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Old Caleb's Will: Or, the Fortunes of the Cardew Family.
Old Caleb's or, the Fortunes of the Cardew family.
British Library, Historical Print Editions
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. It is one of the world's largest research libraries holding over 150 million items in all known languages and books, journals, newspapers, sound recordings, patents, maps, stamps, prints and much more. Its collections include around 14 million books, along with substantial additional collections of manuscripts and historical items dating back as far as 300 BC.
The FICTION & PROSE LITERATURE collection includes books from the British Library digitised by Microsoft. The collection provides readers with a perspective of the world from some of the 18th and 19th century's most talented writers. Written for a range of audiences, these works are a treasure for any curious reader looking to see the world through the eyes of ages past. Beyond the main body of works the collection also includes song-books, comedy, and works of satire.
++++
The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition
++++
British Library
Armstrong, Frances;
1896.
8º.
012627.h.37.
British Library, Historical Print Editions
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. It is one of the world's largest research libraries holding over 150 million items in all known languages and books, journals, newspapers, sound recordings, patents, maps, stamps, prints and much more. Its collections include around 14 million books, along with substantial additional collections of manuscripts and historical items dating back as far as 300 BC.
The FICTION & PROSE LITERATURE collection includes books from the British Library digitised by Microsoft. The collection provides readers with a perspective of the world from some of the 18th and 19th century's most talented writers. Written for a range of audiences, these works are a treasure for any curious reader looking to see the world through the eyes of ages past. Beyond the main body of works the collection also includes song-books, comedy, and works of satire.
++++
The below data was compiled from various identification fields in the bibliographic record of this title. This data is provided as an additional tool in helping to insure edition
++++
British Library
Armstrong, Frances;
1896.
8º.
012627.h.37.
256 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1893
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 22, 2024
Six years ago, during my downtime, I would visit second-hand bookstores in Australia and try to purchase one book from each of those stores so long as the books I wanted were affordable. I'd travel to Newtown or Newcastle on separate Sundays and just immerse myself in the ambiance of these stores. I focused on purchasing affordable classics that I wouldn't find in the Philippines: I bought a few Australian classics, such as Patrick White's Voss, but often stumbled upon Victorian novels. There were four works by Bulwer-Lytton that I bought because I like challenges (and am probably secretly a masochist), and there was this gem I stumbled upon in Elizabeth's Bookstore in New South Wales.
I have not escaped the problem of most bibliophiles: they purchase a lot more books than they read. I have, however, tried to address this problem gradually, which is why I finally got to this novel after six years.
First, I do not consider this novel on the level of my other five-star ratings. It's honestly a 4.5. However, having read Bulwer-Lytton novels and Imaginary Conversations by W.S. Landor over the past month, this quaint work by Frances Armstrong simply proved to me that even during Victorian England, novelists could be concise should they desire to be. Bulwer-Lytton's works were not only ornate and circumlocutory, they were also tediously moralistic. At their worst, like Paul Clifford, they were also meretricious.
Having read all of those, Old Caleb's Will was not only a breath of fresh air: it was a zephyr of coolness. Even though Armstrong told the story of a family (the Cardew's), the work is concise, and the plot is tight: a young man, Robin, asks some help from an old man, the eponymous Caleb, because he has nowhere to go. Caleb kindly welcomes him and provides him board and lodging until Robin is able to obtain funds from his family, and they forge a lifelong friendship. Caleb has a child, Bob, who has not come home despite his father's requests. Eventually, as he nears death, Caleb bequeaths his fortune unto Robin and makes him promise to give Bob's fortune only if he has become a teetotal for two years.
Ultimately, as the novel progresses, the reader discovers that most of the novel's problems were borne from alcoholism. Armstrong drove this point home without being sanctimonious, even though she alludes to a Christian way of life. I also admire her ability to create a strong female character in Janet, who kept the Cardew family afloat with her forbearance and virtue. The book works both as a cautionary tale and a pleasurable read, which is rather rare in a Victorian novel. This balance alone makes this novel a worthy read.
I have not escaped the problem of most bibliophiles: they purchase a lot more books than they read. I have, however, tried to address this problem gradually, which is why I finally got to this novel after six years.
First, I do not consider this novel on the level of my other five-star ratings. It's honestly a 4.5. However, having read Bulwer-Lytton novels and Imaginary Conversations by W.S. Landor over the past month, this quaint work by Frances Armstrong simply proved to me that even during Victorian England, novelists could be concise should they desire to be. Bulwer-Lytton's works were not only ornate and circumlocutory, they were also tediously moralistic. At their worst, like Paul Clifford, they were also meretricious.
Having read all of those, Old Caleb's Will was not only a breath of fresh air: it was a zephyr of coolness. Even though Armstrong told the story of a family (the Cardew's), the work is concise, and the plot is tight: a young man, Robin, asks some help from an old man, the eponymous Caleb, because he has nowhere to go. Caleb kindly welcomes him and provides him board and lodging until Robin is able to obtain funds from his family, and they forge a lifelong friendship. Caleb has a child, Bob, who has not come home despite his father's requests. Eventually, as he nears death, Caleb bequeaths his fortune unto Robin and makes him promise to give Bob's fortune only if he has become a teetotal for two years.
Ultimately, as the novel progresses, the reader discovers that most of the novel's problems were borne from alcoholism. Armstrong drove this point home without being sanctimonious, even though she alludes to a Christian way of life. I also admire her ability to create a strong female character in Janet, who kept the Cardew family afloat with her forbearance and virtue. The book works both as a cautionary tale and a pleasurable read, which is rather rare in a Victorian novel. This balance alone makes this novel a worthy read.
Displaying 1 of 1 review