Reading List 2008 Part 4

And this is the last and smallest segment of my reading list:


•Phyllis by Dorothy Whitehill
•That Sweet Little Old Lady by Randall Garrett
•The Unnecessary Man by Randall Garrett
•The Impossibles by Randall Garrett and Laurence M. Janifer
•Supermind by Randall Garrett and Laurence M. Janifer
•Viewpoint by Randall Garrett
•…After a Few Words… by Randall Garrett
•Anything You Can Do… by Randall Garrett
•What The Left Hand Was Doing by Randall Garrett
•But, I Don’t Think by Randall Garrett
•I’ve Married Marjorie by Margaret Widdemer
•The Princess of the School by Angela Brazil

Reading List 2008 Part 3

This be the third part of my reading list:

•The Wilderness Station by Elia Wilkinson Peattie
•Mozart: A Fantasy by Elia Wilkinson Peattie
•The Cost by David Graham Phillips
•The Price She Paid by David Graham Phillips
•The Gold Bug by Edgar Allan Poe
•Corporal Cameron by Ralph Connor
•The Lost Word; A Christmas Legend of Long Ago by Henry Van Dyke
•The Bird of Love by Sui Sin Far
•An Autumn Fan by Sui Sin Far
•A Chinese Ishmael by Sui Sin Far
•Chan Hen Yen, Chinese Student by Sui Sin Far
•A Love Story From the Rice Fields of China by Sui Sin Far
•Buttered Side Down by Edna Ferber
•A Philanthropic Honeymoon by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
•The Revolt of Sophia Lane by Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman
•Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch by Alice Caldwell Hegan Rice
•Badge of Infamy by Lester Del Ray
•Police Your Planet by Lester Del Ray
•The Sky is Falling by Lester Del Ray
•Victory by Lester Del Ray
•A Spaceship Named McGuire by Randall Garrett
•Masters of Space by E. Everett Evans and E. E. Smith
•The Hills of Home by Alfred Coppel
•The Ashiel Mystery by Mrs. Charles Bryce
•The Sleuth of St. James’s Square by Melville Davisson Post
•A Lady of Quality by Frances Hodgson Burnett
•The Adventures of Piang the Moro Jungle Boy by Florence Partello Stuart
•Eve to the Rescue by Ethel Hueston
•Untechnological Employment by E. M. Clinton
•Mystère de la chambre jaune (English) by Gaston Leroux
•In the Fog by Richard Harding Davis
•Once Upon A Time by Richard Harding Davis
•The Consul by Richard Harding Davis
•The Red Cross Girl by Richard Harding Davis
•The Zucchini Warriors by Gordon Korman
•Nose Pickers From Outer Space by Gordon Korman
•Island series (three books) by Gordon Korman
•The Book of Three Lloyd Alexander
•The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander
•Bachelor’s Fancy by Alice Brown
•Marcia Schuyler by Grace Livingston Hill Lutz
•The Crimson Blind by Fred M. White
•The Mystery of the Four Fingers by Fred M. White
•Peggy in Her Blue Frock by Eliza Orne White

Reading List 2008 Part 2

Oh ho! Here comes the second part of my reading list:

•Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card
•Xenocide by Orson Scott Card
•Children of the mind by Orson Scott Card
•Olive by Dinah Maria Mulock Craik
•Abyss and Apex - online magazine of sci-fi and poetry (I’ve read a number of short stories from here)
•The Colors of Space by Marion Zimmer Bradley (read it twice)
•The Door Through Space by Marion Zimmer Bradley
•Super Man and the Bug Out by Cory Doctorow
•Pebble in the Sky by Isaac Asimov
•Alarm Clock by Everett B. Cole
•Final Weapon by Everett B. Cole
•Indirection by Everett B. Cole
•The Best Made Plans by Everett B. Cole
•The Players by Everett B. Cole
•Millennium by Everett B. Cole
•The Girl in the Golden Atom by Ray Cummings
•The Gift Bearer by Charles Louis Fontenay
•A Transmutation of Muddles by Horace Brown Fyfe
•Heist Job on Thizar by Randall Garret
•Ullr Uprising by H. Beam Piper
•Baby Mine by Margaret Mayo
•A Master’s Degree by Margaret Hill McCarter
•The Side Door by Alice and Grace MacGowan
•Minnehaha by Eva Wilder McGlasson
•The Life and Adventures of Calamity Jane by Mrs. M. Burk
•The Ugly Duckling by Dorothy Canfield
•The Playmate by Dorothy Canfield
•Ivanhoe and the German Measles by Dorothy Canfield
•The Story of Ralph Miller by Dorothy Canfield
•Poet and Scullery-Maid by Dorothy Canfield
•Ma`ame Pélagie by Kate Chopin
•The Changing Sun by William Nathaniel Harben
•Frivolous Cupid by Anthony Hope
•Scarlet Stocking by Louisa May Alcott
•Arabella by Anna T. Sadlier
•Tom Grogan by F. Hopkinson Smith
•An Old-Time Love Story by Rebecca Harding Davis
•Anne by Rebecca Harding Davis
•Walhalla by Rebecca Harding Davis
•A Middle-Aged Woman by Rebecca Harding Davis
•Frances Waldeaux by Rebecca Harding Davis
•The Princess Aline by Richard Harding Davis
•A Mountain Woman by Elia Wilkinson Peattie

Reading List 2008 Part 1

And it is that time once again where I start a new reading list for the upcoming year. And already I have read one book for this year. The Thirty-Nine Steps by John Buchan was a shorter book which I read between last night and this morning because it was so thrilling and fast moving. But that is not the subject of this post.

I am going to put up my reading list for this past year. As my list is even longer this year than it was last year, this will take several postings. So here begins the first part (Note: Chronological reading order is approximate; sometimes I forgot to add books until much later after I had read them).

•The Adventures of Jimmie Dale by Frank L. Packard
•The Further Adventures of Jimmie Dale by Frank L. Packard
•The White Moll by Frank L. Packard
•Ester Reid by Pansy
•Just David by Eleanor H. Porter
•Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
•Return of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs
•The Quirt by B. M. Bower
•The Lion of Saint Mark by G. A. Henty
•The Princess Elopes by Harold MacGrath
•The Voice in the Fog by Harold MacGrath
•The Day Boy and the Night Girl by George MacDonald
•The Sunny Side by A. A. Milne
•A Village Stradivarius by Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
•Story of Waitstill Baxter by Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
•I Was a Teen-Age Secret Weapon by Richard Sabia
•The Premiere by Richard Sabia
•The Street That Wasn’t There by Carl Richard Jacobi and Clifford Donald Simak
•Peggy Stewart at School by Gabrielle E. Jackson
•The Adventures of Kathlyn by Harold MacGrath
•The Goose Girl by Harold MacGrath
•The Lure of the Mask by Harold MacGrath
•The Enchanted Types by L. Frank Baum
•The Magic Bon Bons by L. Frank Baum
•The Queen of Quok by L. Frank Baum
•The Mandarin and the Butterfly by L. Frank Baum
•The Laughing Hippopotamus by L. Frank Baum
•The Box of Robbers by L. Frank Baum
•The Bristol Bowl by Edith Nesbit
•The Incomplete Amorist by Edith Nesbit
•Man on the Box by Harold MacGrath
•The Puppet Crown by Harold MacGrath
•Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
•Shadow of the Hegemon by Orson Scott Card
•Kidnapped series (three books) by Gordon Korman
•Dive series (three books) by Gordon Korman
•My Life and Hard Times by James Thurber
•Operation Red Jericho by Joshua Mowll
•Operation Typhoon Shore by Joshua Mowll
•The Masterharper of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

Reading List 3

This is the third part of my reading list:

Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective by A. Frank Pinkerton (pseudo.)
Five Thousand Dollars Reward by A. Frank Pinkerton (pseudo.)

