The Sun.
London, England, 1861-12-30 00:00:00

mans little hearts under the genial auspices of
Santa Claus.

fihe Interviews of Great 7To.s. By the anther of
"Heroines of our Time," 8.7 e. Darton and Co.
The title of this little volume is an attractive One,
and its subject is somewhat original. Starting with
the aphorism that " true history is the lives of
great men," the author proceeds to exemplify his
theory by selecting some prominent figures, and
grouping round them the incidents of their time.
Since the first interview cited is the famous dialogue
between Alexander and Diogenes, and the last the
mournful leave-taking of Victor Emmanuel and
Cavour, it will be seen that its scope is comprehen-
sive. Many interesting names meet us between
these two extremes. We have kings and poten-
tates, statesmen, warriors, poet', discoverers, and
men of science and religion. There are interviews
which have affected the destiny of nations, and
meetings between men of equal celebrity. The title
of the book is, however, is some degree a misno-
mer, since the author appears to have wandered
from his original design. For instance, it is
curious to meet the heading of " Sir Thomas More's
interview with Henry VIII.," or " Frederick the
Great's interview with Voltaire," when no special
dialogue is alluded to, and the meeting of these
celebrities was so frequent. In his desire to give an
outline of his chief subject's career and achieve-
ments, the author has frequently made the inter-
view occupy a very secondary position, as in the
instance of Milton's visit to Galileo in the prison of
the Inquisition, where the reference to that inte-
resting meeting is of the briefest description. In
spite of these inaccuracies, however, there is much
to attract the young reader, and to encourage him
to further study. The outlines given are correct and
comprehensive, though necessarily succinct. They
touch upon many different countries and centuries,
and finally coming down to the politics of our own
time, they give us a spirited sketch of the passing of
the Reform Bill, and of the startling changes which
our generation has seen in Italy.

Little Sunshine. A Tale for very young children.
By the author of " A Trap to Catch a Sunbeam,"
&c. Lockwood and Co.
We have here a very simple sketch of the early
days of a little girl, who was one of those delight-
ful children who sometimes appear as the greatest
blessing to suffering parents by their engaging ways
and considerate love. This child here sketched is
the solace of her mother in very sad circumstances,
and as a child is described in some pretty lines so it
was with Blanche—
"Her presence seems like sunshine sent to gladden home
and hearth ;
To comfort us in all our griefs, and sweeten all our
mirth."
It is seldom one meets with tales for very young
children, and therefore this little book will
doubtless be a desideratum to many houses
where its pleasing picture oannot be too often re-
produced in happy children, who are the treasures
of their parents from their early habits of devoting
themselves to the comfort of others, and their con-
tented minds, which last quality will become in
after years a grace in their character that Ni ill add
lustro and confer dignity to their lives. N) one can
get through the world without encountering its
thorns and briars, with a bold spirit, and meeting
its troubles with calmness; and nothing is more
serviceable to the young than to be taught to make
the best of things. "Little Sunshine" is a happy
name for a child, and the story of her nursery days
may profit other little ones by its natural and
pleasing recital.

Tiny Tadpole: and other Tales. By Frances
Freeling Broderio. With illustrations by her
brother, Thomas Wood. Griffith and Farran.
There is nothing remarkable in this book, but it
will please children ; and as that is always a great
object, it is to be hoped that the authoress will be
satisfied with its reception. Some of the sketches
or fables are very ingenious, and the little readers
who throng the firesides at this festive season may
have a merry laugh at the news of the marvellous
animals that appear in these pages. The contents
are varied and vivacious, and " Tiny Tadpole" may
take his place among the fairy books of fun and
frolic.

