1890 GEORGE MACDONALD. A Rough Shaking. True Goodness in the Face of Tragedy.

A rather early and attractive imprint of one of MacDonald's most directly "pastoral" tales.  MacDonald himself spent much time in Italy, which was deeply impacted by significant earthquakes in the late 19th century. Those events signal the beginning point of the story of recurring character, Clare, who has been displaced by the tragedy. Thus, the "rough shaking" is both literal and metaphorical.  A Rough Shaking reprises two of MacDonald’s favorite themes, Clare’s love for animals (and belief in their immortality), and his quest for fatherhood. MacDonald traces young Clare’s life having to fend for himself after the loss of his parents in the earthquake and being taken from Italy back to England. His ingenuity in not only learning to survive on his own, but keeping his goodness intact while trying in some way to help everyone he meets, may be viewed as a fictional portrayal of childhood Christlikeness. . . .  his determination to be “good" links Clare’s story to the very best in all MacDonald’s books. MacDonald, George. A Rough Shaking by George Macdonald Author of "David Elginbrod" "At the Back of the North Wind" "Alec Forbes" "Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood: &c. With Twelve Page Illustrations by W. Parkinson and a Cover-Design by Laurence Housman. London. Blackie and Son Limited. c.1890's. 384pp. A good + copy, bound in cloth, generally solid, with generally bright pages and light foxing.