Books for Wise Boys and Girls
IN a class by itself, we would put Mr. Arthur Mee's John Bunyan (Hodder and Stoughton, 7s. 6d.)—by itself, because Mr. Mee has had 3,000,000 young readers for his previous publications, and knows the mind of children ; and because not even the Bible has a greater narrative interest than the happenings told by the tinker from Bedford. Mr. Mee gives us a good Introduction, most of the Progress, excerpts from the Holy War, full autobiographical details and perhaps too many of the weaker rhymes ; all in all, it is a big, beautiful book, remarkably well illustrated, and likely to lay the foundations of the love of good literature.
The Religious Tract Society send us two excellently- illustrated Bible books : New Testaments Pictures, with thirty-two colour blocks by Mr. Copping (10s. 6d.) and The Parables of Our Lord (7s. 6d.) The former, giving the Bible text, is much preferable to the latter : to retell the Parables is more than unnecessary—it is positively foolish. A third is The Perfect Friend (6s.), illustrated by the same artist, and told by Miss Helme. Mr. Copping is a master illustrator.
Of the four sea-books we can recommend, one is not really a children's book at all (Sea Love, by Mr. Stanley Rogers : Harrap, 7s. 6d.), but so well written that it will give pleasure to readers of any age. The same is true of the late Frank T. Bullen's Creatures of the Sea (Religious Tract Society, 6s.) which we can strongly recommend for adults and children. Bullen was well known to our older readers : his terse and vivid style is an education in itself and his practical knowledge of the deni- zens of the deep unsurpassed. Two volumes with similar titles are The Book of the Ship by Mr. Gibbard Jackson (Sampson Low, Marston, 6s.) and The Book of Ships by Mr. Ernest Prothero (Collins, 6s.). The former is a fascinating volume giving the story of our great merchant lines, and chapters on treasure ships and mysteries of the sea : the latter has a good account of the Royal Navy.
In books of biography and adventure, we would give first place to The Scout's Life of Baden Powell, by Messrs. Batchelder and Balfour. It brings the story of " B.P." down to 1924— not to the Birkenhead Jamboree of 1929 as the publishers assert on the cover. The man and his message are well described,
however, and there is an epic and immortal quality about the foundation of the Boy Scouts which is well conveyed in these pages. More Heroes of Modern Adventure, by Messrs. Bridges and Tiltna.4-anct Boys drul..girls Who Became Famous, by Miss Cruse (Harrap, 66: eaeg) are•contiimations of a popular series. The former is the most objective and the better written : will no doubt. tivq the: success. of the-. earlier volume (which ran into four editions) fOr every child wants to hear of :•Schweitzer, SeagraVe, Sutton, -General - Bruce, Dr. McGovern. We must alio include a really *rell-illastrated Don Quixote (Ward, Lock, Os.) in this category. The artist is Mr. Harry G. Theaker. •
A delightful natural history book is Dr. Morrison Hobson's My. Fairyland (Standard Press, South Croydon, 5s.) : it is simple, sincere, extremely well done. Enid Blyton's Nature Lessons (Evans Bros., 3s. 6d.) is a useful little book for parents, which comes in this class, but it is too scholastic to be an acceptable gift.
Of adventure books Twenty-Six Viking Stories (Boys' Own • Paper, 8s. 6d.), by Mr. T. D. Stuart can be recommended, and two good classical stories, Sons of the Violet Crowned, by . Dr. Way (Sheldon Press, 4s. 6d.), and The Adventures of Odysseus (Dent, 5s.). The former is based on Thucydides and gives a very clear and lively picture of . life in ancient Athens.
Mr. Ellison Hawks, well known as a scientist, gives us The Book of Electrical Wonders (Harrap, 7s. 6d.) and The Triumph of Man in Science and Invention (Jack, 10s. 6d.). ' The latter is a theme that has been worked over so often that it might seem almost threadbare, but Mr. Hawks, assisted by some very good pictures, has made the most of his subject. It is the book of all those mentioned in this column that we should most confidently choose for the "modern child." Electrical Wonders is, perhaps, a little abstruse, but. there ' are boys (and • some girls) who will love it. _ Electricity as a Wizard, by Dr. Charles Gibson (Blackie, 3s. dd.) is another, somewhat simpler book of the same kind. and British Loco- motives, by Mr. Gibbard Jackson (Sampson Low, Marston, Os) will find a warm welcome among a certain type of boy. It is curious that we have received no children's books on the one mechanical subject in which they are most interested- motor cars.
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