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The Lilac Girl
Wade Herrick has been a prospector for years in Colorado. When his partner dies, he travels to New Hampshire to see the house the man willed to him. And the girl just next door is the Lilac Girl who he saw once, years before...
126 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1909
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678 people want to read
About the author
Ralph Henry Barbour
404 books5 followersRalph Henry Barbour (1870 - 1944) was an American novelist who wrote popular works of sports fiction for boys, creating highly readable and idealistic stories that taught about the importance of sports, teamwork, and school spirit. Over his career, Barbour produced more than 100 novels as well as a number of short stories.
He was the winner, along with George Randolph Osborne, of Life Magazine’s Shortest Story Contest, which culminated with a publication of these works in 1916.
He was the winner, along with George Randolph Osborne, of Life Magazine’s Shortest Story Contest, which culminated with a publication of these works in 1916.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 18, 2022
May 16, 9pm ~~ Review asap. This was charming!
May 17, 1020pm ~~ I really enjoyed this little romance from 1909. It was innocent and delightful for a mostly lighthearted read. I say mostly because of course there are bumps in the road to true love and Wade manages to find a few of them!
But first he saw The Girl on a train. Wade and his partner were prospecting in Colorado, and were taking a rest break during a tramp to town. The train that came over the pass had to stop and when the passengers got out Wade happened to be Johnny On The Spot to flirt with Miss Eve. He gallantly tells her that he will marry her someday. And then the train's mechanical issue is repaired and away Eve goes, never to be seen again.
Until five years later when Wade visits his new home, the cottage once owned by his partner, who had died of typhoid fever and left the place to Wade. Oh, and of course in that time the two had struck it very rich in their prospecting, so there he is with a fortune, some vacation time, a lovely little cottage to fix up, and lo and behold, The Girl From The Train living right next door!
But will she recognize him?
And what is the story behind the lilacs Eve wears, anyway?
Speaking of lilacs, I love them just as much as our Eve does. When our old lilac in the front yard bloomed this spring I brought in two clumps of flowers and the house smelled wonderful for days. So I liked Eve because of her love for lilacs even before I knew anything else about her.
I would like to say something else about this book. It was written in 1909 so was mainly innocent and clean as far as profanity is concerned. Of course, if a person thinks that saying "In Heaven's name where am I?" is profanity, so be it. But this is an acceptable phrase for expressing surprise, and Wade was certainly surprised the first morning he woke up in his new house and in those first bleary moments could not remember where he was. Far from a Colorado mining camp, that is for certain! lol
But is that phrase a reason to give up on the book? Well, different strokes for different folks, I guess. I myself objected to the two or three paragraphs when Wade was telling Eve a little about his life in Colorado and referred to five different groups of people he had worked with by using five different offensive racial slurs. If I had been as much a woman of principle as The Profanity Girl, I would have quit the book at that point. But this is the danger of reading older books. Words are used that we would not use today, and each reader must decide for themselves how much to accept.
Just imagine what readers of the future will think of some of the books we all read today. They will be convinced that we were all obsessed with zombies, serial killers, and true crime stories and wonder how we managed to keep from killing each other off.
Oh, wait....we are pretty close to that point anyway, aren't we. Sigh.
Well, anyway, this was still a delightful little romance. That is my story and I am sticking to it.
May 17, 1020pm ~~ I really enjoyed this little romance from 1909. It was innocent and delightful for a mostly lighthearted read. I say mostly because of course there are bumps in the road to true love and Wade manages to find a few of them!
But first he saw The Girl on a train. Wade and his partner were prospecting in Colorado, and were taking a rest break during a tramp to town. The train that came over the pass had to stop and when the passengers got out Wade happened to be Johnny On The Spot to flirt with Miss Eve. He gallantly tells her that he will marry her someday. And then the train's mechanical issue is repaired and away Eve goes, never to be seen again.
Until five years later when Wade visits his new home, the cottage once owned by his partner, who had died of typhoid fever and left the place to Wade. Oh, and of course in that time the two had struck it very rich in their prospecting, so there he is with a fortune, some vacation time, a lovely little cottage to fix up, and lo and behold, The Girl From The Train living right next door!
But will she recognize him?
And what is the story behind the lilacs Eve wears, anyway?
Speaking of lilacs, I love them just as much as our Eve does. When our old lilac in the front yard bloomed this spring I brought in two clumps of flowers and the house smelled wonderful for days. So I liked Eve because of her love for lilacs even before I knew anything else about her.
