The Adventures of Mabel

The Adventures of Mabel is a children's fantasy novel by Harry Thurston Peck, first published in 1897 under the pseudonym Rafford Pyke.

The Adventures of Mabel
AuthorHarry Thurston Peck (as Rafford Pyke)
Publication date
January 1, 1896

Plot

The story is about Mabel, a five-year-old girl who helps the King of all the lizards and is rewarded with the ability to converse with animals. She also meets giants and brownies.

History

The first edition was published in 1897 by Dodd, Mead & Co. under the pseudonym "Rafford Pyke" with illustrations by Melanie Elisabeth Norton.[1][2] At the time, Peck was the editor of The Bookman, a literary journal which published an effusive review of The Adventures of Mabel in December 1897 under the byline Nicholas Brown,[3] and had previously published an article under Peck's name announcing the book's release by "Pyke".[4] The conflicts of interest were not disclosed.[5] When The Adventures of Mabel was mentioned in the episode "Mabel" of the television show Better Call Saul as a childhood book beloved by protagonist Jimmy McGill, commentators noted parallels between Peck's and McGill's uses of pseudonyms, and compared the development of McGill's plot arc to the real-life fate of Peck,[5][6] who committed suicide in 1914 after being cut off by literary colleagues in the fallout from an alleged love affair.[7]

Reception

Kirkus Reviews stated that the book may entertain young children.[8] This sentiment was echoed by The New York Times, which lauded the book for young readers.[9] The illustrations were praised by The Evangelist as "original and amusing".[1] Kirkus criticised the book's word choice and loosely connected structure.[8] The imagination of the book was described by The Critic as infantile,[10] and its story was criticised by The Nation.[11]

References
  1. The Evangelist 1897-11-25: Vol 68 Iss 47. Internet Archive. Open Court Publishing Co. 1897-11-25.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. "Dodd, Mead & Co". The Critic. New York. 1897-09-11. p. 141.
  3. Brown, Nicholas (December 1897). "An Ideal Child's Book". The Bookman. 6 (4): 365–366.
  4. "The New Child and its Picture Books". The Bookman. 4 (1): 301–308. September 1896.
  5. Fuster, Jeremy (2017-04-11). "'Better Call Saul': The Link Between 'The Adventures of Mabel' and Jimmy McGill". The Wrap. Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  6. Venable, Nick (2017-04-12). "Did Better Call Saul's Season 3 Premiere Hint At How Jimmy Dies?". Cinemablend. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  7. Gordon, Laura. "PECK, Harry Thurston". Database of Classical Scholars. Rutgers School of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  8. "Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  9. Reed, Helen Leah (1900-12-08). "Books for Children.: TWENTY OF THE BEST AMONG RECENT ONES". The New York Times. ProQuest 95974430. Retrieved 2023-01-16.
  10. The Critic 1897-12-11: Vol 28 Iss 825. Internet Archive. Open Court Publishing Co. 1897-12-11.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. The Nation 1897-11-18: Vol 65 Iss 1690. Internet Archive. Nation Company L.P. 1897-11-18.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
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