You may perhaps remember my week of mishaps for which I laid the blame squarely on the shoulders of Dyke Darrel and his thrilling though impractical adventures. Anyway, I did enjoy reading these books. A. Frank Pinkerton is a pseudonym for somebody, but I'm not sure who because there were, apparently, a number of people who used this pseudonym. Allan Pinkerton was a famous detective who founded Pinkerton Agency, a detective agency in the U.S.

Happy Pollyooly by Edgar Jepson

This was a fun little book. The chapters occasionally seem disjointed, so I am assuming it was written and published in a magazine. A number of stories used to be written in that way where each chapter had to sort of stand on its own for each issue. I tried to find more stories about Pollyooly by Edgar Jepson, but there was nothing online. It seems like there should be more to the story, but perhaps he just never finished it.

Stolen Treasure by Howard Pyle

Howard Pyle was a Quaker, I believe, but he wrote some of the most exciting stories about pirates and mysterious adventures. This was one of them. Another one I really enjoyed was The Ruby of Kishmoor but I did not read that one this past year.

The Slim Princess by George Ade

An amusing book. This is the only book I've read by George Ade so I can't say that I recommend his works. This one was funny.

The Ice-Maiden: and Other Tales by Hans Christian Andersen

This book had some sad stories and some happy stories in it like many written by Hans Christian Andersen

The Little Colonel: Maid of Honor by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel’s Chum: Mary Ware by Annie Fellows Johnston
Mary Ware in Texas by Annie Fellows Johnston
Mary Ware’s Promised Land by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel’s House Party by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel’s Holidays by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel’s Hero by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel at Boarding School by Annie Fellows Johnston
The Little Colonel’s Knight Comes Riding by Annie Fellows Johnston

Annie Fellows Johnston is one of my favorite authors. As you can see, I read a good many of her books. Some of them were written better than others, but even the less well written ones can be enjoyable to read.

Purple Heights by Marie Conway Oemler

I do not know anything about Marie Conway Oemler so I cannot say whether her books are good to read or not. This one was okay, though I think there were some issues that occurred that may not be suitable for younger people to read. But the ending was funny and fully rewarding.

T. Tembarom by Frances Hodgson Burnett

This is like Little Lord Fauntleroy only about an older boy. It is perhaps more amusing too. Some of Frances Hodgson Burnett's beliefs in the goodness of man are evident in this book, but a lot of her Eastern religious ideas are absent.

The Golden Slipper: and other problems for Violet Strange by Anna Katharine Green
The Bronze Hand by Anna Katharine Green
A Difficult Problem by Anna Katharine Green
The Circular Study by Anna Katharine Green
The Mill Mystery by Anna Katharine Green
Initials Only by Anna Katharine Green

Anna Katharine Green wrote thrilling detective novels. Yes, my reading degenerated thus far by the end of the year. But they were exciting. I think the one about Violet Strange was one of the best.

The ‘Mind the Paint’ Girl by Arthur Wing Pinero

I wasn't sure of this one at first, but it turned out quite fine. It is a play, like many of the other things Arthur Wing Pinero wrote, but it did not turn out to be immoral like I almost expected. I am sorry, but I do not have a very high opinion of plays. Hopefully, my views will change.

The Boy Scout Camera Club, or, the Confession of a Photograph by G. Harvey Ralphson

Unrealistic, impractical, improbable, but grand fun. G. Harvey Ralphson wrote other stories about the Boy Scout clubs which I am assuming are in the same vein.

A Semester in the Life of a Garbage Bag by Gordon Korman
The Contest (Everest series) by Gordon Korman
The Climb (Everest series) by Gordon Korman
The Summit (Everest series) by Gordon Korman

Gordon Korman writes humor, so some of this is teenage boy humor, but actually a lot of it is not. A Semester in the Life of a Garbage Bag is hilarious. One of the characters believes "they" are out to get him; "they" being some type of higher up persons like gods or something. But apart from that, it is well worth reading.

