G. K. Chesterton, a prolific writer, a self-confessed social and literary critic and a rare genius with golden tongue and silver dipped words.

Well, a man who can wield his pen in such myriad ways as a journalist, as a religious preacher, as a moral upholder and yet cook up enough humorous stories with detective fiction, being one of the fav, is bound to be famous. However, when I first read his book The Man Who Knew Too Much, I was appalled to know that he does not often figure in the most read classic authors. In fact, he is completely overshadowed by his contemporary George Bernard Shaw. Literary circle is as intriguing as life, isn’t it?

G. K. Chesterton was born in London. He began his career as a journalist, wrote over 4000 newspaper articles, ran his own weekly, wrote criticisms of his contemporary and classic writers, even dabbled in biographies and then created a detective figure, Father Brown, in his special tongue firmly in cheek with a smile on face manner.

If you have not read him yet, hop on to his books, or read my review to get an idea of how and what he writes. And, of course, treat yourself to his pearls of wisdom, each more precious and enchanting than the other.

“There are no uninteresting things, only uninterested people.”

“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see.”

“A good novel tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author.”

“Do not be so open-minded that your brains fall out.”

“A man must be prepared not only to be a martyr, but to be a fool. It is absurd to say that a man is ready to toil and die for his convictions if he is not even ready to wear a wreathe around his head for them.”

“The most poetical thing in the world is not being sick.”

“I had always felt life first as a story: and if there is a story there is a story-teller”

“The worst moment for an atheist is when he is really thankful and has no one to thank.”

“Free verse is like free love; it is a contradiction in terms.”

“There nearly always is a method in madness.”

“Political Economy means that everybody except politicians must be economical.”

“Every revolution, like a repentance, is a return.”

“If you want to know what you are, you are a set of highly well-intentioned young jackasses.”

“And if great reasoners are often maniacal, it is equally true that maniacs are commonly great reasoners.”