29 JANUARY 1881, Page 27

The Grandidiers : a Tale of Berlin Life. By Julius

Rodenberg. Translated from the German by William &wile, (Sampson Low and Co.)--The charm of this book lies in its freshness. The plot is simple, and the characters familiar. The estrangement of a father and son, from the latter's devotion to painting, the son's mecessful fight to secure his place in the world of art, and their ultimate re- conciliation, have been the basis of more novels than we care to specify. But it is in this very point that the artist's superiority is manifest. Dealing with emotions so general that in the hands of ordinary novelists they would be common-place, Herr Rodenberg engages our attention at once, and when we lay down the book, we seem to have parted from old and dear friends. In almost every character the skilful hand of the anther has achieved success. As is natural, the hero, Edward, is the least satisfactory. He is shadowy. In Herr Grandidier, the prosperous hatter, with his love for his children, his pride in his ancestry, and his almost religious respect fortho Grand Elector, Herr Rodenberg has drawn what we think his most striking character. We hasten to say that Herr Grandidier is almost equalled by Barbel—a. fascinating Alsatian heroine—the.

" colonel," Louisa Dorothea, and the coachman. And this is done not by the laborious accumulation of minute detail, but by the force of a delicate imagination, of a quiet humour, and a truthful pathos. To those readers whose critical palates can appreciate the finer flavours of the literary table, we commit this novel.