A List
4/1/02

SLU PROFESSOR'S PRESS REPRINTS NORTH COUNTRY NOVEL

CANTON - A new paperback edition of a novel set in the North 
Country - and considered to be the first "best-seller" of the 
20th century - has been published by a St. Lawrence professor.
	Eben Holden, A Tale of the North Country, by Irving 
Bacheller, was originally published in 1900; the new edition 
has been published by Glover Publishing, operated by St. Lawrence 
University Piskor Professor of English Albert Glover. 
	Bacheller (1859-1950) graduated from St. Lawrence in 1882 
and is northern New York's most important literary figure; Eben 
Holden is his best-known book.  Set mostly in "Paradise Valley" 
(Bacheller's name for the Canton-Pierrepont-Potsdam area) during 
the mid-19th century, the novel tells the story of young man's 
coming of age under the tutelage of his wise mentor and guardian, 
Eben Holden, a character who embodies the Yankee virtues of hard 
work and honesty. The narrative includes an array of poems, songs, 
descriptions and folklore that convey a sense of life in the 
St. Lawrence Valley at the time of the American Civil War. An 
audio version of the novel was recently produced by North Country 
Public Radio.
	Eben Holden was an immediate best-seller and established 
Bacheller's reputation as an author. The new paperback edition 
features cover art ("Crossings") by Ogdensburg artist John Morrow 
and an introduction by Doug Welch of Pierrepont.
	Copies are now available at the St. Lawrence University 
Bookstore and will soon be available at regional bookshops and 
gift shops; copies may also be ordered online at 
www.tomfolio.com/shop/northernlights.
	Further information about Bacheller, plus audio excerpts 
from the book, is available on North Country Public Radio's Web 
site, www.northcountrypublicradio.org.

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