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White Magic
Excerpt from White Magic
When Roger Wade's Aunt Bella died she left him forty thousand dollars in five-per-cent railway bonds and six hundred and ninety acres of wilderness extending from the outskirts of Deer Spring village to the eastern shore of Lake Wauchong, in northern New Jersey. She had contrived to quarrel and break with all her other relations. This was no easy undertaking, and in its success was a signal tribute to her force of character; for, each and everyone of those relatives knew of her possessions and longed and hoped for them and stood ready to endure, even to welcome, any outrage she might see fit to perpetrate. Roger she had not seen in fourteen years - not since he, a youth of eighteen, a painter born, long and lean, with a shock of black-brown hair and dreamy, gray-brown eyes, left his native Deer Spring to study in Paris.
When Roger Wade's Aunt Bella died she left him forty thousand dollars in five-per-cent railway bonds and six hundred and ninety acres of wilderness extending from the outskirts of Deer Spring village to the eastern shore of Lake Wauchong, in northern New Jersey. She had contrived to quarrel and break with all her other relations. This was no easy undertaking, and in its success was a signal tribute to her force of character; for, each and everyone of those relatives knew of her possessions and longed and hoped for them and stood ready to endure, even to welcome, any outrage she might see fit to perpetrate. Roger she had not seen in fourteen years - not since he, a youth of eighteen, a painter born, long and lean, with a shock of black-brown hair and dreamy, gray-brown eyes, left his native Deer Spring to study in Paris.
222 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1910
8 people want to read
About the author
David Graham Phillips
178 books6 followersDavid Graham Phillips was an American novelist and journalist of the muckraker tradition.Phillips was born in Madison, Indiana. After graduating from high school, Phillips entered Asbury College (now DePauw University) - following which he received a degree from Princeton University in 1887.
After completing his education, Phillips worked as a newspaper reporter in Cincinnati, Ohio, before moving on to New York City where he was employed as a reporter for The Sun from 1890 to 1893, then columnist and editor with the New York World until 1902.
In his spare time, he wrote a novel, The Great God Success, that was published in 1901. The royalty income enabled him to work as a freelance journalist while continuing to write fiction. Writing articles for various prominent magazines, he began to develop a reputation as a competent investigative journalist. Phillips' novels often commented on social issues of the day and frequently chronicled events based on his real-life journalistic experiences.
He was considered a Progressive and for exposing corruption in the Senate he was labelled a muckraker. Phillips wrote an article in Cosmopolitan in March 1906, called "The Treason of the Senate," exposing campaign contributors being rewarded by certain members of the U. S. Senate. The story launched a scathing attack on Rhode Island senator Nelson W. Aldrich, and brought Phillips a great deal of national exposure. This and other similar articles helped lead to the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, initiating popular instead of state-legislature election of U. S. senators.
After completing his education, Phillips worked as a newspaper reporter in Cincinnati, Ohio, before moving on to New York City where he was employed as a reporter for The Sun from 1890 to 1893, then columnist and editor with the New York World until 1902.
In his spare time, he wrote a novel, The Great God Success, that was published in 1901. The royalty income enabled him to work as a freelance journalist while continuing to write fiction. Writing articles for various prominent magazines, he began to develop a reputation as a competent investigative journalist. Phillips' novels often commented on social issues of the day and frequently chronicled events based on his real-life journalistic experiences.
He was considered a Progressive and for exposing corruption in the Senate he was labelled a muckraker. Phillips wrote an article in Cosmopolitan in March 1906, called "The Treason of the Senate," exposing campaign contributors being rewarded by certain members of the U. S. Senate. The story launched a scathing attack on Rhode Island senator Nelson W. Aldrich, and brought Phillips a great deal of national exposure. This and other similar articles helped lead to the passage of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, initiating popular instead of state-legislature election of U. S. senators.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 25, 2021
Read it on Gutenberg. This book started out great but just fizzled toward the end. A love story? Or maybe an unrequited love story published in 1909. And it showed.
How we have changed? Or I hope we have. Beatrice (aka Rix) who comes from a rich high class snobby family agreed to be the model for a painter named Wade (aka Chang). They flirt. Their interaction was fun and lively. She falls in love with him but he seems ambivalent about it all.
