4 DECEMBER 1909, Page 12

Little Sister Snow. By the Author of "The Lady of

the Decoration." (Hodder and Stoughton. 5s.)—This is a charming story of modern Japan. It begins with the Festival of Dolls in the home of Yuki Chan, a delightful little girl. Early in the book she makes friends with an American boy, Dick Merrit, and the contrast between the East and West is cleverly brought out at their first meeting. Yuki's father and mother were poor, but they had known better days, and the struggle for existence was a particularly hard one as the girl grew up. She learned a little English at a mission school, and when in course of time Dick came back to Japan, she inevitably lost her heart to him. He was a straightforward and honest man, who still looked on his little Japanese friend as an engaging child, and so the story ends on a note of hope for Yuki, and not as the tragedy that at one point seemed imminent. The illustrations, by a Japanese artist, are very good, and add to the interest of this attractive little book.