This is the end of my reading list. It is quite long I know, but I had fun reading all these books. And I have started this year's reading list.

Reading List 2

This is the second piece of my reading list:

The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne
First Plays by A. A. Milne
Second Plays by A. A. Milne

A. A. Milne wrote some plays I really enjoyed. One of them was about a young woman who wished for a knight or prince to come to her, but found the ordinary more romantic after all. Another was of two brothers, one who had everything and the other who had nothing. Although the latter brother gains one's sympathy at first, it is the former who surprisingly has the most nobility.

Etheldreda the Ready by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
A College Girl by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
Independence of Claire by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
Betty Trevor by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey
Big Game by Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey

Mrs. George de Horne Vaizey wrote some pretty amusing stories. The only one I disliked was Etheldreda the Ready because the main character never seemed to learn her lesson. The rest of the stories were quite good, except they sometimes ended without satisfactorily finishing the side plots of the secondary characters. Big Game was the best of them all, in my opinion.

The Kitchen Cat and Other Stories by Amy Walton

I actually don't remember this one, unfortunately. But I think Amy Walton wrote young children's stories. And this one was one of those. It was okay, I think.

Mariel of Redwall by Brian Jacques
Castaways of the Flying Dutchman by Brian Jacques
The Angel's Command by Brian Jacques

Brian Jacques wrote some really great stories. Those last two books are based on the legend of the Flying Dutchman, a ship cursed to sail the ocean until the end of time because of the blasphemy of its captain and wickedness of the crew. The stories add another two characters, a young boy and his dog, who are cast off the ship and wander around the world helping people.

Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator by Roald Dahl

Fun. Roald Dahl writes nonsense, and that is that. I bought this book at our library's book sale for very little money, about a couple quarters, I think.

The Original Adventures of Hank the Cowdog by John R. Erickson

This is another of the ones I bought at the book sale. John R. Erickson wrote this book like it was the dog telling the story, complete with all his "reasons" for doing things.

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi

Avi has written some good stories, but I personally disliked this book. Some of his stories get a little boring too.

Ozma of Oz by L. Frank Baum

I enjoy reading L. Frank Baum's books occasionally. They are usually full of descriptions of really wacky things.

The Lady of Blossholme by H. Rider Haggard
Jess by H. Rider Haggard
Queen Sheba's Ring by H. Rider Haggard

I have read some of H. Rider Haggard's books that were better than these. At least, the first and the last ones had happy endings, unlike the middle one. So that was nice.

Dorothy Dale: a girl of today by Margaret Penrose

Margaret Penrose was actually one of the pseudonyms of the company that commissioned Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. Dorothy Dale was another of their series books.


This is the end of the second part of my reading list. There is still one final part to come.

Reading List 1

I have completed the list of books I have read this past year. It was such fun to read them all.
I post them below in categories of the authors:

Penelope’s English Experiences by Kate Douglas Wiggin
The Romance of a Christmas Card by Kate Douglas Wiggin
Bluebeard: A Musical Fantasy by Kate Douglas Wiggin
A Cathedral Courtship by Kate Douglas Wiggin
Polly Oliver’s Problem by Kate Douglas Wiggin
Penelope's Scottish Experiences by Kate Douglas Wiggin
Timothy's Quest by Kate Douglas Wiggin

Kate Douglas Wiggin wrote some good stories. I enjoyed reading all of her books. My favorites were Penelope's English Experiences, Penelope's Scottish Experiences, and A Cathedral Courtship.

The Well in the Desert by Emily Sarah Holt
The Maidens’ Lodge by Emily Sarah Holt

Emily Sarah Holt's books were not quite as exciting as Kate Douglas Wiggin's. She seemed to use an easier sort of style, like for younger children. They usually had several lessons in to be learned in them, but they were pleasant nonetheless.

