New-York tribune., 1902-01-11
BOOKS AND AUTHORS.

1 oNOho A1ND IL " l. AOltOs
| CURRENT TALK OF THINGS PRESENT
AND TO COME
AS soon as the lull that always follows the
! holiday has disappeared. the Scribners
| expect to bring out Mrs. Wharton's new book
| probably some time next month. THE Valley
of Decision has proved, they say, to be larger
| and more important work than she had at first
conceived it; and in the working out it has taken
| on a larger outline and has been filled with
| greater vigor under her hand 1t is said TO be
saturated with Italian local color of the latter
part of the eighteenth century, of the court, the
Church. politics and the peasant. Mrs. Wharton
has travelled much in Italy. having made long
journey through the country with Mr.. and Mrs
Paul Bourget, he a Wheel the two ladies in
a carriage, visiting many out of the way places
The book is dedicated to Paul and Minnie Bour-
get Owing to the expansion noted. it will be
published in two volumes, following the prece
dent of several recent notable novels.
Henry Somerville." the appearing on
the title page of Jack Racer" sent the book
to Mcclure. Phillips & Co. as supposed
newspaper man of Ohio. with the touching state
ment that he had made this first serious at
tempt at fiction at the suggestion of his mother,
important than newspaper work" In due course
a photograph was asked for to exhibit the feat
ures of the writer to the readers of the
newspapers; but upon examination and delibera-
lon in the publishing house, it determined
that Mr.. Somervie was woman. 1t turned
out that she was Miss Mary Gay Humphreys of
this city. She had borrowed some of her uncle's
clothes and cap and brushed her hair back, to
be photographed in. and when some business de-
tails required her presence before her publishers
the secret was fully disclosed. Miss Humphreys
is now at work on second book, which will
continue the CHEEKY career of Jack Racer in the
field of Illinois politics.
James Huneker has turned from musical
biography and criticism, which he pursued bril-
lantly in his "Mezzotints in Modern Music" and
his Chopin" TO fiction. He has volume of
short stories which the Scribners are to publish
next month, entitled "Melomaniacs" 1t will
please many of his former readers to see num-
Der of titles denoting certain connection with
music and musicians and assured that
they will not miss the vein of humorous satire
that crops out in his earlier works. In not a few
of the stories. however. there is a prevailing
note of deep seriousness.
Thomas A. Janvier has recently arrived in
looking after the English edition of his latest
book of STORIES "In Great Waters" recently is
sued this side of the water by Harper
& Brothers.
Mr.. Frank r. Stockton. who reached New
York for the winter a few days ago. has just
completed a novel which is said to be one of
the strongest of his long stories. 1t is entitled
Kate Bonnet: The Romance of a Pirates
Tlattr
whet the appetites OF lovers of Mr.. Stocktons
ingenuity and humorous fancy. 1t is a novel
of 'love. incident. adventure and humor." and
the publishers, d. Appleton & Co. make the
further announcement that 1t will be printed
from a specially designed and peculiarly hand
some type, which will be used in IT for the first
time There viii be illustrations and headpeces
by A. l. Keller and II. S. Potter.
A publisher recently received a communication |
from not unknown or inexperienced author |
asking what sort of terms he ought TO make in |
the case of a proposed collaboration on q novel |
Smith was to furnish the plot and incidents and |
Jones was to write the story upon this basis |
The publisher unable to give any but the |
somewhat obvious suggestion of an equal d. |
vision Of the profits from the book. "Eckmann |
Chatran and Besant and Rice are both-or all
dead; otherwise I might advise reference to |
them for advice; but in the absence OF any such |
authoritative decision they could give, based |
on the results of many collaborations, l don't |
know of anything to suggest but to share and |
share alike" II might depend a good deal on |
what sort OF a novel was forthcoming as to the |
relative Importance OF the plotmaker and the |
narrator In extreme cases the proportions |
might vary as widely as from ! per cent TO 90 |
There are problems for all sorts Of people, from |
kindergarten children to inmates of homes for
the aZed, to be discussed in books; and now the |
college student has his problems and his book |
about them. 1t is by James l.. Garfield, libra
rian OF Columbia University who knows the col
lege student thoroughly, having observed him
In number of places. east and west, and knows
his needs. His book, THE College Student and
His Problems" promised by the Macmillan Com
pany to appear at once. is short and full of
pithy advice on all pertinent topics of college
life. from the choice of the college itself and
the kinds OF work and play and social inter
course to be pursued there. to the choice of a
career at it's end.
From 1.-The Death of the Gods" the first of
Dmitri Merejkowsks curious "trilogy' of his
torical novels entitled Christ and Anti-Christ"
the author passes to '"The Resurrection of the
Gods" the second in the series. which the Put
mans bringing out. The second book is
about The Romance Of Leonardo da Vinci"
How this continues the general theme of the
conflict between Christianity and paganism must
be discovered on the appearance of the book
The only way to stamp out the diseases propa-
gated, as we now know, by mosquitoes, is to
stamp out the mosquitoes: and this is what
Ronald Ross has undertaken to show how to do
in his little book, with the curious title Mos
70 |