Most of the work in this book is by Dr. Oliver Goldsmith. The first volume contains his biography, many poems and essays. The second volume is "The Traveller" and the third contains what is perhaps Goldsmith's best-known poem, "The Deserted Village". The result is a good introduction to the work of this Anglo-Irish writer, poet and physician. Many readers may be less familiar with Percy and Day. Once chaplain to George III, Percy is most famous for his "Reliques of Ancient English Poetry" (1765), the first of the great ballad collections, responsible for a revival of ballads in English poetry. Day, an abolitionist, uses "The Dying Negro" to tell the horrifying story of a runaway slave. The poem was a bestseller and one of the first pieces of literature in the campaign to abolish the slave trade in Britain. More photos available on request.
