British writer GILBERT KEITH CHESTERTON (1874-1936) expounded prolifically about his wide-ranging philosophies-he is impossible to categorize as "liberal" or "conservative," for instance-across a wide variety of avenues: he was a literary critic, historian, playwright, novelist, columnist, and poet. His witty, humorous style earned him the title of the "prince of paradox," and his works-80 books and nearly 4,000 essays-remain among the most beloved in the English language

Chesterton is best remembered, perhaps, as a teller of mystery tales. This 1922 collection of eight short mysteries includes all the stories starring the unlikely detective Horne Fisher, a man cut from the upper crust of Britain whose in-depth knowledge of the nation's powermongers often curtails his investigations into corruption at the highest levels of government. Sometimes chided for demonstrating Chesterton's supposed anti-Semitism, these stories remains an intriguing look at British society in the pre-Great War era.

In this volume:

. "The Face in the Target"
. "The Vanishing Prince"
. "The Soul of the Schoolboy"
. "The Bottomless Well"
. "The Fad of the Fisherman"
. "The Hole in the Wall"
. "The Temple of Silence"
. "The Vengeance of the Statue"