17 NOVEMBER 1906, Page 8

The Boys of Brierley Grange. By Fred. Whishaw. (W. and

R. Chambers. 3s. 6d.)—A good story of school life is about as hard a thing to write as can be imagined, and Mr. Whishaw, clever tale-writer as he is, has not made a great success. Somehow mysteries, secrets, and surprises seem out of place in such a book, —there is no suspicion of anything of the kind in the ideal school- story, "Tom Brown." In The Boys of Brierley Grange we have a fire, a theft, a case of sleep-walking, and other complications, which seem, as we have said, out of place. What we want is a strong study of characters illustrated with some vivid scenes of school life.