Books on Tape - "The Secret of Innocent Smith" - Chapter 4 adapted from G.K. Chesterton's "Man Alive"

October 04, 2020

Langdon Palmer

One of my favorite books of all time is a short novel by G.K. Chesterton entitled "Man Alive." It is silly, boisterous, beautiful, irreverent - with a message of profound hope and wisdom lying just just beneath the surface. However, because it was written in 1914 by a Britainer to the people of his time, it can be hard to understand and even offensive to modern ears. Although I feel ridiculous even attempting to modify this classic, I also feel that the possibility of providing access to a new audience is well worth my presumption. So this is his original text modified only slightly and very gently. For example, I rephrase perhaps 10 words in a 25000 word chapter. In the written version I simplify by including copious footnotes on people, places and words not familiar to some modern readers. In the audio version, I also sometimes further simplify phrases for clarity while listening. The entire series can be found a www.InkingsWines.com