Anna of the Five Towns by Arnold Bennet

I disliked this book I read by Arnold Bennet. He was too wordy and did not tell the story as efficiently as he could. Plus, the story seemed improbably at times and did not end nicely.

Pippi Longstocking

Jeff Benson by R. M. Ballantyne
The Rover of the Andes by R. M. Ballantyne

R. M. Ballantyne is a favorite author of mine. He is always so alive to the glories of creation around him and expresses them in his writings. His characters also are alive and are not perfect, but they are likable and amusing.

Emil and the Detectives by Kastner

This has got to be one of my favorite books ever. Kastner wrote this book in German and it was translated into English. It is funny and exciting and so bright and cheerful it makes you laugh until your sides ache. We actually read this one together as a family.

The Baron’s Gloves or Amy’s Romance by Louisa May Alcott

This is one of my favorite books by Louisa May Alcott. Each twist and turn in the plot surprises you and the end is hilarious!

Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss

This is a most excellent book. It is not so much fun to read, but more thoughtful. I think it is good to read over again to remind oneself of all the things one learns when reading it. GirlTalk did a series of posts on Elizabeth Prentiss that were very interesting.

The Trial by Charlotte M. Yonge
The Lances of Lynwood by Charlotte M. Yonge
That Stick by Charlotte M. Yonge
The Carbonels by Charlotte M. Yonge

Here is Charlotte M. Yonge. She wrote some fine stories and also so exceedingly boring stories. I think The Trial was one of the latter. But That Stick was more interesting.

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie
Murder on Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Passenger to Frankfurt by Agatha Christie
The Harlequin Teaset and Other Stories by Agatha Christie
Miss Marple (a book containing two of her stories) by Agatha Christie
Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie

I really enjoy reading Agatha Christie's books. Since they are nearly all about murders, that can be tiresome after a bit, but some of her characters are just lovely. My favorites were Tommy and Tuppence who appear, I believe though I can't remember exactly, in The Secret Adversary. They have a number of books about them.

King Lear by William Shakespeare

William Shakespeare had to be read at least once this year. I greatly enjoy reading his plays, but King Lear is not my favorite. But then, I knew what I was getting into when I began reading it. It is a tragedy, so of course it could not end happily.

The Hidden Hand by E. D. E. N. Southworth
The Missing Bride by E. D. E. N. Southworth
The Lost Lady of Lone by E. D. E. N. Southworth
For Woman's Love by E. D. E. N. Southworth

These are all written by E. D. E. N. Southworth who wrote some fine stories. The Hidden Hand is one of the best ones. It is a story of a fiery but happy young girl and a number of her adventures.

What Every Woman Knows by James M. Barrie
Dear Brutus by James M. Barrie

These are some plays by James M. Barrie. His plays sometimes have unnice parts in them, but at least What Every Woman Knows turns out alright in the end. When her husband thinks he has fallen in love with another woman, she lets them spend time together until they are positively bored of each other and he realizes what his wife means to him.

The Tapestry Room by Mrs. Molesworth

This is a fun little story of two children going through the tapestry to Fairyland. Mrs. Molesworth captured a little bit of magic in the story so that one could see right what the children were seeing as well.

This is the end of the first part of my reading list. I read much more than just this over the year.

Book Reviews

I will be posting my book reviews here and also at my new book reviewing blog "Corantolavolta."
Supposedly Jo will post some book reviews on Corantolavolta as well. I found the word corantolavolta in a book The Marquis of Lossie by George Macdonald. It is an interesting book about a young man named Malcolm and his sister Florence. Towards the end of the book, there is a description of a boat dancing on the waves in the early morning. The word corantolavolta was used to describe the motion of the boat. Jo looked it up and found it was actually two words that had to to do with dancing and waltzing. I would like to write a review of this book sometime, but I have homework to do at present.

Book Review - Penelope's English Experiences

I have just finished reading Penelope's English Experiences by Kate Douglas Wiggin, the author of Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. It is an amusing account of an American woman's visit to England.

