"Mother Nature Stories," one of the latest books for boys and girls, has found
its way a little tardily to the Christmas bookshelves in Vancouver and elsewhere.
The author is Mr. R.S. Sherman, principal of the
Admiral Seymour public school, Vancouver, and the illustrations are from the
pencils of Maud Sherman and the author. If Santa
Claus is wise his pack will be heavy with numerous copies: but the jolly little
man had better not look inside until the Christmas rush is over, or there will be
great danger that the reindeer bells will not jingle in time, for the dear old boy
would be so fascinated that, with team straying on the green boulevards, he might
be found, oblivious of all else, under the silvery rays of the December moon, or
the most modern electric lamp, immovable until he had devoured the last sentence
of the last page.
The book stands the acid test of a perfect book for boy or girl; while to these
it is as engrossing as a fairy tale, it has at the same time an impelling attention
for those who were boys and girls a generation ago. The statements will be found to
be scientific facts, while the style exhibits literary gifts of a high order. The
sketches have already appeared in "School Days": but
those who have delighted in them in these pages will hasten only the more quickly to
enjoy them once more in their new dress. The book will prove brimful of interest from
Alpha to Omega, from "Cheetwoot, the Black Bear," to "Skookum Charlie" and "Skunks
I Have Met."
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