The Celebrity, an Episode (Classic Reprint) [Paperback]

Winston Churchill (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2009

I was about to say that I had. known the Celebrity from the time he wore kilts. But I see I shall have to amend that, because he was not a celebrity then, nor, indeed, did he achieve fame until some time after I had left New York for the West. In the old days, to my commonplace and unobserving mind, he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts, which I can safely say he would have done had he written any at that time, and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned. But he had then none of the oddities and mannerisms which I hold to be inseparable from genius, and which struck my attention in after days when I came in contact with the Celebrity. Hence I am constrained to the belief that his eccentricity must have arrived with his genius.

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, History, Folklore and Mythology.

Forgotten Books' Classic Reprint Series utilizes the latest technology to regenerate facsimiles of historically important writings. Careful attention has been made to accurately preserve the original format of each page whilst digitally enhancing the difficult to read text. Read books online for free at www.forgottenbooks.org

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Forgotten Books (August 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1440036438
• ISBN-13: 978-1440036439
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lightly satirical first effort, March 14, 2006

By 

Bomojaz (South Central PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Celebrity: An Episode (Paperback)

Winston Churchill (not THAT Winston Churchill) was one of the most popular writers of fiction in America during the first two decades of the twentieth century. This was his first novel, and it's quite different from the subsequent ones he wrote. It's a breezy social satire centered around a writer (perhaps modelled on Richard Harding Davis) of novels "of a high moral tone and unapproachable principle," characteristics that he is in short supply of in his own personal life. He decides to vacation in a small resort town under an alias to escape his doting public, and from there all kinds of misadventures occur. He chooses as his alias the name of Charles Allen, the treasurer of the Miles Standish Bicycle Company, and when the real Allen is accused of running off with the company's funds, the Celebrity (as the narrator calls him) has trouble getting anyone to believe who he really is. One crazy scene leads to another until all is straightened out in the end. The book is meant to be pure entertainment, and beyond that it doesn't amount to much. Even as he was writing it Churchill's thoughts were going in a different, more serious, direction toward the heavily researched historical novel. But as a debut effort it's not too bad, and the writing, despite some of the dull scenes and improbable circumstances, is as light as a feather and gently humorous.