St. Nicholas/Volume 32/Number 1/Books and Reading

Books and Reading.

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A Youthful
Critic

In this department, not many months ago, an inquiry was made about reading poetry, the idea being to find out from young readers themselves whether they would choose poetry for the mere pleasure it gave them, rather than from a feeling that they ought to like it. Several letters replied to the question, describing an enthusiastic love for poetry. In one of these letters occurs the sentence, “I think Tennyson the greatest poet that ever lived.”

We have no wish to check young enthusiasm, but we doubt whether the writer, who is thirteen years old, fully understands how much her sentence Tennyson, all will admit, ranks high among poets, but is not our little friend somewhat forgetful of the claims of a few others? Perhaps, before putting the English Laureate of Victoria’s reign at the head of the class, she might consider more carefully the merits of Homer and Dante, Shakspere and Milton, Virgil and Chaucer—to name a half-dozen that might be thought worthy of her attention. But the object of naming these neglected worthies is only to point out to the critic that she has not said what she probably meant to say. Did she not mean: “Of all the poetry I read, I like Tennyson's best”? If that was her meaning, she deserves praise for good taste, and not blame for exaggeration.

“Snowed
Under”

Perhaps in future ages this period of ours may be known as the “Age of the Printing Press,” though ever since printing came into general use, there have been complaints of the deluge of books. We know, at all events, how much there is to read, and how one thing pushes aside another.

Would it not be well to keep a little note-book in which to enter the names of “things we mean to read,” so that they will not be snowed under and forgotten? There are so many valuable articles in the magazines that the best of them should not be pushed aside by the new numbers which follow on so quickly.

A Boy Makes
His Own
Bookplate

We take pleasure in showing the little design here printed, and we hope it will encourage others of the St. Nicholas girls and boys to make their own designs for bookplates. The writer of this letter has won a number of prizes in League contests.

Dear St. Nicholas: As you are interested in children’s bookplates, I would like to send you mine, I want to say that the idea is not original with me, but I executed it, with my drawing-teacher’s help. I had thought of a plate before your article appeared, and that quickened my interest in it; so now I have it.

I am thirteen years old, and have finished my first year in the High School. I enjoy St. Nicholas very much, I am very fond of reading, and think Ernest Thompson Seton’s books fine. “Rag,” and “Molly Cottontail,” and “Krag,” are among my favorites in his books. I wonder if St. Nicholas readers know of “Eye-Spy?” by William Hamilton Gibson, among nature books.

With best wishes for the magazine,

Another Corre-
spondent

Inclosed in a letter from Maryland comes a little map, drawn to make plain the story, “In a Brazilian Jungle,” evidently an account of life not far from Rio de Janeiro. This reminds us to inquire whether our young readers all know what an interesting land is the great South American continent—extending from the very modern civilization of the northern countries to the desert wastes of the Land of Fire—Terra del Fuego, Brazil alone, as some of the stories and articles in St. Nicholas have shown us, has within its enormous terrilory room for every sort of life and adventure. That big republic has been the subject of many charming books. To name but a few, there are: “The Naturalist on the River Amazon,” “A Thousand Miles’ Walk across South America” (what boy can resist that tale?), “Travels amongst the Great Andes of the Equator,” “Adventures in Patagonia.” A good book to begin with is Carpenter’s “South America.”

Ought we not to know more of this great neighbor of ours? Perhaps if we knew each other better we should be even better friends, and it would be well to strengthen other ties before we cut the isthmus.

Books that
are not yet
Familiar

Our friends are very kind to suggest lists of books for young people’s reading, but we cannot always print these lists with due credit to the senders, because many books named are better known than is realized by the list-makers. It is, therefore, better to give selections, From one letter we copy these:

“The Middle Five” (Indian life),	F. La Flesche.
“Teens” (girl life),	L. Mack.
“Three Girls, and Especially One,”	M. A. Taggart.
“The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come,”	J. L. Fox.

The same correspondent mentions some dogs celebrated in literature.

She names Dr, Brown's famous “Rab,” Ouida’s “Mouffiou,” Flora Shaw’s “Royal” in “Castle Blair” (so warmly praised by Ruskin), “Argus,” the dog who died with joy at the return of Ulysses. But she does not mention one of our favorites, the noble “Bob, Son of Battle.”

English
History

We all study English history. How many of us know what a clear, living knowledge of the life of the people is to be gained by the reading, in proper order, of the historical stories that picture for us every political and social feature of England, from the times of King Arthur to those of Edward VII?

From a very brief list we may select a few suggestions. Beginning with Lainer’s “The Boy’s King Arthur” or Howard Pyle’s “King Arthur and his Knights,” we go on to Kingsley’s “Hereward,” Scott’s “Ivanhoe,” Bulwer’s “Harold,” Doyle's “White Company,” Stevenson’s “Black Arrow,” Bulwer’s “Last of the Barons,” and, after a few more, come to “ Kenilworth” and “Westward Ho!” and “Lorna Doone,” Doyle's “Micah Clark,” and Thackeray’s “Esmond,” which brings us to Queen Anne's days.

We should be very glad to have a more thorough and complete list, or information from some friend as to where such a list is to be found. And if the same friend or another can likewise make up a good list to accompany the study of American history, we are sure that our young students will appreciate the favor. School histories cannot spare space to give the little happenings that make history live, and the best pictures of natural life are to be found in good fiction.

But we do not wish lists of books meant especially for young readers. We prefer books that can be read by either young or old—such as Cooper's “Spy,” Mitchell’s “Hugh Wynne,” or Hall’s “Boys of Scrooby.”

“On the Fly.”

A young mother, who was asked what advice she thought would be of use to boys and girls about their reading, said that it seemed to her that there was too much reading by off-hand glances. A boy or girl will grab up (the words are expressive; forgive their inelegance!) any derelict volume that comes in the way, and, opening it at random, will sit down, bolt a paragraph or two, and then run toward the next book, or other object, that promises a moment’s interest. It is hardly necessary to say that such reading must do more harm than good, no matter what book happens to be chosen.

There is another habit that may be here spoken of, since it arises from the same uneasy curiosity and restlessness. This is the habit of always reading whenever one has nothing else to do; that is, of never sitting simply quiet. Reading is not thinking, and thinking is quite as valuable. If you never operate your mind except in grooves provided for it, you will weaken your powers of thinking. Sit quietly, and let your mind exercise its powers on material of its own choosing.

You may find that your own mind is not so bad a story-teller after all.