The Innocence of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton

But chapter 7 contains not only racial epithets, but some truly ugly attitudes about Asian people, specifically the Hindu religion and it’s adherents. I love him his suave, knowing delivery is the perfect vehicle for Chesterton’s witty, urbane and, ultimately, profound playfulness. By now I’ve come to realize that Frederick Davidson (aka David Case) is a deal breaker for many. It is also my favorite in this collection a poignant picture of how God’s mercy can reach us, in spite of everything we do to avoid Him. Some of these stories have later literary reverberations, “The Queer Feet”, being the story Lady Marchmain reads aloud in Brideshead Revisited. A passing familiarity with the history of the time is helpful, French politics in general and the Dreyfus affair in particular. Those differing angles of perspective then merged into prose that illuminated whatever it took under consideration as brilliantly as any poet. Like all the Father Brown stories, these are written by a mind not uncommon at the time a mind that operated on several different planes at once: the aesthetic, the religious, the cultural, the historic. The result is an indispensable companion for all Chesterton enthusiasts and a perfect introduction for anyone who has yet to meet the incomparable Father Brown.Listen to this one just for the language, the way Chesterton can evolve an observation about an everyday object into an observation about society or even civilization. Included also are eight illustrations reproduced from the first edition. In this annotated edition of the collection, the Chesterton scholar Martin Gardner provides detailed notes and background information on various aspects of such stories as 'The Blue Cross,' 'The Secret Garden,' 'The Invisible Man,' 'The Hammer of God,' 'The Eye of Apollo,' and seven more, as well as an informative introduction and an extensive bibliography.

The Innocence of Father Brown (1911) was the first collection of stories featuring the ecclesiastical sleuth and is widely considered the best. More than lighthearted comedies built around puzzling crimes, these superbly written tales contain deeply perceptive philosophical reflections. Father Brown, an ordinary priest whose unremarkable exterior conceals extraordinary crime-solving ability, is celebrated for his solutions to metaphysical mysteries, a genre perfected by his creator, G.

The Innocence of Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton