For those of you who don’t know, I like old books… this is less of a review and more of a go-read-this-book-now-or-else directive. Actually critiquing the work of such masters is beyond my ken. :-) Since this book is out of copyright, you can get it as a free eBook here, or if you prefer, a free audiobook here. If you don’t like eBooks (like me), you can print it off, get it from the library, or even actually buy a copy.
Background Info:
The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare was written by G. K. Chesterton and first published in 1908.
Plot Intro:
Gabriel Syme, a poet, arrives in Saffron Park (a town, not a park), and gets into an argument with the resident poet, Lucian Gregory, about the meaning of poetry. Gregory becomes irritated with Syme after Syme says that Gregory is not a serious anarchist. Gregory then takes Syme to the secret headquarters of the “serious anarchists” to prove him wrong.
My Notes:
Unfortunately, my little intro gives you no idea of the premise of the story; but to give you an idea of the premise of the story, I would have to ruin the first three chapters of the book, and that wouldn’t be fun for anyone, least of all me. Just go read the book. There’s mystery, some very funny moments (despite the title), and allegory to spare.
I Didn’t Like:
Well, this is one of my favorite books, but there are a few little gotchas. The main one is that there is some language (the usual; “bloody”, “damn”, “hell”, and a few variants; nothing worse than that) [was I supposed to put stars in those? It’s not like I’m using them, but I’m not sure what the convention is.]
Unless you are not allowed to read books with swear words in them, go and read this book now. If you’ve already read it, you are of course encouraged to post your take on it in the comments.
7 comments:
Oh, I loved that book! But yeah...you can't really write a whole lot about it without giving away the plot, and it's one of those books that really depends on plot twists.
I found the slightly allegorical ending fascinating too. Confusing, but fascinating.
Confusing is the word. I'm still trying to get my head around it.
I really loved this too! The ending was slightly confusing, but good :)
I am glad I am not the only one who thinks e-books are an absurd idea and doesn't understand why anyone would want to read them.
There are a few good things about e-books; sometimes you can find a book that isn't in print anymore.
Actually, I only avoid them when it's convenient. eBooks are really good for going on long flights, train rides, car trips, etc., and want to bring a few books; you only have to bring an eBook reader.
I have read and "The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare”. I did not like how the story end.
EBooks are very useful for searching the full text of a book.
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