frkdale ; or, the Odd House in the Hollow. By
Benjamin Brierley. 2 vols. (Tinsley Brothers.)—The less said about the plot of this novel the better. It is not only improbable, but so badly constructed that it comes to an untimely end in the middle of the second volume, or would do so if the author had not sent his heroine to France instead of marrying her, as every rule of the construction of novels dictated, to the hero. This, however, enabled him to give a very curious account of a low-life Lanca- shire wedding, at rather enormous length, and at the end of the volume the heroine comes back a widow and does marry the hero. And with Mr. Brierley his story is obviously a very secondary consideration. His object is to depict Lancashire manners and character, and this he does very admirably. Jacob Robinson, of the Odd House, the quaint old weavers' joiner, and his family, are a charming picture, nor can anything be better done than the Irkdale ale-house and its company. But still this is not writing a novel. It is the part of an artist to conceal his art, and it would be easy to construct a story which would enable Mr. Brierley to display his peculiar knowledge without forcing on the reader the knowledge that such is his object. Mrs. Gaskelrs Mary Barton is an excellent model ; nor can one mention that work without being reminded that Mr. Brierley dwells too exclusively on the humorous and every-day aspect of Lancashire life. He should sometimes let us see his favourites under the influence of sorrow, or some of the overmastering passions of our nature. He fiddles too much on one string.
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