The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Man Who Was Thursday, by G. K. Chesterton

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Title: The Man Who Was Thursday
A Nightmare

Author: G. K. Chesterton

Posting Date: November 17, 2008 [EBook #1695]
Release Date: April, 1999

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY ***

Produced by Harry Plantinga

THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY

A NIGHTMARE

by G. K. Chesterton

A WILD, MAD, HILARIOUS AND PROFOUNDLY MOVING TALE

It is very difficult to classify THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY. It is
possible to say that it is a gripping adventure story of murderous
criminals and brilliant policemen; but it was to be expected that the
author of the Father Brown stories should tell a detective story like
no-one else. On this level, therefore, THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY
succeeds superbly; if nothing else, it is a magnificent tour-de-force of
suspense-writing.

However, the reader will soon discover that it is much more than that.
Carried along on the boisterous rush of the narrative by Chesterton's
wonderful high-spirited style, he will soon see that he is being
carried into much deeper waters than he had planned on; and the totally
unforeseeable denouement will prove for the modern reader, as it has
for thousands of others since 1908 when the book was first published, an
inevitable and moving experience, as the investigators finally discover
who Sunday is.

THE MAN WHO WAS THURSDAY

A NIGHTMARE

To Edmund Clerihew Bentley

A cloud was on the mind of men, and wailing went the weather,
Yea, a sick cloud upon the soul when we were boys together.
Science announced nonentity and art admired decay;
The world was old and ended: but you and I were gay;
Round us in antic order their crippled vices came--
Lust that had lost its laughter, fear that had lost its shame.
Like the white lock of Whistler, that lit our aimless gloom,
Men showed their own white feather as proudly as a plume.
Life was a fly that faded, and death a drone that stung;
The world was very old indeed when you and I were young.
They twisted even decent sin to shapes not to be named:
Men w