Brander MatthewsCritiques

front page somewhate tarnished. $20 to $92.

Matthews, though obscure today, was at the forefront of the literary arts in the New York of his day. He taught theatre arts at Columbia University and was good friends with many famous people. His family money allowed him to do as he pleased; so his description of Frederick Olyphant as such is interesting. This may be his only venture into the mystery genre.

His descriptive powers and evocation of NYC society add to the interest of the story. His character descriptions tie in to the physical descriptions and he's got his tongue firmly in cheek. A pleasure of a book.

This is a collection of insightful essays about 19th century novelists and their craft. It offers sparkling anecdotes, brilliant critiques and loads of original information. One essay in particular on Britticisms vs Americanisms is especially good.

"There is no treasure in this life below like a great love for books, for they are safe guides in youth and a solace in age. A book is your best companion at all times and in all places. In choosing a book, as in choosing a dictionary, we ought to follow the advice of the advertisements and Get the Best. For ourselves and for our children we ought always to seek to form a taste for the best and a distaste for the bad." (p. 9)

$18 due to hardcover, first edition 1901. Author was famous Columbia U professor of lit .

for 1914Ex-lib. MED (no. 144) Bound with The Chester Plays. Part 1 Bound with English fragments from Latin medieval service books (EETS ES 90)