The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-10-02
NEW PUBLICATIONS.


The American Book Co., New York,
Cincinnati and Chicago are issuing
very useful and attractive series Of text
books the Eclectic English Classics. "
This series now incluaes the long list of
standard works required for college en-
sent wide range Of lit eratule and the
purest models of style. and are adapted
for home reading as we'll as for school
use. They contain well-written intro
ductions, including biographical sketch
es of the authors and explanatory notes of
difficult points or words in the text. The
books are well printed and handsomely
bound. The latest to appear are "The
Autobiography Of BENZ. Eranklin;" Pope's
"Iliad"; and "The Prinosss," by Ten
nyson. This company are also issuing
very useful series of French text books,
and the Second Year in Frenoh," by
L. Q. 6ymss, has just appeared. This
book, with the authors First Year in
French" completes course designed to
train students not only to read but to
speak ana write the language correctly.
Both books have been written with this
end in view. In the Second year in
French" the general plan has been SO
arranged as to give an almost equal
space and time to reading, conversation,
TRANSLATION and grammar. The most
striking features Of the book are the
reading lessons and conversation exer.
discs written or arranged by the author
to illustrate exactly the grammatical
object Of each lesson.
Fifty Bamous Stories Retold. By
James Baldwin. Linen, 12mo, ia pages
illustrated. Price, IS cents. American
Book Company. New York, Cincinnati.
and Chicago.) This book is collection
of tales of ancient and modern times.
told In such an entertaining manner
as to make their reading pleasure to
children. OF these stories some are his
torical, having for their subjects real in
oidents in the lives Of well-known heroes
and famous characters; others are
legendary, having come down to us
| through the ballads and folklore of
many lands. Children naturally take a
deep.interest in such stories, and their
reading, either in or out of school, will
not only give pleasure and instruction,
but will create u taste for higher histori-
cal and literary studies. The book 10
uniform in style and binding with the
Eclectic School Readings, of which series
it is part. and Is beautifully illustrated
by pictures made expressly for it by the
best artists.
Robinson Crusoe. By Daniel Defoe
Edited by Kate Stephens. (Linen, 1amo,
s46 pages; illustrated. Price, so cents.
American Book Company, New York,
Cincinnati, and Chioago.) This book
needs no Introduction or description.
MEN may come and men m az CO." but
Robinson CEusoe goes on forever. Every
one who has read it has been made happy
by its reading, and every one who has
not has that happiness in store for him.
Miss Stephens has skillfully adapted the
work for school reading by dividing the
steRy into short chapters, by substituting
modern and more suitable EXPIRE sions
for Anticipated and objectionable ones,
and by explaining obscure words and
illusions in foot notes. Otherwise the
original work remains unaltered and re-
tains all the ess entail characteristics Of
the first edition of 1919. In its improved
form the book is very appropriately in.
cluded in the Eclectic School Readings.