AMONG THE BOOKS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2805, 18 December 1907, Page 88

AMONG THE BOOKS.

GUM-TREE BROWNIE,

And Other Faerie Folk of the Nev«rNever.

By Tarella Qtjtn and Ida Rbntotte-

Melbourne : George Robertson and Co.

This book of Australian fairy stories m one of the daintiest and most charming things imaginable, and marks quite an epoch of Australian literary records and technical achievements. "Gum-tree Brownie" is the first of eight fairy stories in which Australian scenes and skits and surroundings are reasonably in evidence in plot and incident ; while the illustrations — as perhaps becomes the pictures of fairyland — are peculiar to nowhere, bun delicate and fanciful, and beauiiful always i indeed, in these pages Miss Ida Rantoul shows that her artistic skill and rich imagination were no outburst of precocious chiMrhood, brilliant, but evanescent ; bub the small and healthy beginnings of what should ultimately develop 'nto the cause of a world-wide reputation as an illustrator. Her work is as full of imagination as it is delicate in conception — Mr difficulty is not to expand, but to restrain its' redundance. And where she succeeds in this, as in the illustration to " Orion's Belt," nothing could be more absolutely bewitching. The stories themselves ana worthy of the illustrations, full of quaint humour, of which let this stand a* on example : , "... When Madge looked round at the uncle he was busily intent; on polishing the stones in Orion's Belfi^ "'Now, then,' said the. witcn, '"'fust keep your fineers off that belt! No one knows the value of those stones. Orion's just as careless as he can. be, studding his belt with those. You can dean up bis sword a bit if you like.' " ' You speak to me as if I were * common thief. . . . And I won't hay» it.' " ' Then what are you?' " ' I'm a gentleman 1' "*A gentleman! Ha! ha! It won'tf matter much what you are if I puC you ashore on the Milky- Way, and fesve you to find your way back to the earth by yourself. You'd be glad to be anything then.' "

Meantime, to those who wish to cftoos* a thoroughly charming book for a besfcr loved child— a book beautiful inside and out,— "the order of the day" » <r Gnm> tree Brownie."