This early work by G. K. Chesterton was originally published in 1903. Gilbert Keith Chesterton was born in London in 1874. He studied at the Slade School of Art, and upon graduating began to work as a freelance journalist. Over the course of his life, his literary output was incredibly diverse and highly prolific, ranging from philosophy and ontology to art criticism and detective fiction. However, he is probably best-remembered for his Christian...

This biography of Henry Fielding (1707—1754), part of the authoritative “English Men of Letters” series, is an invaluable resource for students of literature. Fielding, renowned for his satirical skills and bawdy humor, is best known for his rambunctious novel “Tom Jones” (1749), although “The Adventures of Joseph Andrews” (1742) marked his debut as a serious novelist.

This 1880 English Men of Letters volume focuses on the rock star of Romanticism. "Byron's life was passed under the fierce light that beats upon an intellectual throne," writes Nichol. "He succeeded in making himself-what he wished to be-the most notorious personality in the world of letters of our century."

“The Canterbury Tales of Geoffrey Chaucer” (1343-1400) represent one of the foundations of English literature. For this 1879 entry in the influential "English Men of Letters" series of literary biographies, the distinguished critic Adolphus Ward placed Chaucer's life and work in the context of his tempestuous times, which included the Black Death.

In this masterful biography, Goldwin Smith presents the life and works of William Cowper (1731-1800), whom Samuel Taylor Coleridge called "the best modern poet." Tracing Cowper's life-from his beginnings in England to his death-Smith analyzes his major lyrical works and as well as his hymns. Smith also offers an examination of the writer's lasting influence on Romantic poetry.

This 1878 volume in the English Men of Letters series explores the life of Edward Gibbon, author of “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”. According to a contemporary review by Mark Pattison in the Academy, "Future numbers of the series may imitate, they cannot surpass, the present specimen." A splendid perspective on the life of an intriguing man.

This 1878 installment in John Morley's English “Men of Letters” Series sympathetically reviews the life and works of the Irish writer Oliver Goldsmith. Black defends Goldsmith by reviewing his education, travel, personal traits, literature, and the difficulties he faced along the way.

Published in 1880, the book presents a detailed biographical portrait of John Locke. Locke, known as the Father of Liberalism, was an influential Enlightenment thinker and helped to establish British empiricism. Written in a lively narrative, it is a highly readable account of the philosopher's life.

Sidney Colvin's biography examines the life and work of English writer and poet Walter Savage Landor (1775—1864). Landor is best remembered for his work “Imaginary Conversations”, which envisions conversations between figures from classical Greece and Rome, poets and authors, statesmen and women, and other individuals.