[IV7]⇒ Libro The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare Modern Library Classics G K Chesterton Jonathan Lethem Books

The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare Modern Library Classics G K Chesterton Jonathan Lethem Books

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The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare Modern Library Classics G K Chesterton Jonathan Lethem Books

A truly profound and enjoyable tale. I choose to call this a philosophical thriller. A tale so engrossing and beautifully composed that I found it quite hard to put down. Mind you, I can't say I deciphered all of the philosophical arguments; or even if they were all deciferable. However they were never less than interesting and intriguing. As were all of the cast of this fabulous tale; throw in mysterious, and I think that's an apt description of them all, starting from Sunday to the whole week of them. Also as someone to whom the mastery and structure of language in a book is as important as the story itself I was equally impressed in the manner of the telling of this tale. Thanks again to the author for producing this gem.


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The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare Modern Library Classics G K Chesterton Jonathan Lethem Books Reviews

Gilbert Keith (G.K.) Chesterton (1874-1936) is perhaps best known for his detective stories about Father Brown, a Roman-Catholic priest. However, Chesterton was also a poet, philosopher, dramatist, journalist, orator, literary and art critic, biographer, lay theologian and Christian apologist; and had a big influence on many other authors of both fantasy and detective novels.

'The Man Who Was Thursday A Nightmare' from 1908 is not all easy to place in just one category. I knew very little of it beforehand; and as I think that is really the best way to read it, I in turn don’t want to reveal too much detail, just write something of my impressions while reading.

Right from the start it struck me as a rather creepily up-to-date read from the aspect that one of its major themes has to do with anarchism/ terrorism and a bomb threat to a major European city. It also crossed my mind quite early on (from a certain scene), that this could well be another bok from which J.K. Rowling may have picked some inspiration for Harry Potter. Later on, I could also clearly see parallells to C.S. Lewis. In spite of the serious (and indeed, as the title suggests, nightmarish) background, and some deeply moral and philosophical discussions – the story does not only keep up a high degree of suspense, but also takes a lot of unexpected twists and turns and offers a good deal of humour. (Sometimes I even laughed out loud.) I found it very hard to put down – I just wanted to keep on reading to see what happened!

A teaser quote “They were a balconyful of gentlemen overlooking a bright and busy square; but he felt no more safe with them than if they had been a boatful of armed pirates overlooking an empty sea.” (p. 66)
Sometimes a book will fall figuratively in your lap. My “To Read” list on Goodreads is growing faster than my “Finished” list. At some point I added G. K. Chesterton’s masterpiece – The Man Who Was Thursday – to the list, but I don’t recall why. Regardless, I was obviously in the mood for reading some early 20th century metaphysical literature chock full of allegory, metaphors, anarchists and sublime characters. (Don’t we all get that urge from time to time???)

Published in 1908, The Man Who Was Thursday begins with two men, Gabriel Syme ( a poet who believes in law and order) and Lucian Gregory, (a poet and anarchist) meeting in a garden during a party. After a lengthy discussion as to whether Man should be ruled by laws or have free will to rage against the machine, Gabriel accuses Lucian of not being a “real anarchist”. Lucian counters by inviting Gabriel to a secret meeting of anarchists to prove him wrong. At this meeting Lucian is hoping to be elected to the Supreme Council of Anarchists as “Thursday”, one of seven men on the council, each named for a day of the week. The Council, lead by the man named Sunday, is planning to carry through with a planned assassination/bombing.

What transpires next is a humorous, witty, frightening, and often philosophical look at the state of man, war, peace, God, and social order to finally reveal that nothing is as it seems.

Did I mention that the subtitle of the novel is A Nightmare? That’s because many of the thematic discussions of the novel are pretty relevant today. Some things never change.

For fans of Christian allegory or C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Papers, this novel will please you to no end. For fans of thought-provoking philosophical discussions that will leave you endlessly pondering the book’s meaning, this will please you to no end.

Chesterton employs subtle and not-so-subtle metaphors that leave you guessing his ultimate goal for the novel. It’s apparent right from the start Gabriel = Law & Order. Lucian = anarchy/Free-will. Both meeting in A Garden. (I mean, c’mon!) The other members of the Council Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday et all, represent the burning questions of the time Pessimism or optimism of Modernity; the benefits of scientific materialism; etc. And who is Sunday, the mysterious man who leads the council?

But if you think it’s just that easy, it’s not. There are enough twists and turn, colorful characters and beautiful banter that make this Nightmare a wonderful experience. This is one of those books where you will be looking up words, highlighting passages and writing notes in the margins.

Rare and wonderful is the novel that comes along that, after reading the last word, instantly bestows upon you the desire to read it again. The Man Who Was Thursday is just such a novel.

While some of the events and situations may seem out of date, the novel will certainly provoke further discussion. Want to have fun? Suggest this for your next Book Club read and watch the sparks fly….

5 out of 5 Stars
One of the most gripping novella (I don't believe its long enough to be a full novel) that I've ever read. I'm usually quite savvy to plot twists and expect them but the entirety of this story-line threw me for a loop.

Entertaining, Profound, and Comical. Chesterton transcends time.
Chesterton's 1908 nightmarish and suspenseful mystery The Man Who Was Thursday weathers the storm of time very well. Syme, recruited by the police to infiltrate an anarchist group whose members adopt the names of the week, goes on a madcap and confused chase where nothing and no one is what it seems. I challenge any reader to anticipate on a first reading what is coming in the book. The ending portions of the story can be confusing in their own right. The novel operates on several levels, and is deeply philosophical and religious. I've read it at least three times over the years and see more in it each time. Indeed, the ending suggests it may not be possible to mine its depths entirely.

This free edition is formatted well and easily readable. It has one paradoxical aspect it has no introduction. I call it a paradox because without an introduction the reader may become as lost and mystified as the characters in the book, yet with an introduction much of the surprise and suspense in the book would be dissipated. And of course, any comment on Chesterton needs to use the word paradox!
A truly profound and enjoyable tale. I choose to call this a philosophical thriller. A tale so engrossing and beautifully composed that I found it quite hard to put down. Mind you, I can't say I deciphered all of the philosophical arguments; or even if they were all deciferable. However they were never less than interesting and intriguing. As were all of the cast of this fabulous tale; throw in mysterious, and I think that's an apt description of them all, starting from Sunday to the whole week of them. Also as someone to whom the mastery and structure of language in a book is as important as the story itself I was equally impressed in the manner of the telling of this tale. Thanks again to the author for producing this gem.