Los Angeles herald., 1907-11-25
BOOK WORLD NOTES

w. ]. Locke has proved the fallacy of the
popular belief that it is impossible for a sue
cessful novelist to dramatize his own book
The Morals of Marcus proved to be one of
the greatest successes of the London season
and is now winning fresh laurels in America.
john Lane company Mr. Lockes publishers,
announce that owing to the renewed interest
IN the book they are going to press this week
with another large edition.
Some one with turn for statistics has been
compiling graded list of best selling books
for period of five years, as shown by 1.-THE
Bookman's' lists. According to this list the
twelve best sellers for these years, with the
number of points credited to each are as fol-
lows: j. THE Virginian' (Wister) 1888; q
Mrs. Wigs of the Cabbage Patch" (Rice).
ieZ 8, 1.-The Right of Way" (Parker) 1896; 4
'Coniston." (ChurchilD, 14s7; s. '"rhe Mas
querader," (Thurston), 1866; g. The Crisis"
(ChurchilD. ITO; 7. THE House of Mirth,"
CWharton), 1106; 8. Dorothy Vernon of Had
don Hail." (Major), s3l; o, 'The Marriage of
William Ashe;" Ward. sS7; 10, THE Misss-
sippi Bubble" (Hough), 1884; II. THE Little
Shepherd of Kingdom Come" (Fox), S66; IL,
Lady Baltimore" (Wister), S4S. AS will be
seen from this list, only two authors, owen
Wister and Winston Churchill, have two books
in the list, and this is all the more surpris-
Ing. as these authors both known to be
rather slow workers. Although Mr.. Wister
stands at the head of the list with THE vir-
glnian,' Mr. Churchill leads slightly in the
total number of points, with 2657, as against
Mr. Wisters 25S7.
Gertrude Atherton has pointed out our
American failure to take the continental
institution of chaperon in the spirit in which
1t was meant Mrs. Atherton has an ingenious
way of converting into dialogue very
cleverly worded opinions, presumably her own
on social cicta 1t will be noted also that in
the following sentence from Ancestors she
has killed two birds with stone: "Chaper-
onage in America today" asserts Mrs. Ather-
| ton, lis a mere harness of flowers worn as a
sort Of joke. for most of the people in society
have flown upward on happy golden wings
from strata where as much was known of
chaperons as the American newspaper knows
about handling British titles
Some one in a communication to the Har-
per publishing house has referred to Sir GIL
bert Parker as "Canadais leading writer of
fiction" This seems to the big American and
English public curious choice of cognomen
and yet the claim from point Of view Is
legitimate enough. 1t is well known that Sir
Gilbert Parker is by birth Canadian His
fether, grandfather and great-grandfather were
members of the army there in the days when
there was still garrison in Canada Sir
Gilbert laid his first story IN that regcn,
Pierre and His People," and only in "The
Weavers" seems to have definitely broken
away from the environment. THE Right of
Way" of course, was famous Canadian
story.
a new religious novel with Christian Science
as it's central theme is announced for publi-
Boston The work is entitled paul Anthony,
Christian" and purports to be the experiences
of an American civil engineer in directing the
troublesome affairs of foreign oil company
in Burma, and in assisting in breaking up of
conspiracy against foreigners by the use OF
practical religion. Incidentally some real
light Is thrown upon Christian Science beliefs.
and some common errors held by many
garding the cult are corrected. The book is,
by Hiram w. Hayes well known western
newspaper man, who led to investigate
Christian Science through the cure of his
wife by its mnistrations after the physicians
had pronounced her case hopeless
We are always Interested in the announce
ment of a new book by Marion Crawford, and
We are especially attracted by the report that
the next book to bear his name will represent
story, of which Dickens Christmas Carol"
is the classic example. This comparison. be
1t understood, pertains only to the spirit OF
the story. The scene is American, the prin-
cpal characters being inventor and his
wife and child. The inventors struggles
but since ts is a Christmas story it may also
be safely assumed that everything ends hap
plly-an assumption that is borne out by the
cheerfuness of Mr.. Crawford's title. THE
Little City OF Hope.
Miles Forman, was published a few months
ago the critics pointed 1t out as book that
had managed to handle the big moving trian-
gle Of the man, his wife and the other woman
with peculiarly clean hands. An announce
ment by the Harpers that 1.-THE Stumbling
Block has gone into a new edition may hold
some interest fog those who deplore that a
theme so vital and real should have come into
disrepute through the treatment of writer's who
use It merely as basis for sensationallsm
| n..-k ~A& ,tnfA favo e.t