Of course there are books which a man or woman uses as instruments of a profession--law books, medical books, cookery books, and the like.

I am not speaking of these, for they are not properly "books" at all; they come in the category of time-tables, telephone directories, and other useful agencies of civilized life.

I am speaking of books that are meant to be read.

Personally, granted that these books are decent and healthy, the one test to which I demand that they all submit is that of being interesting.

If the book is not interesting to the reader, then in all but an infinitesimal number of cases it gives scant benefit to the reader.