The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-10-20
"The Book of the Seosou.'

How often do we not see, either in the
prophetical notice sent out by the pub
Usher or in the notice by some critic who
desires to deal out unstinted praise, that
such or such n work is THE book of the
season" II is not, apparently, in the least
detrimental TO the use OF this title that
ii is applied to about one-fourth of the
novels which are issued during any given
year, nor does it seem to pail upon the
publisher or reviewer because Of much
service; 1t is recognized as a classic. and
so cannot be overused. Hence. its catho-
licity Of application.
But there is another. and more cyl
dent use OF the title, retrospective, or, at
least. current This is when some lately
issued work has won such hold upon the
affection of the public that in sales and
talk sits name leads all the rest" Exam
pies not a few will occur to any reader
who watches the movements of the lite
rary market. and we need not Instance
which, would indeed, in view of what we
have to say. be a somewhat unSracious
task.
For we would ask: How often does
the book of the season. taking the title
as lesitimately won in the aforementioned
manner. know a longer life than for the
season of which il was the hero2 Rare
~, indeed do those works of which the
sales, during the first year of their exist
ence, run into the hundreds of thousands,
retain any real life for SO much as q. cen
tage of weeks. 1t scenes to be an unal-
terable law that the work of fiction which
creates the greatest furore will be among
the shortest-lived of its kind. 1t appears,
dazzles and glows as d meteor, and as
meteor it falls. And il falls never to
rise agai,::s tit fails. to, the darkness of
utter obscurify. Its author may maintain
popularity for a time; but the book itself
IS heard of no more.
The fact cannot we venture to think,
be controverted. 1t remains for us to find
the reason. if this may be done. There is
an old saying that one nail drives out
another. and doubtless this is of appl-
cation here: but of itself it will hardly
serve to account for the ephemeral char
acter Of popularity displayed by late
works of fiction. 1t is true that, thanks
10 judicious advertising, great novels"
are forced upon the public with such
rapidly OF sequence that their very num-
Der precludes favorable memory of one of
their host; but this is not sufficient cause
for the total neglect that is subsequently
meted out For it must be noted that
many novels which are not books of the
season. remain With us and find steadily
growing popularity. Neither can the phe-
nomenon which we are discussing be at
tributed TO sudden ana violent changes of
taste in the public; as rule, such change
when it occurs at all. is a gradual evolll-
ton whose steps are hardly TO he marked
Perhaps the true reason is to be found
in the fact that the book of the season
almost invariably has extraneous or adj
rertitous aid to popularity. It is written
by young girl, or ii deals with some
question OF the time, or-most potent rea-
SON Of all--it deals with some phase of
life which is novel in fiction and thus
tarcases temporary curiosity 1t wins
ephemeral success, not on its intrinsic