The Poet and the Lunatics [Paperback]

G.K. Chesterton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2001

Gabriel Gale is an eccentric poet. His madness is the madness of insight and he uses this gift to solve or prevent crimes committed by madmen. Chesterton ably illustrates his own premise that lunacy and sanity may just be a point of view...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

GK Chesterton was born in London in 1874 and educated at St Paul's School, before studying art at the Slade School. In 1896, he began working for the London publisher, Redway, and also T. Fisher Unwin as a reader where he remained until 1902. During this time he undertook his first freelance journalistic assignments writing art and literary reviews. He also contributed regular columns to two newspapers: the Speaker (along with his friend Hilaire Belloc) and the Daily News. Throughout his life he contibuted further articles to journals, particularly The Bookman and The Illustrated London News. His first two books were published; two poetry collections, in 1900. These were followed by collections of essays and in 1903 by his most substantial work to that point; a study of Robert Browning. Chesterton's first novel, 'The Napoleon of Notting Hill' was published in 1904. In this book he developed his political attitudes in which he attacked socialism, big business and technology and showed how they become the enemies of freedom and justice. These were themes which were to run throughout his other works. 'The Man who was Thursday' was published in 1908 and is perhaps the novel most difficult to understand, although it is also his most popular. 'The Ball and the Cross' followed in 1910 and 'Manalive' in 1912. Chesterton's best-known fictional character appears in the Father Brown stories, the first of the collection, 'The Innocence of Father Brown', being published in 1911. Brown is a modest Catholic priest who uses careful psychology to put himself in the place of the criminal in order to solve the crime. His output was prolific, with a great variety of books from brilliant studies of Dickens, Shaw, and RL Stevenson to literary criticism. He also produced more poetry and many volumes of political, social and religious essays. Tremendous zest and energy, with a mastery of paradox, puns, a robust humour and forthright devotion along with great intelligence characterise his entire output. In the years prior to 1914 his fame was at its height, being something of a celebrity and seen as a latter day Dr Johnson as he frequented the pubs and offices of Fleet Street. His huge figure was encased in a cloak and wide brimmed hat, with pockets full of papers and proofs. Chesterton came from a nominlly Anglican family and had been baptized into the Church of England. However, he had no particular Christian belief and was in fact agnostic for a time. Nevertheless, in his late

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: House of Stratus (January 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0755100204
• ISBN-13: 978-0755100200
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,597,988 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Madness and Modernity, November 3, 2002

By 

Jonathan Allen (Ellisville, MS United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Poet and the Lunatics (Paperback)

In keeping with many of his works, Chesterton examines the ideas of sanity, madness, and modern thought- often coming to conclusions most moderns would not like. The percepetion Chesterton gives, though eighty years old, is remarkably fresh and relevant. For the enemies of good in Chesterton's time have not really changed, aside from some slight vagrancies in vocabulary. Be forewarned: atheistic thought is taken to the hammer {as it well should be! ha!}, and all its forebearance of "modernity" is shown to be the true madness of life, rather than the seeming madness of Gabriel, who is sane {as we see, in more ways than one}.

This is a fine, quirky sort of book, relatively short, but filled with excellent insight. And it's an enjoyable read at that- a real shame it's been neglected {along with much of Chesterton's work}. I for one propose to come back to it again.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chesterton at his best, April 6, 2002

By 

Melody Green (Normal, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Poet and the Lunatics (Paperback)

While not nearly as well known as The Father Brown mysteries or The Man Who Was Thursday, the quirky adventures of Gabriel Gale -- poet, artist and lunatic-keeper -- provide excellent entertainment for an evening spent curled up with a good book. This collection of short adventures explores some basic ideas about human nature, specifically,the ideas of poetry, insanity and sin. Some events in the stories are worthy of a laugh out loud, but each also has a darker side that causes the attentive reader to shudder, as Chesterton clearly outlines the differences between these.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chesterton!, July 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Poet and the Lunatics (Audio Cassette)

A neglected writer, these days, Chesterton sparkles here as always. If you are like me, that is, a fierce Chestertonian, I urge you to place this book next to Fr. Brown and Thursday. If you have never read the man, start here!