Gilbert Keith Chesterton, (29 May 1874 - 14 June 1936) better known as G.K. Chesterton, was an English writer, lay theologian, poet, dramatist, journalist, orator, literary and art critic, biographer, and Christian apologist. Chesterton is often referred to as the "prince of paradox." Time magazine, in a review of a biography of Chesterton, observed of his writing style: "Whenever possible Chesterton made his points with popular sayings, proverbs, allegories-first carefully turning them inside out." Chesterton's second novel chronicles a hot dispute between two Scotsmen, a Roman Catholic, and...

"The Defendant" is a collection of essays in which Chesterton defends things and concepts one wouldn't normally consider in need of defense(such as skeletons, humility, detective stories, etc.) That sounds positively dry, but it is a lot of fun. Basically he is commenting on the loss of positivity and wonderment(at the world around us), especially in the upper, elitist classes. Like Whitman Chesterton obviously sees the common man as having access to a vitality and poeticism that the higher classes have lost. Of course this was written in 1902, but much of it still applies(especially...

The Club of Queer Trades is a collection of stories by G. K. Chesterton first published in 1905. Each story in the collection is centered on a person who is making his living by some novel and extraordinary means (a "queer trade," using the word "queer" in the sense of "peculiar"). To gain admittance one must have invented a unique means of earning a living and the subsequent trade being the main source of income.

"I was born a Victorian; and sympathise not a little with the serious Victorian Spirit." In this engaging and extremely personal account G K Chesterton expounds his views on Victorian literature. Many of his opinions reflect the conventions of the age; however of the Victorian novel he refreshingly comments "it is an art in which women are quite beyond controversy." Equally uncompromising about poets and poetry he does not hesitate to call Tennyson "a provincial Virgil." This book is an important landmark in our understanding of an age which produced some of Britain's most widely enjoyed...

Manalive (1912) is a book by G. K. Chesterton detailing a popular theme both in his own philosophy, and in Christianity, of the 'holy fool', such as in Dostoevsky's The Idiot and Cervantes' Don Quixote. This is a book in two parts. The first, "The Enigma of Innocent Smith," concerns the arrival of a new tenant at Beacon House, a London boarding establishment. Like Mary Poppins, this man (who is tentatively identified by lodger Arthur Inglewood as an ex-schoolmate named Innocent Smith) is accompanied by a great wind, and he breathes new life into the household with his games and antics. During...

One of Chesterton's most well-known stories, The Man Who Was Thursday is an intriguing tale considered to be a classic by some. It is worth taking the time to read.

One of Chesterton's classic stories, The Innocence of Father Brown is not a long read, but it is a rewarding one that is worth the time invested.

Captains of industry Henry Ford, P. T. Barnum, Henry Ford, and more detail what made them titans of industry in an era before the Internet and worldwide distribution networks... in their own words.

What's Wrong With The World is one of Chesterton's most well-known and acclaimed works, widely considered a classic.

Gilbert Chesterton was a literary genius and the author of multiple masterpieces. Many people don't realize however, that he also wrote more than 4,000 columns for the London Daily News, prior to World War I. Here are the best of those articles, selected by the author himself; each covering a variety of topics and written with the same high-quality that one would expect from his novels. Join us for a rare treat, from the poet, philosopher, theologian, historian, artist, critic, and storyteller that captivated a generation, as we share what he considered to be his greatest work, collected...