The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1892-10-26

tales of girl life, told with the grace and
vivacity which we have been taught to
expect from the author, and informed by
sympathetic insight In the order PRINT
ed the stories are The Cottage Neigh
bors; Bessie at Boarding School; Maidie
Grey's Afternoon Tea; A New ear
Dinner Party; The Princess Emily; The
Little Housebrealzer. Where all are SO
good it is with difidence that one is Sc
lected for particular praise; but 1t must
be SAID that the adventures of MISS Bes-
sic Brewster, that little Colorado girl, i"
are very good reading indeed-,'foI ola
and young" as newspaper ADVERTISE
ments and immature reporters say.
The new edition of Cathcart's Literary
Reader will be welcomed by those tamil
lar with the first, which has now for
seventeen years occupied high place
in public favor. The volume is more
than text book. 1t is manual OF Eng
lish literature, and as readable by the
student in his library as by the pupil in
the class room. The selections are repre-
sentative and wisely chosen, and the
notes and biographical sketches we'll and
thoroughly done. (New York: Ameri-
can Book Company. Price $1.13.)
Appleton's Canadian Guide-B Book, part
second, is devoted to Western Canada,
Including the Peninsular and Northern
regions of Ontario, Manitoba, the Lake
of the Woods Country, British Columbia
and Vancouver's Island. Mr.. Ernest In
gersoll, its author, has done his work
with his usual accuracy and skill, and
treats large theme in an adequate man.
ner. The handy volume is one of the
handsomest and most entertaining of its
series, treating as it does of land hereto
fore little described and Astounding in
attractions for the tourist. the sportsman
and the speculator. The interesting and
admirably written text is accompanied
by good maps in plate and pocket and q
profuslOn of illustrations. (New York: ID.
Appleton d Company; Portland: Loring,
Short & Harmony
1t is sufficient to say that the English
translation of Daudet's strong but strik-
ingly disagreeable story L'Evang6liste
has been done by Mrs. Mary Meal Sher-
wood to assure the reader that the work
is not slovenly performed. But Daudet
does not readily lend himself to trans
lators. There are no good lcopies of him
in English. Even Henry James is fail
ure, However, to those who do not
possess the French, Mrs. Sherwood's
translation gives faithful idea of the
story. (New York and Chicago: It. T..
Nicely.
Phantom Days, by George T. WEIGH,
is novel of highly improbable adven-
ture written in an ambitious style which
narrowly escapes righteousness. The
author has some gift of narrative, but
hardly sufficient to carry the heavy bur-
den of his improbable tale; though the
gravity of it is relieved by frequent and
funny outbursts of fine writing. The
worst use to which one can put the book
is to read it. New York: J. S. Ogii vie
& Co. Price so cents.)
In Canoemates, a story of the Florida
Reef and Everglades, Kirke Munroe has
again written himself down the friend of
all bright boys, whose hearts he has so
many times made glad by his tales of
travel and adventure. His animated
style, his gift of narrative, and his SYM
pathetic appreciation of the youthful
readers make Mr.. Munroe one of the
most charming of story-tellers for young
people. Indeed gray boards have been
known to take his books into corner,
and reluctantly surrender them only after
much urging. Some years ago he ex-
plored the Everglades for Harper's
Weekly, and some of the experiences of
the trip have beeu woven into this en-
tertaining account of Sumner Rankin, a
winters tale of canoe travel in the fas-
cinating Florida waters. (New York:
Harper 81 Brothers; Portland: Loring,
Short & Harmon. Price $1.00.)