"If to make children's stories as true to nature as the stories which the masters of fiction write for children of a larger growth be an uncommon achievement, and one that is worthy of wide recognition, that recognition should be given to Mr. J. T. Trowbridge for his many achievements in this difficult walk of literary art. Mr. Trowbridge has a good perception of character, which he draws with skill; he has abundance of invention, which he never abuses; and he has, what so many American writers have not, an easy, graceful style, which can be humorous, or pathetic, or poetic."—R. H. Stoddard in New York Mail.
Father Brighthopes: An Old Clergyman's Vacation. By J. T. Trowbridge. Illustrated. $1.25.
This book was published in the early fifties by Phillips, Sampson & Co., of which firm Mr. Lee (of Lee and Shepard) was then a member. It was very favorably received, and was followed by other stories,—a long series of them,—still lengthening, and which, it is hoped, may be prolonged indefinitely. Recently a new edition has appeared, and for a preface the author has related with touching simplicity the account of his first experience in authorship.
It is well known that Mr. Trowbridge is primarily a poet. Some beautiful poems of his were printed in the early numbers of the Atlantic Monthly (in company with poems by Longfellow, Emerson, Lowell, and Holmes), and were well received. "At Sea" is a gem that has become classic. The poetic faculty has not been without use to the story-writer. The perception of beauty in nature and in human nature is always evident even in his realistic prose. But his poetic gift never leads him into sentimentality, and his characters are true children of men, with natural faults as well as natural gifts and graces. His stories are intensely human, with a solid basis, and with an instinctive dramatic action. He has never written an uninteresting book.
Woodie Thorpe's Pilgrimage, and other Stories. By J. T. Trowbridge. Illustrated. $1.25.
"The scenes are full of human interest and lifelikeness, and will please many an old reader, as well as the younger folks for whose delectation it is intended. As in all the books of this author the spirit is manly, sincere, and in the best sense moral. There is no 'goody' talk and no cant, but principles of truthfulness, integrity, and self-reliance are quietly inculcated by example. It is safe to say that any boy will be the better for reading books like this."—St. Botolph.
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Neighbors' Wives. By J. T. Trowbridge. Cloth. $1.50.
As a novelty, the following acrostic is presented. The praise from the different newspapers is brief, but to the point.
| N | ot in the least tiresome.—Troy Press. |
| E | xquisite touches of character.—Salem Observer. |
| I | ntroducing strong scenes with rare skill.—Gloucester Telegraph. |
| G | roups well certain phases of character.—New Bedford Standard. |
| H | appy sprightliness of style and vivacity which fascinates—Dover Legion. |
| B | y many considered the author's best.—Journal. |
| O | ne of the best of Trowbridge's stories.—Commonwealth. |
| R | eader finds it difficult to close the book.—Hearth and Home. |
| S | tory all alive with adventures and incidents striking and vivid.—Dover Star. |
W | hich is one of Trowbridge's brightest and best.—Boston Transcript. |
| I | s destined to be enjoyed mightily.—Salem Observer. |
| V | ery pleasant reading.—New York Leader. |
| E | xcels any of the author's former books.—Montana American. |
| S | tory is in the author's best vein.—New Haven Register. |