Penelope's English Experiences is written in first person as thought it were a diary or a series of letters from an American artist Penelope Hamilton. She describes her time in London with two other women from America in the first half of the book. In the second half, she describes her stay in a small house in the country. She begins by summing up herself and her companions in a few short sentences thusly:

Smith's Hotel,
10 Dovermarle Street.

"Here we are in London again,--Francesca, Salemina, and I. Salemina is a philanthropist of the Boston philanthropists limited. I am an artist. Francesca is- It is very difficult to label Francesca. She is, at her present stage of development, just a nice girl; that is about all: the sense of humanity hasn't dawned upon her yet; she is even unaware that personal responsibility for the universe has come into vogue, and so she is happy.

"Francesca is short of twenty years old, Salemina short of forty, I short of thirty. Francesca is in love, Salemina never has been in love, I never shall be in love. Francesca is rich, Salemina is well-to-do, I am poor. There we are in a nutshell."

As the book progresses, we discover that this neat profile of Penelope and her friends changes. Penelope does fall in love and in doing so finds her aspirations of being an artist do not satisfy her as much as being a woman.

"I am not painting, these latter days. I have turned the artist side of my nature to the wall just for a bit, and the woman side is having full play. I do not know what the world will think about it, if it stops to think at all, but I feel as if I were 'right side out' for the first time in my life; and when I take up my brushes again, I shall have a new world within from which to paint,--yes, and a new world without."

The book is interspersed with descriptions of scenery in London and the country and funny incidences like the one of the three women trying to learn to gracefully eat soft-boiled eggs from the shell. Although Penelope falls in love, this is kept in the background and only appears in small segments in which she wonders whether she is in love with love or with the man who proposed to her.

I think my favorite incident was from the chapter The ball on the opposite side. In this chapter, Penelope and her companions notice a gentleman and his two daughters enter a nearby house for sale. After questioning the butler about the man, they find that the man is Lord Brighthelmston who has rented the house for a week for his three daughters and two orphan nieces to give a ball. The three find the preparations being made all week engrossing. They send invitations to some of their close friends to visit them the night of the ball for a "Private View". The evening of the ball, they watch the proceedings with as much interest as if they had prepared, cleaned, and decorated for it and were going to it themselves. The women and their friends try to guess what everyone is saying and doing, and they build romances for all the people involved. I liked this part best because it is exactly the sort of thing I would do myself.

Although I have never visited England, and I do not know if this book is an accurate portrayal of England, I recommend this book to those who wish for a bit of amusement. The descriptions are well written and well worth reading. Each chapter describes some part of London or the country in a peculiar fashion. I think I will read this story again sometime.

Book Review - Blown to Bits

Here is my next book review: Blown to Bits.

Blown to Bits was written by R. M. Ballantyne (1825 - 1894). One of Mr. Ballantyne's more well-known books is Coral Island, A Tale of the Pacific Ocean. He was a popular author in the 1800's and influenced a number of people. His stories are beautiful, full of description, and carefully researched. Also worthy of mention is his Christian faith which comes through his works.

Blown to Bits is a story of the volcano of Krakatoa which blew up in 1883. The hero is one Nigel Roy, a mate on his father's ship the Sunshine. After a storm damages the ship, they land in Batavia in Java and are delayed for several months in repairing the ship. Captain Roy gives Nigel permission or perhaps a command to... well, I'll give it to you in his own words:

" 'Well now, this is how the land lies,' said the old seaman, resting his
elbows on the table and clasping his hands before him. 'As Mr. Moor and
I, with the stooard and men, are quite sufficient to manage the affairs
o' the brig, and as we shall certainly be here for a considerable time
to come, I've made up my mind to give you a holiday. You're young, you
see, an' foolish, and your mind needs improvin'. In short, you want a
good deal o' the poetry knocked out o' you, for it's not like your
mother's poetry by any means, so you needn't flatter yourself--not built
on the same lines by a long way. Well--where was I?'

'Only got the length of the holiday yet, father.'

