_Quicksand_ is a strong argument against a certain condition which
the author believes exists too generally in American society, and
is, in effect, an appeal for the freedom of the individual in family
life. It is a powerful tragedy, developing very naturally out of the
effects of the interference of parents in the lives of their children,
and of brothers and sisters in the affairs of each other. It becomes
therefore, not only the story of an individual, but the life history of
an entire family, the members of which are portrayed with astonishing
vividness and realism. The hero of the book also illustrates, in
his sufferings and failures, the unfortunate effects of a too narrow
orthodoxy in religion, coupled with his family's interference with his
growth out of this environment. Offsetting the tragedy of the story is
"Hiram," the "hired man" of the family in its earlier New England days,
in whom, particularly, the reader's interest will centre. Patient,
kindly, faithful, and uncomplaining, he is indeed the real "hero"
of the tale, the only one free from the unfortunate environments of
the other characters, yet forced indirectly to suffer also because of
them. It is the every-day life of the every-day family that is drawn;
and this fact, together with the boldness and fidelity of the drawing,
gives the story its power and impressiveness.
"Hervey White is the most forceful writer who has appeared
in America for a long generation."--_Chicago Evening Post_.
"We cannot remember another book in which lives, thoughts,
emotions, souls, and principles of action have been analyzed
with such convincing power. Mr. Hervey White has great
literary skill. He has here made his mark, and he has come to
stay.... He is the American George Gissing, and as such some
day he will have to be taken into account."--_Boston Herald_.
"It should insure Mr. White a permanent place in the critical
regard of his fellow-countrymen.... Few characters as strong
as that of Elizabeth Hinckley have ever been drawn by an
American author, and she will remain in the mind of the most
assiduous novel reader, secure of a place far above that held
by most of the puny creations of the day."--_Chicago Tribune_.
"It is wrought of enduring qualities. Few novels are so
sustained on an elevated plane of interest."--_Philadelphia
Item_.
"It is a novel that takes hold of one, and is not the sort
of book that, once begun, can be laid down without being
finished."--_Indianapolis News_.
Two Notable Novels by Emma Rayner.
VISITING THE SIN
A Tale of Mountain Life In Kentucky and Tennessee.