Today | News | Books | Recipes Adventure | Science Fiction | Ghost stories | Poetry | Children | History Bookentor JOHN STUART BLACKIE, Scottish Scholar and Man-of-letters RICHARD DODDRIDGE BLACKMORE, English Novelist JOHN HENRY BONER, Editor and Poet ELBRIDGE STREETER BROOKS, Author of "Historic Boys" and "Historic Girls" WINIFRED BUCK, Author of "The American Girl" GELETT BURGESS, Draughtsman and Author THORNTON WALDO BURGESS, Author of "Old Mother West Wind" ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING, Poet ROBERT BROWNING, Poet ROBERT BURNS, Poet CHARLES H. CAFFIN, Author of "A Guide to Pictures" CHARLES DICKENS, Novelist MARY MAPES DODGE, Author and Editor NATHAN HASKELL DOLE, Author of "Young Folks' History of Russia," etc. ALEXANDRE DUMAS, Novelist M. S. EMERY, Author of "How to Enjoy Pictures" EUGENE FIELD, Poet WILLIAM LOVELL FINLEY, State Biologist of Oregon EDWARD HOWE FORBUSH, State Ornithologist of Massachusetts MARY E. WILKINS FREEMAN, Novelist MATTHEW PAGE GAFFNEY, Headmaster of the Roger Ascham School REV. WASHINGTON GLADDEN, Author of "Santa Claus on a Lark," "Social Salvation," etc. JOEL CHANDLER HARRIS, Author of "Uncle Remus Stories" ELIZABETH HARRISON, President of the National Kindergarten College NATHANIEL HAWTHORNE, Novelist CHARLES FREDERICK HOLDER, Author of "Big Game Fish of the United States" VICTOR HUGO, Poet and Novelist FREDERICK WINTHROP HUTCHINSON, Author of "The Men Who Found America" JEAN INGELOW, Poet and Novelist WASHINGTON IRVING, Historian, Essayist, and Novelist TUDOR JENKS, Author of "Boys' Book of Explorations," "Electricity for Young People," etc. CHARLES KINGSLEY, Clergyman and Author GUSTAVE KOBBE, Author of "Wagner's Music Dramas Analyzed" CHARLES LAMB, Critic, Humorist, and Author SIDNEY LANIER, Poet and Critic EDMUND LEAMY, Author of "The Golden Spears" MAUD McKNIGHT LINDSAY, Author of "Mother Stories" HENRY W. LONGFELLOW, Poet SILAS ALPHA LOTTRIDGE, Author of "Animal Snapshots and How Made" FREDERIC A. LUCAS, Director of the American Museum of Natural History INEZ N. McFEE, Author of "Tales of Common Things" PETER MacQUEEN, Lecturer and Author of "Around the World With the Flag" JOHN MILTON, Poet ALFRED NOYES, Poet ALBERT BIGELOW PAINE, Author of "The Van Dwellers," "Mark Twain" and other works GIFFORD PINCHOT, Systematic Forester EMILIE POULSSON, Author of "Finger Plays" LAURA ELIZABETH RICHARDS, Author of the "Hildegarde" Books and "The Golden Windows" JAMES WHITCOMB RILEY, Poet JOHN RUSKIN, Art Critic and Writer SIR WALTER SCOTT, Novelist and Poet ANNA SEWELL Novelist ROBERT W. SERVICE, Author of "The Spell of the Yukon" ERNEST THOMPSON SETON, Artist, Author, and Lecturer WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, Poet and Dramatist PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY, Poet VILHJALMUR STEFANSSON, Arctic Explorer ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON, Poet, Essayist, and Novelist ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON, Poet MRS. GUDRUN THORNE-THOMSEN, Author of "East o' the Sun and West o' the Moon," and other Norwegian Folk Tales EVERETT TITSWORTH TOMLINSON, Ph.D., L.H.D., Author of "Three Young Continentals" CAROLYN WELLS, Author of "A Nonsense Anthology" and the "Marjorie" Books JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER, Poet and Author LEONARD WOOD, Major-General, United States Army ORVILLE WRIGHT, Aviator and Inventor PARTIAL LIST OF ILLUSTRATORS _Examples of whose work appear in the_ BOYS AND GIRLS BOOKSHELF JOHN W. ALEXANDER F. S. CHURCH LUCY FITCH PERKINS ANNIE ANDERSON CLYDE O. DELAND HOWARD PYLE FLORENCE ANDERSON EDMUND DULAC ARTHUR RACKHAM CULMER BARNES RUTH HALLOCK FREDERICK REMINGTON FRANK L. BAUM FLORENCE HARRISON F. REUTERDAHL J. CARTER BEARD R. BRUCE HORSFALL HARRY ROUNTREE W. T. BENDA GEORGE W. JOY CARL RUNGIUS JOHN BENNETT E. W. KEMBLE EDMUND J. SAWYER ANNA WHELAN BETTS EMILIE BENSON KNIPE ERNEST THOMPSON SETON R. B. BIRCH CHARLES F. LESTER R. SHRADOR E. H. BLASHFIELD J. C. LEYENDECKER HAROLD SICHEL R. I. BRASHER H. MOORE HUGH SPENCER PAMELA VINTON BROWN H. A. OGDEN ALICE BARBER STEPHENS HARRISON CADY MONRO S. ORR FRANK STICK BESS BRUCE CLEVELAND MAXFIELD PARRISH SARA S. STILLWELL F. Y. CORY MALCOLM PATTERSON C. R. SWAN LILIAN A. COVEY E. C. PEIXOTTO ALBERTINE RANDALL WHEELAN GENERAL INTRODUCTION Books are as essentially a part of the home where boys and girls are growing into manhood and womanhood as any other part of the furnishings. Parents have no more right to starve a child's mind than they have his body. If a child is to take his place among the men and women of his time he needs to know the past out of which the present grew, and he needs to know what is going on in the world in which he lives. He needs tools for his brain as much as for his hands. All these things are found, and found only, in books. The child is helpless to provide himself with these necessaries for life. The majority of parents are eager that their children shall start early and right on that road which leads to honorable success. But it is impossible for any parent, by no matter how liberal an expenditure, to collect books that shall adequately cover all a child's needs and interests. This is the task of experts. INSTRUCTIVE PLAY Recent studies of childhood have emphasized the conviction that a child develops his talents even more in his playtime than in his school; his spontaneous activities build up his fourfold--physical, mental, social, and moral--nature. Probably no collection of books has been more strongly affected by this modern discovery than the BOYS AND GIRLS BOOKSHELF. The whole effort has been to utilize the child's play-interests so that they shall express themselves in joyous ways that lead into the world of invention and industry, of imagination and achievement, of science and art and music, of character and worth-while deeds. Children's collections have had various literary styles. The encyclopedia is comprehensive, but stately and often dull; it will answer the question of the child, but it does not lead the child toward more knowledge. The scrapbook is interesting, but it has no plan or order. The "inspirational" book is full of fine sentiments, but without facts or much information. THE PURPOSE OF _THE BOOKSHELF_ The BOOKSHELF is so built that it creates a desire for knowledge, and then satisfies that desire. At the same time the BOOKSHELF does not pretend to tell all that is known on any one subject. The Editors have selected the subjects concerning which no one should be ignorant, and have seen to it that the information is given in an attractive form with plenty of illustrative material, and that when the reader is finished he will have a working knowledge of the subject. To awaken minds and to make them alert and receptive has been the aim in making the BOOKSHELF. THE PLAN AND SCOPE The BOOKSHELF begins with the dawn of intelligence in the child, and goes with him through the morning of childhood, and into the noonday of youth. It contains a complete stock of finger-plays, action-plays |