G.K. Chesterton, a Criticism

by Cecil Chesterton

In 1900 a new writer took England by a storm. Writing intelligently and well on a wide variety of topics, G. K. Chesterton defied categorization. Although deeply patriotic, he was one of the few to oppose the Boer War. A gifted literary critic, he nevertheless defended 'penny dreadfuls' read by young boys and condemned by almost everyone else. And in an era of unbridled capitalism and fashionable socialism, he unleashed telling broadsides against both. In 1908 his brother Cecil wrote this biography. That book is now back in print in an enhanced and enlarged 'Centennial Edition' with numerous notes explaining the context and appendices with both sides of G. K. Chesterton's famous 1908 debate about socialism with H. G. Wells and Bernard Shaw, including Chesterton's marvelous "On Wells and a Glass of Beer."

Genres: Catholic, Biography

180 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1909

About the author

Cecil Edward Chesterton (12 November 1879 – 6 December 1918) was an English journalist and political commentator.

Reviews

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started reading this book not knowing who the author was! The book I have is old, old, and doesn't list an author at all; for a while I wondered if it was an autobiography, written in the third person. This is the next best thing; Cecil is a good writer, and he obviously knew his subject well enough to make both disparaging and positive observations with authority. It made me want to read more of GK; particularly The Napoleon of Notting Hill. My favorite part of the book was actually the very end: Cecil goes into all sorts of speculations about which of GK's works will last, whether he'll be known to future generations, and what sorts of literature he should tackle next. Great fun! Definitely recommended to GK fans.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting view from G K Chesterton's brother of the latter's life and career up until the time he was thirty or so.
Rather too much discussion of political viewpoints to hold my interest in some places, but some very insightful points about Chesterton's writing itself. And lots of longish quotes from Chesterton's earlier books.
However, the Kindle edition, which is literally scanned from an old library book (!) is full of typos and formatting errors - the worst I've ever seen. They're sprinkled about on almost every page. This book was produced by Amazon Digital Services, who are charging the same sort of price as I do for a Kindle book. Amazon requires its Indie authors to produce books without typos and formatting problems, yet don't seem to adhere to the same requirements themselves.