Stockbridge, 1739-1939: A Chronicle
by and [Berkshire Courier, $2.75]
THE history of the town of Stockbridge is well worth telling; it has been, during the two hundred years of its life, an epitome of its part of the country, and it has had more than its share of distinguished names associated with it. Its development from a semi-agricultural, semi-missionary community to a summer resort is the history of many New England towns; its tradition has been enriched by the names of Jonathan Edwards, the Sedgwicks, Fanny Kemble, Hawthorne, Melville, Matthew Arnold, and many others.
Mrs. Sedgwick and Mrs. Marquand have written a volume which does the town admirable justice. There may be an occasional confusion or omission or lack of emphasis, but on the whole they have made a more than readable book, interesting to both local inhabitants and strangers. Their account of the early years of the town is particularly good, and throughout we get a feeling of the community itself, — something more than the sum of the people and events which make up its history, — which is just what is wanted in a book of this kind.
The account of the later years of the town has, to be sure, less vividness than the account of the early period. Perhaps the edge of local character has grown less sharp in a rapid-transit age; perhaps the authors have tried a little too carefully not to offend recent memories. There may still be an occasional person in Stockbridge ready to take offense at an innocuous reference; but this is hard to believe. Mrs. Sedgwick and Mrs. Marquand have done their job with so much tact and skill that it can only give pleasure and satisfaction to the real lovers of the town whose history they have so competently told.
THEODORE SPENCER