This poses a scandal in Beatrice's family because they want her to marry a wealthy milquetoast childhood friend not a lowly artist. The book really goes downhill when Dad becomes downright verbally abusive to his daughter.
On the positive side she stands up for herself and does not take any guff from her father or mother. This was a point in history when women were trying to become more independent and they were fighting for the right to vote. So there is a lot of that attitude in Beatrice and I liked that about her.
Wade grated on me after a while. At first all he wanted to do was protect his painting of her. Later, he gave her the cold shoulder.
A lot of dialogue in this book made for quicker reading.
How we have changed? Or I hope we have. Beatrice (aka Rix) who comes from a rich high class snobby family agreed to be the model for a painter named Wade (aka Chang). They flirt. Their interaction was fun and lively. She falls in love with him but he seems ambivalent about it all.
This poses a scandal in Beatrice's family because they want her to marry a wealthy milquetoast childhood friend not a lowly artist. The book really goes downhill when Dad becomes downright verbally abusive to his daughter.
On the positive side she stands up for herself and does not take any guff from her father or mother. This was a point in history when women were trying to become more independent and they were fighting for the right to vote. So there is a lot of that attitude in Beatrice and I liked that about her.
Wade grated on me after a while. At first all he wanted to do was protect his painting of her. Later, he gave her the cold shoulder.
A lot of dialogue in this book made for quicker reading.
May 26, 2021
Beautiful
Such a lovely and sweet romantic book. It’s very beautifully written, with several of the passages bordering on poetic. There’s of course the sexism and classism that all old books have, but for the most part it’s easy to ignore. The heroine is very strong and brave and resilient and I rooted for her the entire way (although if it had been written about ten years later she would have gotten to keep her career after marriage.)
Such a lovely and sweet romantic book. It’s very beautifully written, with several of the passages bordering on poetic. There’s of course the sexism and classism that all old books have, but for the most part it’s easy to ignore. The heroine is very strong and brave and resilient and I rooted for her the entire way (although if it had been written about ten years later she would have gotten to keep her career after marriage.)
March 4, 2021
There is a reason this is a forgotten book. Let it remain forgotten. If it weren’t for the elegant vintage cover binding I would never have bought it. It will only remain a beautiful decorative novelty gracing my boudoir/reading room instead of a cherished bookcraft.
Beginning with only the first few pages I was already enveloped in ennui however I persisted forward through the next seventy-eight pages growing bored practically to tears. The main characters and their puerile nicknames, Beatrice Richmond (Rix) and Roger Wade (Chang) will exhaust you beyond belief with their ridiculously repetitive dialogues. Seriously, these simpleton, cat n’ mouse, playing hard to get conversations carry on page after page after page after page without a break nor much enchantment whatsoever. I’m assuming the couple eventually and tediously fall in love since one of the first pages of the book shows a lovely sketch of the two of them. Next, you’ll meet two more sillily named cardboard characters being Heck and Hank. Yawn.
I can’t fathom how such a daftly nauseating literary expenditure could come to pass in the reverie of 1910, the year the book was published. Finishing this rubbish would have been pure misery. There is nothing more to say other than collecting this antiquarian book for it’s gracefully charming hardcover along with its alluring title of White Magic. I’ll fancy setting it alongside my phantom crystals, fresh flowers, trinkets and other goodies.
Beginning with only the first few pages I was already enveloped in ennui however I persisted forward through the next seventy-eight pages growing bored practically to tears. The main characters and their puerile nicknames, Beatrice Richmond (Rix) and Roger Wade (Chang) will exhaust you beyond belief with their ridiculously repetitive dialogues. Seriously, these simpleton, cat n’ mouse, playing hard to get conversations carry on page after page after page after page without a break nor much enchantment whatsoever. I’m assuming the couple eventually and tediously fall in love since one of the first pages of the book shows a lovely sketch of the two of them. Next, you’ll meet two more sillily named cardboard characters being Heck and Hank. Yawn.
I can’t fathom how such a daftly nauseating literary expenditure could come to pass in the reverie of 1910, the year the book was published. Finishing this rubbish would have been pure misery. There is nothing more to say other than collecting this antiquarian book for it’s gracefully charming hardcover along with its alluring title of White Magic. I’ll fancy setting it alongside my phantom crystals, fresh flowers, trinkets and other goodies.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews