THE WORLD'S BEST BOOKS

A KEY TO THE TREASURES OF LITERATURE

BY

FRANK PARSONS

THIRD EDITION

REVISED AND ENLARGED

BOSTON
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY
1893

Copyright, 1889, 1891, 1893,

By Frank Parsons.

UNIVERSITY PRESS:

John Wilson and Son, Cambridge, U.S.A.

PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION.

At the request of the publishers the following statement is made as a substitute for the former indefinite arrangement in respect to authorship.

The plan and composition of the book were mine; the work of my colleagues, F. E. Crawford and H. T. Richardson, consisting of criticism, verifications, and assistance in gathering materials for the appendix,—services of great value to me, and of which I wish to express my high appreciation.

A few additions have been made in this edition, and the book has been carefully revised throughout.

FRANK PARSONS.

Boston, January, 1893.

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION.

The public and the critics have met us with a welcome far more cordial than we had dared to expect, though not more so, of course, than we hoped for. When did a thing such as that ever happen? We are glad to discover that in forming our expectations we underrated their discernment, or our own merit (probably not the latter, judging by the remarks of two or three of our critics), and in real earnest we are grateful for their high appreciation of our work.

Some few—a very few—have found fault with us, and our thanks are due to them also; for honest, kindly, intelligent criticism is one of the most powerful means of growth. The fact that this little volume is not intended as an infallible guide, or as anything more than a stimulus to seek the best, and a suggestion of the method of guiding one's self and one's children, has been missed by some, though it appears distinctly in various places through the book, and is involved in what we deem the most useful part of our work,—the remarks following Table V., wherein we endeavor to show the student how he may learn to estimate the value of a book for himself. So far were we from wishing to decide matters which manifestly vary with the wants and capacities of each individual, that we emphatically advised the reader not to accept the opinions of any one as final, but to form his own judgments.

Some have failed to perceive that, in ranking the books, we have considered, not merely their intrinsic merit, but also the needs and abilities of the average English reader, making a compound test by which to judge, not the relative greatness of the books simply, but their relative claims on the attention of the ordinary reader. This also was set forth, as we thought, quite distinctly, and was in fact understood by nearly every one, but not by all, for some have objected to the order of the books in Table I., affirming, for example, that the "Federalist" and Bryce's "American Commonwealth" are far superior to "Our Country," and should be placed above it. That would be true if intrinsic greatness alone decided the matter. But the average reader with his needs and abilities is a factor in the problem, as well as the book with its subject and style. Now, the ordinary reader's time and his mental power are both limited. "Our Country" is briefer and simpler than the others, and its contents are of vital interest to every American, of even more vital interest than the discussions of the "Federalist" or Bryce; and so, although as a work of art it is inferior to these, it must rank above them in this book, because of its superior claims upon the attention of the average reader. In a similar manner other questions of precedence are determined on the principles contained in the remarks on Table V. It is not pretended, however, that the arrangement is perfect even in respect to our own tests, especially among the authors on the second shelf of Table I. The difficulties of making a true list may be illustrated by the fact that one critic of much ability affirms that Marietta Holley ought to head the tenth column, as the best humorist of all time; another says it is absurd to place her above the Roman wits Juvenal and Lucian; and a third declares with equal positiveness that she ought not to appear in the list at all. We differ from them all, and think the high place we have given Miss Holley is very near the truth.

Communications have been received from Oliver Wendell Holmes, Marietta Holley, Senator Hoar, Phillips Brooks, Bishop J. H. Vincent, Brooke Herford, Francis Parkman, ex-Gov. John D. Long, Gen. Benj. F. Butler, T. W. Higginson, and many other eminent persons, bringing to us a number of suggestions, most of which we have adopted to the great advantage of our book, as we hope and believe.

We have added a number of valuable works to the lists of the first edition, and have written a new chapter on the guidance of children, the means of training them to good habits of reading, and the books best adapted to boys and girls of various ages.

If any one, on noting some of the changes that have been made in this edition, feels inclined to raise the cry of inconsistency, we ask him to remember the declaration of Wendell Phillips, that "Inconsistency is Progress." There is room for still further inconsistency, we do not doubt; and criticism or suggestion will be gladly received.

FRANK PARSONS.

Boston, January, 1891.

CONTENTS.