The Innocence of Father Brown
by G.K. Chesterton
Reviewed by Aaron DeWeese
"The Blue Cross" was one of my favorites. The simple inconspicuous deep cunning of Father Brown was most blatantly exhibited for us here. It was like witnessing a feather render an anvil unto powder. Here we first meet our two most important reoccurring characters - the brilliantly creative criminal Flambeau, and the relatively short lived head of the Paris Police, Valentin. A most satisfying tale. I loved the bizarre market scenes which led us helter skelter to the conclusion.
Next, "The Secret Garden". I liked the quaint closed-house dinner party murder, though this one did spill out on the street for a bit. I was somewhat taken aback by the violent nature of the crime. Chesterton seems to enjoy a bit of light gore. We were just coming to know the atheist intellect of Paris' finest investigator - that of Valentin. Ironically, the fellow falls from his office and Chesterton tells us that "on the blind face of the suicide was more than the pride of Cato".
"The Queer Feet" was one of Chesterton's queerer tales, which is always a good thing. Chesterton seems obsessed with clubs and secret societies. This is a tale of one such fishy society, and their expensive dinner ware. The criminal Monsieur Flambeau is once again at work here. Again, Father Brown so far outwits the witty Flambeau that Flambeau surrenders and repents; whereas in the first story, he only surrendered. This marks the turning point for Flambeau, as the last story marked the dark turning point for Valentin, which is ethically paradoxical.
"The Flying Stars" is a Dickian Christmas tale, as it so proclaims itself. Chesterton must have liked Dickens, as a later story references Mr. Pickwick. Again we are shown the artistic criminal ingenuity of Flambeau; and the greater critical thinking and deductive reasoning of Father Brown. They are like mini-duels. Here Flambeau is shown by Father Brown that crime always creates victimization. Again, Flambeau repents. His sin-nature is now in its death throes; he has seen the Light, and obtained the knowledge of the error of his ways by means of Father Brown - Father Brown saw Flambeau and understood him. Flambeau could not hide from Father Brown, nor could he deceive Father Brown. He does the only logical thing - submits.
"The Invisible Man" finds Flambeau diametrically metamorphosed into, what!, yes!, a detective! It really was his most natural occupational choice as a man who had turned from an ingenious criminal to become a man respectable. The line is thin between the two fields; and as Chesterton has shown us—not only with Flambeau, but also with Valentin—the fields often transpose and become interpolated. Ironically, in one's case this is always good, in the case of the other, always damnable. And yet, here, we do not even encounter Flambeau or Father Brown until nearly the end of the story, which is not a love triangle, but a love trapezoid, having four very unequal sides. Poor Angus. I might note that to find humanoid robots in the story was a delightful surprise.
"The Honour of Israel Gow" was a nice Scottish Gothic tale of honor that I'm not sure I fully understood. It seems there was no crime, though certainly some strangeness in events. I enjoyed the scenery, the piles of snuff, the skull in the potato garden, and the digressions of Father Brown and Flambeau.
"The Wrong Shape" was about an opium addict poet, his poor wife, his live-in Indian guru and his doctor. A surprise ending, very memorable. Don't trust the doc for your health.
"The Sins of Prince Saradine" was highly entertaining. Old bloodlines, dark secrets, duels... It was a bit maddening that Flambeau did no more than fish throughout the story. I really don't see how Prince Saradine could live with himself, much less, laugh at the ending of it all; and gads! how much more of a deranged creature was the woman, the mother, the co-murderer of not only her husband to whom she was unfaithful, but the Prince's brother and her own son who will quietly hang!
"The Hammer of God" was interesting in that it dealt with piety that had to live alongside impiety. The pious Bohun brother didn't handle it too well. Just think of Father Brown - he is the epitomical high man in low places. By the grace of God he is not tainted.
"The Eye of Apollo" was a strange story of paganism and neopaganism, and greed. Blinding is the sun and blind was Miss Pauline. Interesting that here Chesterton referenced another lover of paradox, Nietzsche.
"The Sign of the Broken Sword" was a military story which shows us that what we glorify may not at all be that which is glorious.
"The Three Tools of Death" was fun, because, of course, it took place on a train, mostly!
I'll definitely be searching the bookstores for more of Chesterton and more of Father Brown! Excellent!
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