Riddles and Jokes. Compiled by Edmund Rout-

ledge. New Series. Routledge and Co.
We are not surprised at the success which has
attended the first series of this amusing collection,
and as the new volume contains much additional
matter it will be a very great acquisition to Christ-
mas and New-Year merrymakings. Riddles, cha-
rades, and enigmas of every description, puzzles,
proverbs, and varieties of all kinds are gathered to-
gether with the very necessary addition of a. table of
answers. There are some novel features, such as the
transformation of old proverbs into polite language.
Few would recognise their familiar and rough
spoken friends under such guise as the following :
" Too great a number of culinary assistants will im-
pair the flavour of the consomme. "It is painful to be
in attendance for the pumps of departed individuals."
" An abrupt inclination of the head is equivalent
to a sudden closing of the eye to a racer labouring
under a cataract." There is an amusing collection
of extravagant epitaphs, some of which we can
vouch to be authentic. Here is a couplet on a
miser's tomb :

" Here lies old Father Gripe, who ne'er cried Jam satis ;
'Twould wake him did ho know you read bis tombstone
gratis."
The following epitaph is said to be found in the
churchyard of Upton-on-Severn :
" Beneath this stone in hopes of Zion
Doth lie the landlord of the ' Lion;'
His son keeps on the business still,
Resigned unto the heavenly will."
A bereaved husband in Dorsetshire, after recording
the death of his wife, exclaims :
" The Lord hath ta'en her to the sky,
The saints rejoice—and so do I."
A lawyer named Mr. Strange obtained this testi-
money :

" Here lies an honest lawyer,
And that's S tran go."
The amusement afforded by divining the characles,
solving the enigmas, puzzling out the puzzles, and
laughing at the jokes, will afford ample entertain-
ment to many a merry party.

lack Manby, By James Grant, anthor of " The
Romance of War," &c. Routledge and Co.
If wonderful adventures and hairbreadth escapes
from unheard-of dangers, by flood and field, in the
land of snow and sunshine—the latitudes of ice 'and
fire—and these crowded into the short period cif--
nine months, can impart interest to a tale, Mr.
Grant's story stands a fair chance of populariti. It
is an old saying that "What's worth doing at all is
worth doing well," and the author has availed him-
self of this axiom, not but that everything related
is in the pale of possibility, and precedents are fur-
nished for many improbabilities. Some of the
legends narrated are good and well written, but the
author is not content to deal in mystical while re-
lating traditions, but he introduces a piratical
schooner which is supposed by some to be a phan-
tom ship, commanded by the unquiet spirit of
Captain Kidd, and a few other marvels, which are
well calculated to elevate the hair of juveniles seated
round the lurid blaze of a Christmas fire.
The hero of the tale is the son of an English mer-
chant, and having been sent out to Newfoundland
to learn business with his father's partner, he tires
of the monotony of office work, and joins an old
friend on a whaling expedition. He is a young
gentleman of remarkable good fortune and extra-
ordinary bravery. At one time single handed he
slays four Polar bears, and after other adventures,
among which is the loss of his ship, he finds him-
self translated from the Pole to the Equator. He
undoubtedly possessed a double vitality, and after
outliving the crews of two ships he roaches his
father's house, after nine months' wandering, a
tamer and a wiser man. To those who delight in
the extraordinary and improbable these pages will
possess much attraction.

Pah and his Friends. By John Brown, M.D.
Edmonston and Douglas, Edinburgh.

Dr. Brown's charming little sketch, which has
obtained so much celebrity on the other side of the
border, now appears in a beautiful illustrated edi-
tion, with seven fine plates, and an exquisite bind-
ing. It is nothing more than a sketch—the short
and simple tale of an old Scotch carrier and his
wife, Ailie, who, after terrible suffering, is brought
to the hospital for an operation, from which she does
not recover. The secret of its success lies in the
way in which it is told, the fidelity with which the
simple pathos dwelling in such humble lives is nil-
folded. The heroic patience of Ailie, the unfail-
ing.tenderness of the rough carrier, are brought
vividly before us. "Rab," the grim mastiff, is
truly their " friend ;" and any one who has had
the opportunity of watching a dog's affection for
his owner, will readily credit the devotion of poor
Rab to his suffering master and mistress. Rab is
a hero, too, in his own way, and the terror of the
road for his pugnacious achievements. The descrip-
tion of his indignation when attacked by the ter-
rier, and prevented by his muzzle from revenging
the insult, is amusingly described. The adven-
turous little assailant, however, paid dearly for his
temerity when the affronted monster was set free.
Dr. Brown describes the scene of the dog fight in
the animated strain in which he is so happy, while
in chronicling the sufferings of Ailie and sorrow of
her husband, the simple pathos of the style will
touch the reader's heart. The favour with which
the cheap edition of this work has been received
will assuredly be accorded to its present elegant
form, and grim and dangerouo old Rai) may now