I would like to say something else about this book. It was written in 1909 so was mainly innocent and clean as far as profanity is concerned. Of course, if a person thinks that saying "In Heaven's name where am I?" is profanity, so be it. But this is an acceptable phrase for expressing surprise, and Wade was certainly surprised the first morning he woke up in his new house and in those first bleary moments could not remember where he was. Far from a Colorado mining camp, that is for certain! lol
But is that phrase a reason to give up on the book? Well, different strokes for different folks, I guess. I myself objected to the two or three paragraphs when Wade was telling Eve a little about his life in Colorado and referred to five different groups of people he had worked with by using five different offensive racial slurs. If I had been as much a woman of principle as The Profanity Girl, I would have quit the book at that point. But this is the danger of reading older books. Words are used that we would not use today, and each reader must decide for themselves how much to accept.
Just imagine what readers of the future will think of some of the books we all read today. They will be convinced that we were all obsessed with zombies, serial killers, and true crime stories and wonder how we managed to keep from killing each other off.
Oh, wait....we are pretty close to that point anyway, aren't we. Sigh.
Well, anyway, this was still a delightful little romance. That is my story and I am sticking to it.
March 26, 2017
I’ve written before about my mixed feelings over vintage novels. Though clean and quaint, they are often overly sentimental. There are exceptions, of course, and I’m glad to say that Lilac Girl is one of them. At first I wasn't so sure. In the very first chapter an awkward phrase made the English major in me bristle up. Then there is a ridiculous instance of a man declaring his passion for a woman he has just met. But in subsequent chapters he sees his foolishness. My initial prejudice against the story was soon overcome by its charm.
Ralph Henry Barbour (1870-1944) wrote sports novels for boys and occasionally forayed into romantic fiction. Could this be why the book isn’t overly sappy? In any case, I loved it that the protagonists were never coy or overly insecure. Their conversations were friendly, open and honest – such a breath of fresh air after two recent books I read in which the opposite was true (The Elusive Miss Ellison and Vienna Prelude).
In spite of the ever present question in the mind of anxious readers (“Will he win her?”), an undercurrent of humor makes the book a delightful, light-hearted read. From the hymn-singing maid, to the poetry-quoting old doctor, to a calico cat named Alexander the Great, there are plenty of light moments to balance the heavier ones.
Ralph Henry Barbour (1870-1944) wrote sports novels for boys and occasionally forayed into romantic fiction. Could this be why the book isn’t overly sappy? In any case, I loved it that the protagonists were never coy or overly insecure. Their conversations were friendly, open and honest – such a breath of fresh air after two recent books I read in which the opposite was true (The Elusive Miss Ellison and Vienna Prelude).
In spite of the ever present question in the mind of anxious readers (“Will he win her?”), an undercurrent of humor makes the book a delightful, light-hearted read. From the hymn-singing maid, to the poetry-quoting old doctor, to a calico cat named Alexander the Great, there are plenty of light moments to balance the heavier ones.
February 1, 2016
Wade Herrick and his partner Ed are between claims when Wade glimpses a young lady on a stopped train and proceeds to swear eternal fealty to her under the moonlight. She laughingly gives him a sprig of her lilacs as a love-token, and he promises to keep it forever.
Five years pass. He and Ed happen upon a good claim the next week, and they spend the years in toil until Ed dies, leaving his earthly goods, including a house in New Hampshire, to Wade. And it just so happens that the girl of the lilacs lives next door!
What follows is a delightful, tender, small-town story. I loved each of the characters, especially Zephania! Recommended for anyone who loves sweet stories of days gone by.
Five years pass. He and Ed happen upon a good claim the next week, and they spend the years in toil until Ed dies, leaving his earthly goods, including a house in New Hampshire, to Wade. And it just so happens that the girl of the lilacs lives next door!
What follows is a delightful, tender, small-town story. I loved each of the characters, especially Zephania! Recommended for anyone who loves sweet stories of days gone by.
July 31, 2021
4 stars & 4/10 hearts. This is a sweet, cute little romance. The Village was such a sweet, lovely little place with quaint, delightful people, especially the Doctor and Zephania. I liked Wade and Eve, although I was annoyed with Wade for not following up on her like he promised; but he was nice and manly, overall. The story was delightful vintage, with lovely old-fashioned morals (well, most of the time… the drinking parts I could have done without, as well as the euphemisms). Overall it was a nice little read. And I loved the writing style.
A Favourite Quote: "Still, I don't see as you need to have such a poor opinion of yourself. We can't all be great generals or statesmen or financiers. Some of us have to wear the drab. ... I don't think any the worse of myself, Mr. Herrick, because I've never made the world sit up and take notice. I've had my battles and victories, and I don't despise them because there was no waving of flags or sounding of trumpets."
