I Also Had My Hour: An Alternative Autobiography of G.K. Chesterton

Nearly a century after his death, G. K. Chesterton comes out with a new book . . . about himself!

Renowned Chesterton scholar Dale Ahlquist presents a unique retelling of Chesterton’s life in Chesterton’s own words, drawn from hundreds of sources—including material that has not been seen for over a hundred years—and edited into a narrative. Ahlquist has used bits and pieces, sentences and paragraphs, even poems, to allow the Prince of Paradox, while talking about something else, to give many revealing glimpses of himself. Although Chesterton penned an autobiography at the end of his life, he mostly wrote about other people. Here, finally, is the person he neglected to tell us about: G. K. Chesterton.

Ahlquist’s careful compilation yields a new, intimate look at the most interesting character in Chesterton’s story: the man holding the pen. We learn about his youth, his beginnings as a writer, his rise as a literary star, his family and friends and foes, his travels, his struggles and temptations, his controversies, his sorting out the mystery of life, and his conversion to the Catholic faith.

For many readers, even those familiar with Chesterton, much of the material in this book will be completely new. Ahlquist also provides an extensive timeline of Chesterton’s life, which is itself a compact biography.