First published in 1912, G. K. Chesterton's "Manalive" is the fascinating and incredible story of Innocent Smith, a man who can be described as a "holy fool". Innocent arrives at Beacon House, a London boarding establishment, and breathes new life into the residents with his games and antics. All in one day he creates the "High Court of Beacon", decides to elope with one of the residents, and convinces another lodger to declare his love for the landlady's...

Heretics by G. K. Chesterton Nothing more strangely indicates an enormous and silent evil of modern society than the extraordinary use which is made nowadays of the word "orthodox." In former days the heretic was proud of not being a heretic. It was the kingdoms of the world and the police and the judges who were heretics. He was orthodox. He had no pride in having rebelled against them; they had rebelled against him. The armies with their cruel...

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading. When Evan MacIan, a fervent Catholic, becomes enraged by an atheist newspaper, he challenges the editor, James Turnbull, to a duel. Turnbull, just as passionate in his atheism as MacIan is in his Catholicism, eagerly accepts. Their sword fight interrupted wherever they go, MacIan and Turnbull duel with words. The more MacIan and Turnbull debate, the more they realize...

Harold March, the rising reviewer and social critic, was walking vigorously across a great tableland of moors and commons, the horizon of which was fringed with the far-off woods of the famous estate of Torwood Park. He was a good-looking young man in tweeds, with very pale curly hair and pale clear eyes. Walking in wind and sun in the very landscape of liberty, he was still young enough to remember his politics and not merely try to forget them....

G. K. Chesterton's "The Ballad of the White Horse" is the last great epic poem written in the English tradition. First published in 1911, it tells the heroic tale of Saxon King Alfred the Great and his defeat of the invading Viking army at the Battle of Ethandun. While Chesterton's work was not intended to be completely historically accurate, it is a deeply evocative and detailed account of an ancient and forgotten world. King Alfred has been driven...

In this book G.K. Chesterton explains how religion-a blend of philosophy and mythology-satisfies both the human intellect and the spirit, and sets man starkly apart from any other living creature. Addressing evolution, feminism, and cultural relativism within the context of religion, the book also examines religious skepticism. According to Chesterton, the shape of the key is not important. What matters is that it fits the lock and opens the door....

Covering topics ranging from literature to philosophy, history to social criticism, this is a snapshot of thought on 20th-century Europe (and the world) by one of Europe's sharpest wits and ablest pens. With chapter titles ranging from "The Miser and His Friends" to "The Red Reactionary," from "The Separatist and Sacred Things" to "The New Theologian" and "The Romantic in the Rain," this volume includes 39 brief sketches of individuals, each one of...

First published in 1911, The Innocence of Father Brown is a series of stories involving one of the greatest characters in the history of detective fiction, G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown. A Roman Catholic priest, Father Brown has an uncanny insight to human evil. In contrast with the aristocratic arch-villains of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Father Brown solves mysteries involving local murders by small town crooks, narrowing the suspect list down...

Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an English writer who lived at the turn of the 20th century. His works explored a number of subjects such as philosophy, poetry, journalism, lectures, criticism, and theatrical plays. However, his best-known stories feature the character of an English priest and detective named Father Brown. While the character was based on a real priest who was involved in Chesterton's own conversion of faith, the adventures and mysteries...

Dubbed the "Dumb Ox" by his classmates for his shyness, Saint Thomas Aquinas proved to be possessed of the rarest brilliance, justifying the faith of his teacher, Albertus Magnus, and sparking a revolution in Christian thought. Chesterton's unsurpassed examination of Aquinas' thinking makes his philosophy accessible to listeners of any generation.Étienne Gilson, the twentieth century's foremost authority on Aquinas, has said of this work, "I consider...