University Press: John Wilson & Son, Cambridge.
"One of those pleasant, chatty, and gossipy volumes that everybody enjoys reading. In his easy and flowing style he tells most entertainingly the curious vagaries of the men of genius whom the world has revered, and many a fact which escaped the ordinary reader of biography will here be seized upon and remembered. The volume is a most agreeable companion for solitary hours."
"Mr. Ballou seems to have a positive genius for seizing upon prominent traits of character or events in the lives of his subjects. How many people who have read of Cromwell and Hampden know that they were once on the point of setting out for America to live before they took part in England's civil war? How many people remember Agassiz's noble answer when offered a large salary to lecture,--'I cannot afford to waste time in making money'?"
"Daniel De Foe, Keats, Oliver Cromwell, Hugh Miller, John Bunyan, Benjamin Franklin, Elihu Burritt, Benjamin West, and hundreds of others are cited as instances to illustrate that genius is independent of circumstances. A galaxy of the names of the world's great men is presented to demonstrate the fact that the humblest may rise to be the greatest. Mr. Ballou's book is crowded full of interest from cover to cover. He shows a wide knowledge of men and events, and his strict regard for accuracy gives a permanent value to the book. To place such a book as this in the hands of young men is to confer a blessing upon them. It is full of beneficial illustrations and lessons, and many a young man will take new heart after a perusal of its pages."
"The book has much of the fascination of a conversation, chatting leisurely about the gossip, history, anecdotes, etc., which the names of hundreds of authors, artists, and other celebrities suggest. The index is so complete and accurate as to make this marvellous compilation as available as an encyclopædia."
"A work of exceeding interest and value, for it is a veritable epitome of biography, dealing with all the famous characters of literature, science, and art, and presenting a wealth of instructive data such as no volume of similar compass has ever contained. A more instructive and interesting book has not been brought out the present season, and its charm exerts a hold upon the reader that leads him on from page to page."