'Only, indeed. You ungrateful dog! It's a considerable length to get,
that, isn't it? Well, I also intend to give you some money, to enable
you to move about in this curious archipelago--not much, but enough to
keep you from starvation if used with economy, so I recommend you to go
into the town, make general inquiries about everything and everywhere,
an' settle in your mind what you'll do, for I give you a rovin'
commission an' don't want to be bothered with you for some time to
come.' "

And off starts Nigel on his adventures. To begin with, he meets a man named Moses, a black man with whom he immediately becomes friends with. Moses happens to be looking for a companion to accompany himself and the hermit of Rakata (a mountain on the island of Krakatoa) on an expedition. He engages Nigel, and they go over to the island to meet the hermit. Shortly thereafter they set off on their expedition across the seas in an ingenious canoe of the hermit's own invention. After an exciting escape from Malay pirates, a fierce storm in a canoe, and ride from a steamer, they reach the island of Borneo. There they meet the hermit's friend the Professor, an eccentric and amusing gentleman whose chief delight is in chasing "booterflies". Frequent escapades with pirates, orangutans, and tigers form a large part of the adventures hereafter until the shocking end of the hermit's enemy, a terrible pirate captain. By now, the rumblings and explosions of the nearby volcanoes have grown to great proportions. The hermit, Nigel, Moses, return to the island of Krakatoa as it is letting off small explosions. They barely make it off the island again with a few possessions before it erupts. The canoe is tossed up on the deck of a ship by the ensuing waves. To the surprise of all, it is the Sunshine with Nigel's father on board. From the ship, they watch the tremendous volcanic eruption of Krakatoa. The Sunshine is cast on shore of Java and wrecked, but no persons are hurt. Nigel's adventures are almost done with a visit to the remains of the Krakatoa island. Then comes the last chapter, but as that is more of an epilogue, I shall not tell what happens in it. You must find out for yourself.


I heartily recommend this book. I have not done it half justice in my review. The descriptions, characters, and humor are things that must be read.

There is one objection that may be raised against this book. That is that Moses is called a negro throughout, but I think it is only because of the time in which it was written, because he is described in the highest terms. The hermit considered him a most trusted friend.

And now I will close this review with a song from Moses. It is best to read it out loud to understand it better.

"GO TO WORK."

Oh when de sun am shinin' bright, and eberyt'ing am fair,
Clap on de steam an' go to work, an' take your proper share.
De wurld hab got to go ahead, an' dem what's young and strong
Mus' do deir best, wid all de rest, to roll de wurld along.

De lazy man does all he can to stop its whirlin' round.
If he was king he'd loaf an' sing--and guzzle, I'll be bound,
He always shirk de hardest work, an' t'ink he's awful clebbar,
But boder his head to earn his bread, Oh! no, he'll nebber, nebber.
Chorus--Oh when de sun, etc.

De selfish man would rader dan put out his hand to work,
Let women toil, an' sweat and moil--as wicked as de Turk.
De cream ob eberyt'ing he wants, let oders hab de skim;
In fact de wurld and all it holds was only made for him.
Chorus--Oh when de sun, etc.

So keep de ball a-rollin', boys, an' each one do his best
To make de wurld a happy one--for dat's how man is blest.
Do unto oders all around de t'ing what's good and true,
An' oders, 'turning tit for tat, will do de same to you.
Chorus--Oh when de sun, etc.

Book Review - Sylvie and Bruno

Jo and I love reading books together. We have read between two to three books in the past couple months. The last one we read was Sylvie and Bruno by Lewis Carroll (the author of Alice in Wonderland). As it is a little known book (indeed I had never heard of it before), I thought I would review it so others may benefit from our reading.

Sylvie and Bruno is a story that amuses children but requires one to be grownup to fully enjoy it, similar to the books Alice in Wonderland and Winnie the Pooh.

