Book-Song. Edited by Gleeson White. (Elliot Stock.)—Mr. White has collected
hero "an Anthology of Poems of Books and Bookmen from Modern Authors." He begins with Mr. T. B. Aldrich's " Friar Jerome's Beautiful Book." Mr. Aldrich is followed by Mr. Edward Heron-Allen in " A Ballad of Olde Bookes ; " and he again by a number of other writers, whose names we do not always, we are ashamed to say, recognise But it is ecally quite surprising, though a critic of many years' stand- ing ought to know it, how much good verse there is written nowa- days. It would he difficult to appoint a laureate, but it would be easy to put the office into commission, and a very strong com- mission too. Indeed, it would almost be possible to select a " Septuagint " of verse-writers. We cannot pretend to estimate the merits of the whole volume ; it would be highly ungracious to compare one writer with another. Briefly, we may say that this is as pleasant a little volume as we have seen for many a month. If any one is dense or ignorant enough, or prejudiced enough in his" laudater temporis acti " mood to sneer at modern poets, let him study Book-Song.—Mr. Elliot Stock also publishes another very good selection, though of a very different kind—Book-Song is mostly gay, while this is mostly grave—under the title of A Book of Heavenly Birthdays. By "E. V. B."—It is a gathering-together of other men's thoughts, upon the " End to which all things draw." Some of the titles under which the selections are ranged may be quoted,—" The Grave," " The Garden of Time," " Inno- centes," " Juventus," " Senectus," " The Sea " (we do not see that wonderfully significant text, " There shall be no more sea "), " Soldiers of Christ," and " Death the Friend." This Book of Heavenly Birthdays is one to be prized.
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