The Napoleon of Notting Hill
From Freepedia
Novel written by G. K. Chesterton in 1904, set in a nearly-unchanged London of the latter Twentieth century.
Though the novel deals with the future, it concentrates not on technology nor on totalitarian government but on a government where no one cares what happens, comparable to Fahrenheit 451 in that respect.
The dreary succession of randomly-selected kings of England is broken up when Auberon Quin, who cares for nothing but a good joke, is chosen. To amuse himself, he institutes elaborate costumes for the Provosts of the districts of London. All are bored by the King's antics except for one earnest young man who takes the cry for regional pride seriously--Adam Wayne, the eponymous Napoleon of Notting Hill.
While the novel is humorous (one instance has the King sitting on top of an omnibus and speaking to it as to a horse: "Forward, my beauty, my Arab," he said, patting the omnibus encouragingly, "fleetest of all thy bounding tribe"), it is also an adventure story: Chesterton is not afraid to let blood be drawn in his battles, fought with sword and halberd in the London streets, and Wayne thinks up a few ingenious strategies; and, finally, the novel is philosophical, considering the value of one man's actions and the virtue of respect for one's enemies.
It is interesting to compare the ending of this book with the second of C S Lewis' Space Trilogy, Perelandra, in which two abstracted philosophical forms engage in a conversation with each other over the nature of life and truth, and then depart into the spiritual plane. C S Lewis admitted that the writings of Chesterton had a profound influence on his life, and was mostly responsible for his conversion to Christianity.
Chesterton's book has also had a value beyond entertainment. Two well known advocates of national independence were inspired by the book. They are Michael Collins who led the fight for Irish independence from British Rule (and carried a copy into battle) and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi who led the peaceful cause for India's independence from the British Empire.
Interestingly, the early chapters of the book are set in the year 1984 leading some to speculate that George Orwell was influenced by The Napoleon of Notting Hill however, Orwell never gave any indication that this was the case.
