Page:The Spoils of Poynton (London, William Heinemann, 1897).djvu/327



The Times.—'Since Mrs. Gaskell wrote her Mary Barton we have seen no more interesting novel on the condition of the working classes. Mr. Tirebuck is thoroughly master of his subject. . . . A vivid and impressive narrative of the great coal strike of a couple of years ago.'

The Literary World.—'Every reader anxious to hear of a work that is full of brains and vigour may unhesitatingly enter Miss Grace of All Souls' upon his list of books worthy to be perused. . . . Mr. Tirebuck, not content with providing "Grace" for our admiration, has made another claim upon our love by presenting us to Nance Ockleshaw. For her sake alone Miss Grace of All Souls' should be read, and we hope that the novel will make its way into many a home, there to be considered with all the care that is due to it.'

The World.—'The most remarkable contribution made by fiction to the history of the working classes since Mary Barton, and it has a wider range and import of deeper gravity. It appeals directly to the thoughtful among readers, those who care to learn, on the object-lesson plan, the facts and aspects of life among the multitudes, with whom they are brought into actual contact. The girl who is its central figure is an original and very attractive character.'

The Daily Chronicle.—'An uncommonly well-told story, interesting from first to last. Mr. Tirebuck has drawn a truly delightful character in the miner's wife; indeed, the whole family might well have been sketched straight from the life. It is difficult to make a work of fiction at once instructive and entertaining, but Mr. Tirebuck has done it in Miss Grace of All Souls'.'

The Pall Mall Gazette.—'An admirable piece of work. Here is realism in its proper proportions: the rude, harsh, Methody life of the northern miner engraved in all its essentials. Mr. Tirebuck manages to illustrate the conditions of miners' lives for us with complete fidelity. Not a touch of the humour, the pathos, the tragedy, the grime, the sin, and the ideals is lacking. . . . Mr. Tirebuck has done his work to perfection. The story is not a moral tract, but a work of art of great significance.'

The British Weekly.—'Mr. Tirebuck is a practised and powerful novelist, and in this story he has taken us right inside the heart of the poor. His description of the collier's wife is wonderful work.'

The Manchester Guardian.—'As a picture of working men and women, instinct as it is with knowledge, sympathy, passion, and conviction, we have seldom, if ever, read anything so good.'

The Manchester Courier.—'The character of Miss Grace reminds the reader of the heroine of Charles Kingsley's Westward Ho!.'


 * WILLIAM HEINEMANN,, W.C.