The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1878-08-04
LIT f r A r II r K.

BATCH OF NEW NovELs--REcf Mt VERSE
The size OF the novel OF the day this country rs
great Improvement on its English cousin In three
volumes Everything with us Is tor comfort and Tor
saving 'me SO that even literature Is dealt out In
sucn compact and corvenient bulk that . man may
carry the book he Is his pocket and pcruss
u on the cara OF the pile Of novels lying before us
there Is not one that could DO easily carried In
coat pocket From on this pile take up the top
book IL Is George Prisons Lathrop's first novel,
''somebedy Else" tRobers Broihcrsl MIR. Lathrop
young writer, whose short stories gave Tn
ordinary promse--a promise that is not iuldllei by
the present ambitious effort, We regret TO say. In
''Somebody Else" there Is unnecessary drawing
out Had the story been naf It's present length
would have been much more artistic
The work is very unequal. Some pages are quite
clever, while others drop TO mediocrity. The plot is
hardly of sufficient interest for the purposes OF
novel, and the characters not sufficiently disnc-
tive, with, perhaps the pton oil John lone the
dealer In ornamental iron work. The description oil
Clone, winch opens the book, is unpleasant Ono
cannot Ieel much Sympathy with hero who is de-
scribed as "a darkish bulk, about nve feet high,
ior4sd below, and assun ing that part lighter tint,
but terminating ut the top In o large round knob"
man five feet high would DO litlle more than
dwarf and dwarfs, WIN the exception OF SCOTS crea-
ton, do not make elective heroes. There Is notice
able strauing after simies Ia Dir. Lathrop's writing,
as on page SO, IN speaking Of row al houses
with dormer windows. he says:-"lhe effect to
suggest that some hasty ogre mad passed down the
street, whackhg the mid little houses with hts club
at random, and causing cxcresccnce to form whcr
ever no had bruised them" This Is redeemed by the
smlle page l55, which says sin social inter-
course we are often like icebergs-two-thrds conceal
ment and The rest glittcring colduess," only
icebergs concealment. Mr. lathrop
although Bostonian, makes his hero say :-"Bos-
ton requires TOO high u standard oil goodness. l
don't teei worthy OF 1t. Very few Boslonians do,
think; yet they're ali obliged TO try. That Ia the
trouble with tue place. 1t is so good. so intellectual
cultured, that IN order keep up to the mark all
the inhabitants have attempt be something more
than they IL makes them tric hypocrtical
There are quite number OF natural touches in the
book-one, for example on page 70, wnero Balloon IS
waltz NJ tn parlor for nrst interview with pro.
spcctive sweetheart he does not know exactly what
bs dong she enters, and he .glanccd about to
select chair from which he could up with eager
yet graceful. expectation, at precisely the right mo-
ment. At such crisis chairs and upholstery assume
prodigious importance 10 be making your frst call
in house. and by ill-luck subsiie upon cushion
which sinks down too lar Just as beautiful girl
comes into the room, q serious caiamity, which
leave bitterness In the heart for many days" In
his dedication Mr. Lathrop calls his book comedy
Looking 1t it in that hight covers multitude Of
defects DC