The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-12-18
THE HOLIDAY BOOK LIST.
Additions OF Particular beauty and
Interest = Tho Daudet Voium cs-
Lieut.. keliey's "Ship's Compsny."
2uixote's sTrail-TheNewcst Thing In
"A Cook Book

Lieut.. Keliey's "Ships Company"
2uixots's T rrail-ThcNewest Thing In
Cook Book.
The exquisite volumes of works by Alphonse
Daudet, translated by Laura Ensor and put
out by the Macrnil an Company, now include
the novel Jack" in two volumes, illustrated,
printed and bound after the style OF Thirty
Years in Paris" "Artists Wives" and the
'Recollsctons of a Literary Man" Nothing
can bc much mose fetching in - handling
than these books. As first impression they
are a remarkable success, unique in their
binding and luxuriant bstwe n the covers.
Jack" is "A saddening tale, with hardly
J gliLimer of chccrfulness il H. That does not
mean that 1t isn't bright roa ling or that it is
| lacking in humor. Nothing could be further
from the truth. 1t IL brilliant reading. But
| the ttene invites a tear in tho first chapter
and compels sob al the last.
| ia k is born out Of wellocy and brtween
his mother and t,e different men she has
dwet wi h, there appears never TO Lave been
a we llock. The situation Of the woman is not
idealized, but on the other Ia d the W man
is accepted by writer and reader for
| what shi is and may be in point of character
without regard TO tho factor of irregularity
in her life. IL is to the destiny of the unfor-
tunatc child that the author addresses himself
the dcstiny directed by this conditions OF his
birth,but much more strongly influenced by
the peculiar wealin 81 and vanity of his moth
| or, whose characteristics cou,d not, however,
have had 50 serious an influence ON the course
| OF Jacks life except for the unfortunate OPP
| portunity FOR their display afforded by reason
! of the fundamental misfortune. Under the
! best Of circumstances it is likely tar Jacks
/ faaa fhar Coll ..f IN
under mure favorable circumstances the fail
ure would not have been life tragedy. There
| is nothing r:orc pathetic 10 contemplate than
| the fact If the influence Of ON environment
that works insidi. usly to the destruction of
the individual a,d crushes out hopes, pros
poets and life itself oftincs without giving
| the victim even m awake ming warning of the
end Of the road he Is travelling. 1t is on.
! thing 10 recognize conditions AID stru gle TO
overcome them. IL il another thing TO lie
overcome by conditions before one has a
/ chance 10 struggle, 10 be seized from behind,
! SO 10 speak, and ssndbaggcd by thsm. Esther
Summorson escaped from the slough that
would have grecdily swallowed her. because
her Tath chanccd to be directed where kindly
! hands seized upon her and helped her upward.
I Dickens ever pre- erred 20 read the n1ly los
son TO his audience, To help the weak, TO raise
| the fallen, particularly to give n fostering
! ca G 10 the he pless victims of the errors or
crimes OF others. On the other hand Jacks
| environment pushes him along hard and
| ever narrowing road that his 70 ,tsteps have
been forced 10 take, that he cannot turn back
| from or turn out from, that ho must travl TO
the end with no hope in it for anything ne
can p. ssibly do in his own behalf. The
"ircnch Dickens" a. Dau let has tcea called,
has the heart of his British brother, but he
has not tho hope. So down goes Jack. You
feel be must go down before you have read
Gozen chapters. But you hope that he will be
saved-to the last word you hope that. Eut
there is no saving grace for Jack and you arc
bound e. feel that there cannot be. bis fate
is inexorabl, and you could not construo it
any other way. And you lay down the book
that has entertained, that has proved so bril-
liaat a companion by the frcsidc, and yet than
has never le. you lose sight for an instant OF
the shadow of the ira ,edT cast before like
PAIL upo, you, with broadencd sympathy aad
more kindly feeling for all the worl and
memory that is likely 10 endure Wi h you for
losg time 10 come.
(For sale by P.eston s. Rounds. Price, per
volume, Sl)
Lieutenant Commander +. D. J. Kelley is
one Of tho literary chaps of Uncle Sans
navy. The navy IL right fruitful of them, but
none has achieved quite the popularity OF Kel
ley. Harper. a. Bros. have just issued book
by him entitled 1.-The Ships Company and
Other Sea People" and we cannot help feel
ing that ON no other subject could clover
writer have written thnt would appeal to so
large audiences as this Perhaps 10000 per-
sons n year so out of the port Of New York
alone, 10 eros the Atlantic, and we venture 10
say there is not one OF them that would not
dearly treasure the opening article that givts
the name to the book. In the various articles
the authcr deals with the ships company
wherever anything approaching it is to be
found, from the Corinthian crew Of the big
single-s,clscr to the imposing personnel of
battlesliip, but in nothing does he make one
familiar with the subject tingle more pleas
urably than in the chapter that treats of life
on a liner.
The Illustrations to this amazingly fetching
book are most admirable There are many of
them and they represent numerous methods
in picture work from the pen and ink to the
reproduction of somo painting. But almost
without exception they supplement the cx-
hilnration of fancy produced by the authors
breezy pen. The atmosphere OF the sea may
almost bc tasted in them all. The lover of
salt water can hardly find anywhere in the
same space so many appctizing pictures as
have been drawn for this altogether delightful
book. Print, paper and binding suggest its
particular value for a holiday gift. Octave,
price $3.50.
Readers OF Sclibner's Magazine during re-
cent months have been entertained by series
of papers by August 4. Jaccaci "On the Trail
of Don Quixote," being record of rambles in
the ancient province of La Mancha. These ar
ticlos were further notable because of the ex-
ousite illustrations of an entirely unfamiliar
style, drawn by Daniel vicrge. Now the
articles and the pictures have been gathered
together in q handsome red covered volume,
beautiful PRINT, strangely attractive pictures
and ALL and 10 is altogether one of the most
elegant and most generally attractive holiday
books that mas come to town. One can hardly
get along without this ON the Don Quixote
10 ..t.