A Remarkable Story.
Strange Threads. A Novel. By J. Douglas. 12mo, cloth, 60c. (15c); 22 oz
This is not only a remarkable story in itself but is really wonderful in its power to interest its readers, and in the various ways in which it impresses them. A gentleman whom the Christian Leader, Cincinnati, calls “a wise and critical connossieur” pronounces this book, with the possible exception of Vanity Fair, “the most original novel I ever read. * * I should have to go back as far as ‘Jane Eyre’ and ‘Villette,’ to name a novel as good as ‘Strange Threads,’ and I am not at all certain that this is not as strong as either of them.” And the Leader calls the book the “creation of a master imagination” and declares it to be “evidently the product of a genius.” The burden of testimony is along this line. Still there are
A FEW CONTRARY MINDS
whose opinions we quote in connection with the favorable criticisms.
“One can conceive that with less effort the author might write a passable book. As to the present book it is fairly unreadable, and the veriest devourer of romances cannot possibly get past the opening chapters without the feeling that he is in for a bad time.”—Daily Bee, Omaha, Neb.
“The publisher has done more than the writer for this book. The type and paper are so agreeable that one is tempted to read on, long after the discovery that there is little in the matter worthy of serious consideration. The author has shown a certain shrewdness, however, in filling the vacuum produced by absence of intellect in the book by cramming it with sentiment.”—The Epoch, N. Y. City.
MAN OR WOMAN?
Another matter about which the critics are puzzled is the sex of the author. Some affirm that J. Douglas is a man, others are equally sure that it is a woman’s name, while some are content to say they do not know.
“J. Douglas is a new name in our list of novel-writers, but if ‘Strange Threads’ is his maiden effort, he is surely a phenomenon. Regarded as the first work of a new writer, it is simply wonderful; even as the product of mature experience it is still worthy of being termed remarkable. It is original without being strained or whimsical, wholesomely terse in construction, frequently bright in epigram, and the story grows stronger with every page to the close. It is not too much to say that it will bear reading along with the novels of Charlotte Bronte, and the writer succeeds even better than she in picturing his characters in life-like presence without making an elaborate study of them, while there is a more perceptible and worthier motive in his drawing.”—Paper World. Springfield, Mass.
“J. Douglas is evidently a woman. The adventures of a party of American novelists in Europe, their love-making and their heart disappointments, are the author’s stock in trade, and she has certainly succeeded in weaving a very tangled web. There are here and there a strong portraiture and a keen analysis of motives, while the descriptive portions have a picturesqueness and vigor which give old and well-traveled roads a new beauty.”—Record, Philadelphia.
“It is probable that “J.” stands for Jane, Josephine or some other name feminine, for the book is thoroughly a woman’s book. It certainly is very well written, and, if by a new aspirant for literary honors, as it seems, she is certain to make her mark.”—The Republic, St. Louis, Mo.
“A new American novelist of considerable originality and force has appeared. The name is J. Douglas, though whether it stands for man or woman must be gathered from the book. The dialogue is bright, the situations are dramatic and the book is thoroughly readable from beginning to end.”—Illus. Christian Weekly, N. Y. City.
PRE-EMINENTLY A LOVE STORY.
“A love Story; a bright sketchy tale of a wayward young lady—that is, wayward in her loves. It is certainly very original; on the whole, is a novel to be liked by the public.”—Times, Kansas City, Mo.
“A most interesting work, which engrosses the attention of the reader from the first to the last chapter.”—Morning Call, San Francisco.