The Man Who Was Thursday

By: G. K. Chesterton

Narrated by: Toby Longworth

Length: 5 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Exclusively from Audible

Chesterton's allegorical masterpiece is a surreal, psychologically thrilling audiobook that centres on seven anarchists in turn-of-the-century London, who call themselves by the names of days of the week.

The story begins when poet Gabriel Syme is recruited as a detective to a secret anarchist division of Scotland Yard by a shrouded, nameless person. Syme infiltrates a secret meeting of anarchists who are intent on destroying the world and becomes known as 'Thursday', one of the seven members of the Central Anarchist Council.

Narrator Biography

Formerly half a double-act with Bill Bailey, actor Toby Longworth left in order to join the Royal Shakespeare Company. Now a specialist in voiceover, his prominent work includes roles in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005) and Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999). He has appeared in audiobooks such as The Wolf Trial and The Lubetkin Legacy. He has also narrated documentaries for the BBC Worldwide Doctor Who DVD range; several of Games Workshop's Black Library audiobooks; and voiced the main character in the video game Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs. His television work has included roles in BBC's Extras (2006) and Not Going Out (2013-2014), as well as Channel 4's The IT Crowd (2006).

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

" The Man Who Was Thursday is not quite a political bad dream, nor a metaphysical thriller, nor a cosmic joke in the form of a spy novel, but it has something of all three...it remains the most thrilling book I have ever read." (Kingsley Amis)

Brilliant

I was caught up in the ridiculous tale… then blessed by the conclusion. Rather dumbfounded honestly busy the beauty, the humor, and the insight of GKChesterton.

volume fluctuations but good story

The story is one of my favorites.

The volume changes a bit too much.

I think the Audio could be edited easily to fix this!

if I had the source files I could even fix the volume easily enough myself.

Fascinating story!

What a fun novel with so much allegory. The story is a fascinating look on how evil can be used by God to draw together the forces of good, while purifying those forces into effective individual personalities, distinct and unique in their own way

Fantastic Twists and Turns

I got on to Chesterton after seeing his name on various quotes in Neil Gaiman's work, and I was not let down by this story. It is a great weave, and though the final twist could disapoint some I found it put a smile on my face. (but I won't spoil it for you)

very enjoyable

excellently written and narrated. I think I will listen to this one again and I very rarely do that.

Great Voice Acting & Great Story

I hadn't read any of Chesterton's fiction previously, and this was a fascinating listen. At several points, I was completely blindsided by a plot twist. His characters are deep, woven with layers of allegory, humor, and literary meaning. Chesterton influenced CS Lewis and is worth a listen if for no other reason than to get a glimpse of what Lewis himself read as he was shaping his thoughts about faith and literature.

Thoughtfully entertaining.

This book is very well performed and makes for an enjoyable listen. There is far more depth of thought here than you might imagine. And imagine you must.

Thought provoking

I didn’t know what this was about when I started it. He is great at creating excitement and adventure in this book. I could visualize the scenes!

Stunning

I am rocked. I finished this book and thought to myself “what just happened.” I am changed as a result.

Decent listen

Somewhat different. Mostly Predictable, but not annoyingly so; it is clear what is the circumstances, but still amusing to watch how the characters become aware Would’ve liked something more somehow, but it wasn’t bad.