Ffinch, Mich : G. K. Chesterton

From dust jacket notes: Drawing upon recently discovered original sources - letters, a Sherlock Holmes detective story, and several poems - Michael Ffinch has taken the traditional view of Chesterton as the 'jolly journalist,' the master of pun and paradox, and turned it on its head. He shows that a man who has been generally acknowledged as a major literary figure only came to his perception of truth through a life of spiritual turmoil and intense personal suffering which culminated in his conversion to Roman Catholicism. Michael Ffinch has filled many of the gaps in our knowledge, particularly at the start of Chesterton's career - Chesterton himself chose to suppress the true details of this life after leaving St. Paul's School. For, although Chesterton was stunningly articulate and could write brilliantly from a young age, the early part of his life was, at times, a difficult and heartfelt struggle to find a niche in which to develop his talents. Among the information Michael Ffinch reveals about these formative years is that, for a time, Chesterton was tutored by A. E. Housman. G. K. Chesterton was a ferociously prolific writer of essays, poems, articles and novels - including The Man Who Was Thursday, The Flying Inn and the 'Father Brown' stories for which he is remembered most. He was also a cartoonist and worked on several books with Hilaire Belloc. Michael Ffinch examines this extraordinary character who once covered his study walls in brown paper so that he could draw when he pleased, and who could only catch his train if he aimed to catch an earlier one. He suggests that beneath the eccentricity and chaotic appearance lay a highly ordered creative mind. This is an important biography, not only in that it firmly persuades us that Chesterton's work and imagination have a relevance today, but, that beneath the 'Gargantuan figure shaking with laughter,' was a highly complex and deeply moving personality. Mr. Ffinch's book makes us think twice.