The Man Who Was Thursday
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About the Author
G.K. Chesteron was born in 1874. Probably his most famous stories are those of ‘Father Brown’, but he wrote much about every conceivable subject under or beyond the sun. The best accounts of his life are to be found in his own Autobiography, published soon after his death in 1936, and in Miss Maisie Ward’s Life of him.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
On a lazy afternoon of witty repartee, Lucien (Lucifer?) Gregory reveals to the poet Gabriel (angel?) Syme, that he is an anarchist (anti-christ?). The pair go, quite literally, underground (Hades?) and double-bluff each other as to who is anarchist and who is policeman.
Is this allegory, satire or, as the title implies, a 'Nightmare' involving Lucien and Gabriel as 'the two fantastics'? To support the latter there is a prolonged 'nightmarish' chase section where the protagonists oten ask each other, 'When will I wake up?'
The main body of the 'crime' element of the novel involves a helter-skelter puruit of the anarchists across Edwardian England and northern France. This is coupled with the test of Gabriel and Lucien's 'my word is my bond' in a web of betrayal and deceit.
Mr Chesterton has a distinct style which is especially demanding at the start of the novel but it progresses to an easier ride as he concentrates on the narrative rather than descriptive. This novel is difficult to classify and open to multiple interpretations. Quite challenging. No sooner had I pigeon-holed the novel than it made a fool of me.
Is this allegory, satire or, as the title implies, a 'Nightmare' involving Lucien and Gabriel as 'the two fantastics'? To support the latter there is a prolonged 'nightmarish' chase section where the protagonists oten ask each other, 'When will I wake up?'
The main body of the 'crime' element of the novel involves a helter-skelter puruit of the anarchists across Edwardian England and northern France. This is coupled with the test of Gabriel and Lucien's 'my word is my bond' in a web of betrayal and deceit.
Mr Chesterton has a distinct style which is especially demanding at the start of the novel but it progresses to an easier ride as he concentrates on the narrative rather than descriptive. This novel is difficult to classify and open to multiple interpretations. Quite challenging. No sooner had I pigeon-holed the novel than it made a fool of me.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This new edition from Penguin - part of a series of six 'Books for Boys' - is beautifully designed and produced, with a re-set text and lovely paper. And the book remains as funny and surprising as when it was written 100 years ago. Difficult not to enjoy if you like spy stories - and satires of them.
Format:Paperback
Anyone who's watched Dusk til Dawn will agree that there's a point at which the genre of the movie immediately switches to another. The Man Who Was Thursday seems to switch genres throughout - and brilliantly so.
Always gripping and surprising, the triumph of this book lies not only in its widely-praised philosophical discussions of anarchism and nihilism. Chesterton has a gift of creating enjoyable, memorable characters, extremely witty and funny anecdotes (I swear Richmal Crompton borrowed the story of Friday's identity for one of his Just William stories) and a roller-coaster paced story in which the reader relishes the mad twists and turns.
Do not be put off by its common description of "metaphysical thriller" - yes, the book is extremely metaphysical, but somehow retains a sense of levity and even irony. Read and enjoy.
Always gripping and surprising, the triumph of this book lies not only in its widely-praised philosophical discussions of anarchism and nihilism. Chesterton has a gift of creating enjoyable, memorable characters, extremely witty and funny anecdotes (I swear Richmal Crompton borrowed the story of Friday's identity for one of his Just William stories) and a roller-coaster paced story in which the reader relishes the mad twists and turns.
Do not be put off by its common description of "metaphysical thriller" - yes, the book is extremely metaphysical, but somehow retains a sense of levity and even irony. Read and enjoy.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
"Fly at once. The truth about your trouser-stretchers is known!"
Not just a superb thriller, it's also one of the funniest books I've ever read - some of it is pure Python. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Uncle5
The Dreams of Thursday and the Nightmare of Sunday
A great little book with scattered flashes of genius. A treatise on theology and rebellion posing as a crime thriller. Read more
Published on 27 Mar 2009 by Pablo K
Hit and miss
The quote by Kingsley Amis on the front of this Penguin Red Fiction book states that The Man Who Was Thursday was "The most thrilling book I have ever read". Read more
Published on 28 Feb 2009 by Adrenalin Streams
Enjoyable
I read this slim book across two European flights. It's entertaining and there were at least three twists that were enjoyable.
Published on 21 Nov 2007 by Stephen
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