A Favourite Beautiful Quote: "Sometimes it rained, and then the leaves and flowers, adroop under the sun's ardor, quivered and swayed with delight and scented the moist air with the sweet, faint fragrance of their gratitude."
A Favourite Humorous Quote: "Do you like surprises, Mr. Herrick?"
"Some. It depends on the nature of them."
"I suppose it does. An earthquake, for instance, would be a rather disagreeable surprise, wouldn't it?"
"Decidedly. I can imagine a surprise that would be distinctly pleasant, though," said Wade[.] "For instance, if you were to give me a small piece of that lilac for my buttonhole." ...
"There; aren't you awfully surprised? Please look so."
Wade struck an attitude and made a grimace which to a third person would have indicated wild alarm.
"Oh, dear," laughed Eve, "if that's your idea of looking pleasant I'd hate to see you in an earthquake!"
A Favourite Quote: "Still, I don't see as you need to have such a poor opinion of yourself. We can't all be great generals or statesmen or financiers. Some of us have to wear the drab. ... I don't think any the worse of myself, Mr. Herrick, because I've never made the world sit up and take notice. I've had my battles and victories, and I don't despise them because there was no waving of flags or sounding of trumpets."
A Favourite Beautiful Quote: "Sometimes it rained, and then the leaves and flowers, adroop under the sun's ardor, quivered and swayed with delight and scented the moist air with the sweet, faint fragrance of their gratitude."
A Favourite Humorous Quote: "Do you like surprises, Mr. Herrick?"
"Some. It depends on the nature of them."
"I suppose it does. An earthquake, for instance, would be a rather disagreeable surprise, wouldn't it?"
"Decidedly. I can imagine a surprise that would be distinctly pleasant, though," said Wade[.] "For instance, if you were to give me a small piece of that lilac for my buttonhole." ...
"There; aren't you awfully surprised? Please look so."
Wade struck an attitude and made a grimace which to a third person would have indicated wild alarm.
"Oh, dear," laughed Eve, "if that's your idea of looking pleasant I'd hate to see you in an earthquake!"
December 31, 2022
What an absolutely delightful little book. It was like Jane Austen, but happier, funnier, and a little less complicated. I loved the characters and laughed so many times while reading. The writing was beautiful.
I couldn’t find a copy of the book, so I read it online at babel.hathitrust.com. UVA had scanned a first edition of the book and I was able to find it through my library’s advanced search function.
I couldn’t find a copy of the book, so I read it online at babel.hathitrust.com. UVA had scanned a first edition of the book and I was able to find it through my library’s advanced search function.
November 17, 2021
***3.5 stars***
Classics are not my favorite genre, although I do try to read one or two a year.
I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I can honestly say if all of them were written this way, I would read more of them.
Classics are not my favorite genre, although I do try to read one or two a year.
I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I can honestly say if all of them were written this way, I would read more of them.
March 13, 2024
This was a sweet, old-fashioned romance. I enjoyed it!
January 17, 2015
I found this book at a used book sale for $1.50! I only bought it because I love Lilacs and the picture on the cover was so lovely. I never really intended to read it. My rating is based on what I think I would have rated it if I had of read it when it was published. However that was 1909!
February 14, 2022
'Tis a old-fashioned love story with beautifully descriptive narative and witty, smart dialogue. The twists and turns throughout kept me wondering as to what the final outcome would be. It was truly a delight for me, a few hours of being immersed in a by-gone era. I would recommend this novel as a palate-cleanser from the modern romance genre.
Although the pace, by today's standards might seem slow, this pace allows room for thought. Chance, fate, providence, the seeking of counsel, the slow-deepening of friendships, the pursuit of good, the happiness that flows from work well done - each of these themes are woven throughout. Young teenagers might enjoy this story of romance.
If you want to delve into an uplifting story, written a bit over one hundred years ago, I highly recomment Barbour's "The Lilac Girl."
Although the pace, by today's standards might seem slow, this pace allows room for thought. Chance, fate, providence, the seeking of counsel, the slow-deepening of friendships, the pursuit of good, the happiness that flows from work well done - each of these themes are woven throughout. Young teenagers might enjoy this story of romance.
If you want to delve into an uplifting story, written a bit over one hundred years ago, I highly recomment Barbour's "The Lilac Girl."
July 31, 2017
Sweet story
I loved this book. It was old fashioned, sweet, romantic and beautifully written. The perfect quick summer read. Highly recommend.
I loved this book. It was old fashioned, sweet, romantic and beautifully written. The perfect quick summer read. Highly recommend.
September 1, 2018
DNF for profanity about 1/3 of the way in
August 22, 2020
Good. Basic.
September 3, 2023
A great romcom read. Get lost in this book and you will be rewarded at the end.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews