SOME GIFT BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2310, 18 November 1914, Page 8

SOME GIFT BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS

; . (By Liber:) '. '■"■ '' '. ' '■'■-. — "Christmas.is coming," and the sea;sqn;when Pater and -Mater sally, forth to buy gift _books for either their own boys andj girls,: or for those of other parents,; is -how close upon us. A few notes, on-some' new books, specially suitable' for Christmas presents to the :young folks, -"may therefore be welcome.;;;; ''■ ." . • ',*■■■ Some" Books For Tho Boys.. • Amongst writers for-boys the name of; Meet Surgeon ,T.' T. Jeans, 8.N., is now/almost as well known as. that,of, the; late G. A; Henty. Surgeon Joans gives his _ admirers a capital yarn this year in bis "Gunboat and Gun-Runner: A Tale, of the Persian Giilf" (Blackie and Son, London). The. author knows the Navy as only a Service man can I know-it, and;in his story.of the excit-. ing adventures experienced by EieutenantPaul Martin, of HrM. gunboat Bunder Abbas,' .whilst,engaged- in.the.exciting and often yery dangerous work of 'suppressing .'"theC gun-running which is practised Persian Gulf, he ex;nibits great vivacity combined with a regard for. aceuraoy of detail which.Capp tain Marryatt himself never, excelled in his famous stories. Some of'these adventures occur,'on the sea:.in others the scene is laid on land, 'for on one occasion; the smart young commander' of the Bunder Abbas traps and captures a :whole caravan of .gun-running Arabs: The; hero is'/surrounded by some equally' inte'resting- ( comrades, notably Mr - ; Scarlett, an.heroic;.'.'coward";-Martin's ownchum,, "the; Baron"; a scheming interpreter, , Jaffa's '. arid.''Teroy," a: heror jvorshippiny JiTamil servant. ' 'In . his -preface;.the!Author states: "My:story,is -based e pni'Sctiial'occurrences /which", took' placeijtenijiye'ars ago,' arid',the' proo'fslieets76T,'!,tne"story, have been, revised by qfficefs;;sho. have themselves. taken. part; jmore recent years, in the suppression) of'gun-running." The story ij.'ohe; which' will unfeignedly. delight boy .readers Jaiid lean testify to the interest with/!which one oldster at least lias perused jits lively chapters. The illustrations^;in colour, by C.. M. Padday, aro admirable. Mr. Padday's pictures of-gun-running' Arabs remind me hot a little "of Frank Brangwyn's buccaneer pictures. (Price,, 65.) .--.

< _ John Finnemore.has now established himself as a,firm:favourite with boy .readers: ahd..the most recent addition .tolhisj.stories of school life, "Teddy Lester's Chums" (W. and R. Chambers, Edinburgh and London), should berushed ,:by'those of :his admirers who, last year, were,reading "His First Term." Mr. Finnemore is again most successful in depicting everyday life .at an English boarding-school, and the boys who, in this_ story/ tenant .that now famous establishment, Slapton Hall, are just, aa full of nierriment and capacity for mischief ,; as were the characters in hi? earlier-books. '.'Teddy Lester's Schooldays" is::what;boys call "a rattling yarn."' The exploits'of the principal characters," whether they be doughty deeds at or the playing of practical -. astonishing ingenuand furtive, but all too delipiousyfeasting in dormitories; or exposing-: mean boys and- "sticking up" for.' "decentrchaps" who'are in trouble,: or desperate combats with burglars—allare - described : by Mr.. Finnemore with all: his, old vigour and/ entrain. , Mr. ißainey's,'illustrations, reproduced in I.colour,,"are-asi:good as ever.

•Young Walter Leigh; the hero of Mr. Harijy Oollingswood's ■ new sea ' story, ,! - The. First Mate, the Story of a Strange Cruise" (Blackie and Son, London) reckons himself a lucky young fellow when, at : eighteen,'"'he. gets, the berth .'of third' mate on the auxiliary steam : yacht "Stella Maris;" owned and commanded by 1 ! that, thoroughly up-to-date:lady Mrs: .Fanstittart, wife of a New''York'millionaire,' .'.After visiting ports in'lndia, Ceylon,; Burma, and'the-Straits Settle:ments;;:'tho "Stella Maris" is unlucky enpugh, to be piled up on' a reef in the Indian Ocean. Young Leigh, who has become first mate, his predecessor having: been-killed in'a desperate encounter- .with. Malay pirates,, now exhibits great capacity' and daring, arid eventually pilots the shipwrecked party to a deserted'island,, where the castaways are attacked- by savages,- ' their peril being very great until' they- are rescued by an: American■ gunboat:'. Mr.: Collingwobd'writes as well as ever, and his ''lady'commander," -Mrs. ; Van'stittart,is'a character which would do credit to a much more:'pretentious story. Mr. E;,S. Hodgson contributes some admirable illustrations. (Price, 3s. 6dl)'

~l t'.is some years now since that far vourite author with, boyish readers, the late Mr. ,G.,A. Henty, passed away, and_ to abater generation many of his stories will come \as novelties. , It is good, therefore, to notice that some of his best: stories/are being reprinted. This :year;Messrs\ Blackie give us one of .the best of Mr. Henty's military stories;'"The'Bravest of the Brave," in which is recorded in an agreeably fictional form the splendid deeds of that little known British general, Charles Mordauht,, Earl of Peterborough, of whom, ;by the way, it is,worth while Recalling,.that Macaulay, no mean judge, declared, "he was the last of; tho ikhights-errant.". The Btory describes Peterborough's brief but brilliant campaign! in Spain during _ ,the Spanish War of Succession, and is a clever and agreeable melange of fact and.romancej abounding 'iri incidents 1 ; which display tbo gallantry of the British soldier and that, wonderful patience, under trying circumstances and grim determination against the heaviest odds which are just ■as prominent traits in his character today >s they,were in the days of Marlborough and Peterborough. Mr. W.: Harney's illustrations are. again all that could- be 1 desired. . (Price, 3s. 6d.)'.

Some Books for the Clrls. British' Columbia, provides, for the most part7~tbe background of Bessie Marchant's excellent story) "A Mysterious InhefitaHce" (Blackio and Son.). "When the story opens, the four sisters Amoyne are living in Quebec, poorly off. and engaged in work often of a. dull .and ./uninspiring nature. Suddenly an unexpected? windfall makes life easier for them, and a trip to Europe is even contemplated- , Upon second thoughts, however,'.,. the""girls decide upon seeing Great West and camp out in we liritish Columbian forest to the north of Vancouver City. The more thoy..see and. learn of the rough, but free and independent, life of the West the more they like it, and when they courageously take oyer a deserted farm, their natural intelligence, plus the hazards of good fortune, enables them to make a commercial success of their venture. \ TheJ'twp. elder girls have their romance, tho mystery of the Amoyne inheritance being cleared up in a way eminently satisfactory to the lover of healthy sentiment. The plucky organisers of tho "Welcome Home" venture meet with many novel and interesting experiences, and the story conveys, in a very agreeable manner, much interesting information as to the way our Canadian cousins livo in the farming districts. ■ The illustrations by Cyrus Cuneo are excellent. (Price, 55.).

At the present time, when so much attention is being directed to the Balkans, Bessie Marchant's second story, "Helen of the Black Mountain" (Blackio and Son), should appeal to a wide circle of readers. Tho heroine, Helen Stuart, the daughter of an English merchant at Antivari bas for a friend a Montenegrin girl, Stcfanio MUavioh, -and when misfortune

befalls the malo members of the Stuart family. Helen courageously sets herself tho task of repairing them, partaking in many exciting episodes in which soldiers and brigands play prominent parts, and piwing herself a plucky and resourceful campaigner. In tho long run the courageous English &irl finds a husband .in'a, gallant young Montenegrin gentleman,, and -the -heroine's brother Basil, who has been falsely accused of forgery, and has gone through many trying experiences, including capture and imprisonment by a band of brigands, pairs off with--Helen's friend, Stefnnio. The latter-day girl reader, we all know, is as fond of a story of .adventure'as are her brothers. In "Helen of the Black Mountain" she will find a richly stocked menu, of wholesome excitement. Mr. Walter Raiuey, E. 1., supplies some welldrawn illustrations. (Price 3s. 6d.)

Angela . Brazil's contribution this year to Messrs. Blackie's stories for girls-'is entitled. "Tho School by the Sea,".the scene being laid at the Dower House, a quaint mansion situated on a picturesque' headland .on the Cornish coast. Ereoted.-in the fourteenth century, the school, building, was originally a ■ nunnery,. /and < possesses. a mysterious and 'always, carefully-looked chamber. This / secret: room- is olosely associated with'the sohool.jcareer of; the heroine, Gerda-. ThorwaJd'son, concerning whose origin', and parentage there is for a time a -certain- mystery, - the girl being even suspected of being a-German spy. English gWs invariably mistrust a reserved or/secreti/e'comrade, and _poor Gerda has rather z 'bad time of it until the mystery- is'disclosed 'and Gerda-'Thor-yvaldsonis transformed into her rightful personality as Gerda Trovellyan. The author'has'a-keen-sense of humour, and the brisk, spirited style in which the Btory is told adds not a little to its genera] quality; of •entertainment. The coloured frontispiece and other illustrations by John .Campbell are attractive features. (Price 2s. 6d.) ... For Younger Children. --Suitable gift books for younger children, • say, - from eight to ven ; are Mary i'arrah's "Peggy of the Circus" (W. and E. Chambers, Edinburgh), and "Tony's Chums," ' by May ' Wynne (Blackie and Son, London). The horome of Miss Farrah's story is a little girl )vho has been stolen from her parents in America, and is, when the story opens, a . circus performer. In the end she turns out to bo the longlost daughter of her benefactor's brother. The frank speech and unconventional manners of the "circus child" get her into trouble at times, but she is a lovable little creature, and the story of her.strange experiences is told very pleasantly. Illustrations by F. J. Overnell. (Price 2s. 6d.) Miss Wynne's story, "Tiny Chums," Is a. tale of a summer holiday spent by Tony Lavington and his three chumß at a Devonshire farmhouuse. The chums meet with some curious adventu'ros, some of a htunorouß character, and others in which there is a graver interest. The story is one _ for quite young obildren, and the print is commendably large and clear. Coloured illustrations by A..A. Dixon. (Price 25.)

Blackie's "Cbildrenls .Annual" (Blaokie and Son, London) is now in its eleventh year,of publication. This year's issue of this famous""Annual" presents! a ■ bewildering; variety of stories and rhymes and beautiful • illustrations . in colours, monotint, and . black .and white.:' ;Amongst the contributors are. Mrs. .George .Wemyss, Theodora Wilson Wilson,.Alice Talwyn Morris, Agues Herbertson, Mrs. A. G. Latham, and Jossie .Pope, whilst the artists represented. in., the work include such well-' kubwnnames as Gordon Browne, U. 1., H; M. Brock, 8.1., Florence Harrison,. Erank Hart, and Hilda Cowham;;.;iWith : a copy of -'Blackie's Annual" vi in the home a wet. day should have no dullness for the little ones.

"Animal' Stor.ies 'for Little Folk,": Trith its .eight large-sizedcoloured plates and'many other illustrations; is another, excellent. • publication from Messrs, Blackie and Son, which is wonderfully food'.value at eighteenpence. So, too, is 'rank- Adams's•• "Book' of Rhymes,"'-at the same price; and another of Louis .Wain's delightfully comic "cat books" is .also to bo'' welcomed. For Sunday' reading ;■ there is a volume of, Testament Stories,!'-the illustrations to Tvhich,, by Arthur A. 1 Dixon j are splendid' examples of colour print-. ing. (Price ls.\6cL) . "Wool and the Weaver"..-and: "The. Seaman and. His Craft" are additions- to " ; tHe • well-known series, "Rambles Among Our Industries" (price 7d.)' All these books are published, by Messrs'. Blaokie.'and Son.' Mads In/Great Britain, Special mention deserves to be made of the fact, which is worthy of attention by purchasers of children's-books at the present time,. that the whole of the colour-printing in Messrs. Blackie's looks, for, juveniles, story books, picture books, and ,toy books alike, has been executed solely in Great Britain. The firm- state with fjustice 1 that "so much of the colour work in the market comes from.Germany that in the present state of affairs the public will appreciate the advantage of restricting their purchases to books of purely British production." Hear, hear I . ,