I've had this book sitting on my shelf for some time; a long time, in fact, as it was recommended to me last summer. But I won't be passing the recommendation along. It was interesting -- Chesterton uses some imaginative imagery, but it's very much written in 1908-style (the year it was penned) and it's a bit like talking to you great-great aunt...for hours.
The premise of the book is fantastic: A young detective infiltrates a secret society of anarchists, each one who's taken the name of a day of the week. The detective becomes Thursday and has to unravel the big plot. But the book is really just this philosophical meditation and I figured out the twist - at least, I think it was supposed to be a twist - pretty easily.
But I have to praise such lines as these: "He seemed like a walking blasphemy, a blend of the angel and the ape." I love it, it just captures the image of the person so randomly and so uniquely.
The best part though, was the book itself. The physical book, I mean. The one I have from the library is a worn-out volume from 1958, and some past reader kindly left notes in it to help future comprehension. But even better, she clearly didn't love the book either and thoughtfully changed/crossed out certain lines. It made me laugh pretty hard. At the bottom of one page, she added this piece of dialogue "Now, do you see how "sneeky" girls can be? Next time let's watch our step!" And no, I did not misspell "sneaky" or add the quotes.
Next up: Curious about whether I would still like the books from my childhood, I picked up Lois Duncan's Killing Mr. Griffin.
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