "Evening Hymn to Krishjia,". and a "Nomad Chant" which is very.good, though not so good as this opening stanza,, which could not be bettered, and the first line of 'winch is superb: 'The Spring wind, brother/' n Maying music blows, tailing: .to one ..another, . Children, of tho Mother, . .. ~ We go where the wind goes. i But the gem of the book.is.a ■ "Cradle pong, _ \vlueh. is. ris nearly'inspired as such a s°n<; can.bc; Tho feeling is exquisite, and. the art is entirely adequate: . Baby,' oh, baby, faiii : you "are for bed mi to niopoke, busy as the bear The little red calf's in the snug cowl shed, . An' tho littlo brown bird's in. the tree. Daddy's gone ' a-shearin', down tho ■■ Ca^tlevcagh'a So. >wc|fo ~all.. alcne now, only von an nie. . All among the wool—O, keep-your wide blades 1 full-o! ' - D ho d 'L IOVES h ' S ' bal,y ' Parted tho ' Baby, my/bqby, rest your,drowsy head, Iho one man that works here, tired yon must be. Iho MJg red calf's in the snug* cowshed, . , • An' the little broivn bird's in the tree. This dear little poem is worth tlio bulk of the .current verso of Australia.