The Collected Works Of G. K. Chesterton, Vol. 21: What I Saw In America, The Resurrection of Rome, Sidelights

by G.K. Chesterton

This volume contains Chesterton's commentaries and reflections on what he saw on his travels in America and Rome, plus an appendix on how America saw Chesterton. On January 10, 1921, Gilbert and Frances Chesterton began a three month tour of the United States. During their first stop in the City of New York, Chesterton examined the lights of Broadway and proclaimed: "What a glorious garden of wonders this would be to anyone who was lucky enough to be unable to read."

In his writing on America, Chesterton shows a remarkable ability for sympathetic appreciation of the principle traits of America. He would acquire an uncanny clear-sightedness about many things in America that it would not be an exaggeration to call clairvoyant. One greatness recognized another greatness, and one can say that Chesterton truly knew something profound about America.

Throughout the 1920's and 1930's, Chesterton's travels included Jerusalem, Ireland, North America and Rome. This volume contains his reflections on his 1921 and 1930-31 tour of North America and his 1929 trip to Rome. Readers will enjoy the great man's impressions of city skyscrapers, rural America, the politics of Washington, as well as his views of Pope Pius XI, the Eternal City, Mussolini and Fascism.

The introduction to this volume was written by Dr. Robert Royal, Vice President of the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington, D.C. The appendix was compiled by the late Chairman of the Northeastern Chapter of the G.K. Chesterton Society, Mr. Robert Knille. The appendix gives the newspaper accounts of Chesterton's 1921 trip to America. It contains generous excerpts of the speeches, interviews and comments G.K.C. made during histour. Most of the material provided has never appeared in book form.

Hardcover

About the author

Gilbert Keith Chesterton was an English writer, philosopher, lay theologian, and literary and art critic.

He was educated at St. Paul’s, and went to art school at University College London. In 1900, he was asked to contribute a few magazine articles on art criticism, and went on to become one of the most prolific writers of all time. He wrote a hundred books, contributions to 200 more, hundreds of poems, including the epic Ballad of the White Horse, five plays, five novels, and some two hundred short stories, including a popular series featuring the priest-detective, Father Brown. In spite of his literary accomplishments, he considered himself primarily a journalist. He wrote over 4000 newspaper essays, including 30 years worth of weekly columns for the Illustrated London News, and 13 years of weekly columns for the Daily News. He also edited his own newspaper, G.K.’s Weekly.

Chesterton was equally at ease with literary and social criticism, history, politics, economics, philosophy, and theology.