Goodbye, Mr. Chips
About this ebook
There is not another book, with the possible exception of Dickens's A Christmas Carol, that has quite the same hold on readers' affections. James Hilton wrote Goodbye, Mr. Chips in loving memory of his schoolmaster father and in tribute to his profession. Over the years it has won an enduring place in world literature and made untold millions of people smile—with a catch in the throat.
"Warming to the heart and nourishing to the spirit...The most profoundly moving story that has passed this way."—So said usually cynical critic Alexander Woollcott when GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS was first published in 1934, and his openhearted welcome to this delightful, memorable, moving novel has been echoed through the years by millions of readers as well as two generations of film-goers.
The gentle, lovable, tough English schoolmaster is one of America's favorite people. Who can forget the image of "Chips" on the day when he took a young and radical bride; the sad April Fools' Day when he lost her; the little jokes his classes came to expect; the boy whose father sailed on the Titanic; the intrusion of World War I into the peace and seclusion of Brookfield...all the pleasures and pains of a lifetime rich in teaching with love.
GOODBYE, MR. CHIPS is one of the most beloved books of our time.
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About the author
JAMES HILTON (9 September 1900 - 20 December 1954) was an English novelist best remembered for several best-sellers, including Lost Horizon and Goodbye, Mr. Chips. He also wrote Hollywood screenplays.
Born in Leigh, Lancashire, England, he was educated at The Leys School, Cambridge and then at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he wrote his first novel and received an honours degree in English literature. He started work as a journalist, first for the Manchester Guardian, then reviewing fiction for the Daily Telegraph. His first novel, Catherine Herself, was published in 1920 whilst still an undergraduate.
When he moved to California around 1938, his work became more connected with the Hollywood film industry. He won an Academy Award in 1942 for his work on the screenplay of Mrs. Miniver, based on the novel by Jan Struther. He also hosted The Hallmark Playhouse from 1948-1953 for CBS Radio.
He died in 1954 aged 54.
