THE LIGHT

. . . is a story set in the Basque mountains. Reminiscent of the theme chosen by Lloyd Douglas in Magnificent Obsession, much of the appeal of this novel rests in the contrast of the heroine, an orphan, Mire, with the cultivated and daring young smuggler Luis Miguel, son of a privileged family, who thrusts her aside as he attempts to escape at the French-Spanish border. She falls and is resultantly blinded. The boy discovers the consequences of his escapades, determines to study medicine and ultimately becomes a brilliant eye surgeon. Mire is sheltered by his family and in turn aids another afflicted child, a blind deaf-mute. There are wholesale happy endings here which are suggested early in the tale; nonetheless the contrasted protagonists --the blind shepherdess and the daring, impulsive smuggler whose agility earned him the nickname ""Antelope"" -- and the Gallie characters in the Basque locale are very credible. More readable than most.