BOYCOTTED BOOKS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIX, Issue 77, 2 April 1910, Page 13

BOYCOTTED BOOKS.

QUESTIONS OF INTEREST IN THE PUBLISHING WORLD. Interest in the question of books banned by circulating libraries is revived by the action of some of these with reference to Miss Mary Gaunt's latest novel, says the St. James's Budget. The refusal of the libraries to take Mr. de Morgan's last work, "It Never Can Happen Again," in the form of two volumes, at the retail price of 10s, is i still fresh in the public mind. As is generally the case, the effect of the boycott has been to help the circulation of the book, although the libraries have maintained the stand they took at first. The same result has followed the rejection by the libraries o4 other books which they judge to be "personally scandalous, libellous, immoral, or otherwise disagreeable." Without suggesting that any books have been published and extensively sold which answer to this description, several of the largest booksellers in London state that books which were hit at by the libraries have been in greater demand since. One noticeable etjec^ o| the recent unrest in the publishing world is the shyness of the purchaser oi the six-shil-ling novel. The idea has gained ground that this is an excessive price, which has been bolstered up for the purpose of giving all concerned in the production " and sale of books big profits. The great success of a well-known sevenpenny cloth series, wliicli contains original copyiight novals by the most eminent writers, has done much to convince many people that six shillings is too much to pay for any book. Experiments in leduced prices iiav^; \ been made by several publishers. There is, of course, the sixpenny paper cover, which the reader throws away when finished, but this, is not in the same category as the cloth book, which is more |or less permanent. Two firms at the: present time are bringing out series of b.ooks, the same in size any style as the six shilling novel, at two shillings. One of the largest firms of publishers is considering the issue of "a half-crown edition of the best living writers equal in every way to the old six shilling novel. The whole tendency in the trade is .to bring out cheaper buoks, and meanwhile book buyers, in the belief that they have been imposed upon in the past, are neglecting the six shilling issues. All this is, of course., to the advantage of subscription librarie3, which, with lower priced books, can meet the demands of their circles at much less cost.