It is written in first person and switches from the author's trip to the country to the author following the adventures of two fairies. Sometimes it can grow confusing until you realize the author keeps falling asleep and dreaming. At the times when he is dreaming about the fairies, conversation is light and nonsensical. When he is awake, the conversation still has elements of nonsense, but acquires a more serious tone. A rudimentary knowledge of mathematics and logic is helpful to understanding the conversation at times as in this quote:

"'For a complete logical argument,' Arthur began with admirable
solemnity, 'we need two prim Misses--'

'Of course!' she interrupted. 'I remember that word now.
And they produce--?'

'A Delusion,' said Arthur.

'Ye--es?' she said dubiously. 'I don't seem to remember that so well.
But what is the whole argument called?'

'A Sillygism?'

'Ah, yes! I remember now. But I don't need a Sillygism, you know,
to prove that mathematical axiom you mentioned.'

'Nor to prove that 'all angles are equal', I suppose?'

'Why, of course not! One takes such a simple truth as that for granted!'"
I cannot give a neat little summary of the book because it has two pieces and neither quite ends in a definite manner. Here is the best I can do:
Section one is that which contains the fairies' adventures. The two little fairies, Sylvie and Bruno, live in "Outland" of which their father is Warden. There is a plot by the Warden's brother to take over Outland and become emperor. The Warden knows it, but does not let on that he does. Then the Warden leaves and we find out later that he has become king of another land. Sylvie and Bruno join him later. That is really all of a plot for section one. Sylvie and Bruno have a couple of other adventures, but these are not as important.
Section two is that in which the author is awake. Here the author is an old man with heart problems. A young friend of his, a doctor, asks the author to stay with him in a house in the country. On the way there, the author meets a young lady. It turns out the doctor is in love with the lady. He (the doctor) has just inherited some money so he can finally ask the lady to marry him. Before he does so, he wishes to ascertain her feeling towards him. The author tries to do so for the doctor, but never gets very far. In the end, the lady marries her distant cousin who shows up, the doctor goes to South Africa, and the author leaves for business in the city.

I think the chief thing of interest in this book is the conversations. Some are thoughtful, some are witty, some are silly, some touch views of theology (not all of which I agree with), but they almost all have a piece of truth.
I think there was one section which most stood out to me most of all. It has influenced the way I read books ever since. It is as follows:

"'By no means!' replied the Earl.
'What I mean is intensity of thought--a concentrated attention.
We lose half the pleasure we might have in Life, by not really attending.
Take any instance you like: it doesn't matter how trivial the pleasure
may be--the principle is the same. Suppose A and B are reading the same
second-rate circulating-library novel. A never troubles himself to
master the relationships of the characters, on which perhaps all the
interest of the story depends: he 'skips' over all the descriptions of
scenery, and every passage that looks rather dull: he doesn't half attend
to the passages he does read: he goes on reading merely from want of
resolution to find another occupation--for hours after he ought to have
put the book aside: and reaches the 'FINIS' in a state of utter
weariness and depression! B puts his whole soul into the thing--on the
principle that 'whatever is worth doing is worth doing well':
he masters the genealogies: he calls up pictures before his 'mind's eye'
as he reads about the scenery: best of all, he resolutely shuts the
book at the end of some chapter, while his interest is yet at its
keenest, and turns to other subjects; so that, when next he allows
himself an hour at it, it is like a hungry man sitting down to dinner:
and, when the book is finished, he returns to the work of his daily
life like 'a giant refreshed'!'

'But suppose the book were really rubbish--nothing to repay attention?'

'Well, suppose it," said the Earl. "My theory meets that case,
I assure you! A never finds out that it is rubbish, but maunders on to
the end, trying to believe he's enjoying himself. B quietly shuts the
book, when he's read a dozen pages, walks off to the Library, and
changes it for a better!'"






I recommend this book for people who are needing a laugh. The Professor's plunge bath, phlizzes, the Other Professor, and the abundance of rhymes and songs are all memorable. And perhaps when you are done, you will wish for a clock that will reverse the whole sequence of events for an hour.