Status
Available
Call number
Publication
Grosset & Dunlap
Pages
125
Description
Fiction. Historical Fiction. HTML:The modern classic about an idealistic British schoolmaster's influence on his students: "A minor miracle" (The New York Times). Throughout his forty-three-year tenure at Brookfield, "a good public school of the second rate" in eastern England, Arthur Chipping has been Mr. Chips to his students. From his unpolished first years during the Franco-Prussian War through the radical changes of the twentieth century and the outbreak of the First World War, Mr. Chips has shaped many young lives. But Chips has been inspired as wellâ??by the unremarkable and the extraordinary alike, by his colleagues, by a woman who will change him forever, and not least, by his children, "thousands of them, all boys." Since it was first published in 1934 to international success, Goodbye, Mr. Chips has never been out of print. It was followed by a collection of stories, To You, Mr. Chips, and provided the basis for two award-winning feature films, a stage musical, a radio play, and two television adaptations. Based on author James Hilton's experiences as a student at the Leys School, Cambridge, this short novel endures as a revelation of the difference one good teacher can make, and "what the better emotions do toward making people important" (Kirkus Reviews).… (more)
Series
Collection
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1934
Physical description
125 p.; 8.4 inches
Similar in this library
Lexile
930L
User reviews
LibraryThing member Stewartry
I saw the film some time ago, and as it turns out it was an excellent adaptation – very faithful to this sweet, sad, warm little book. I don't want it to sound like a criticism when I say I have little to say about it beyond that (sweet, sad, warm); it isn't. I enjoyed it very much, though about
The characters are remarkably alive; the setting is vivid; the period – especially the Great War – is made real. Mr. Chips – rather belatedly – joins the ranks of teachers I wish I'd had, teachers who actually care about what they're doing and about their pupils: teachers completely unlike any I had after third grade (Mrs. Schattan was wonderful). This is a lovely brief story of a life well-lived, of a full and rich life which had an impact – a positive impact – and which left a beautiful legacy. You can't ask for much more than that.
Show More
halfway through the nostalgia became melancholy despite Chips's perennial good humor, and I needed a break from even so short a book. If nothing else what I'm going to remember strongly about Goodbye, Mr. Chips is the picture of the old man (not ill, mind, just tired) sitting by his fire with sudden and unexpected tears pouring down his face. The characters are remarkably alive; the setting is vivid; the period – especially the Great War – is made real. Mr. Chips – rather belatedly – joins the ranks of teachers I wish I'd had, teachers who actually care about what they're doing and about their pupils: teachers completely unlike any I had after third grade (Mrs. Schattan was wonderful). This is a lovely brief story of a life well-lived, of a full and rich life which had an impact – a positive impact – and which left a beautiful legacy. You can't ask for much more than that.
Show Less
LibraryThing member richardderus
The Book Report: Old Mr. Chipping, nearing ninety and still telling his hoary old jokes from sixty years ago to the newbies at Brookfields school, spends his last few days on earth wandering among the many well-furnished rooms in his head. We see the events of his entire career as a schoolmaster,
My Review: I read this book tonight because, for far from the first time in my life to date, I learned that I lost an old, old friend: My mother's best friend, my heart-mother, finally let go of her life barely short of her 92nd birthday on January 4.
I know it was only her body wearing down, because dementia had long since taken her essence from the living world. But tonight, forty-two years after I met her and began to love her, I feel she is here. And I promised her I wouldn't cry, she told me it hurt her to see me cry once a lifetime ago, but I can't not. It's for myself, for my heart growing old and curling inwards from surprisingly fresh hurt. I don't miss her, or miss her more than I did yesterday; death is a release when someone is already no longer themselves; but the days ahead number fewer than the days behind, and I can see my own end like a hill far away, instead of the comforting illusion of horizons hiding it. It's not scary. It's just...real.
I am now the age she was when I met her. My memories are so real! The Pirate's Den, the junque shoppe on North Lamar, parking under the pecan tree and racing everyone to be the first to see what was new; cold, cold Bull Creek, flat hot rocks, the folds of the Balcones Escarpment and their fossil shells; laughing, crying, talking, always with a silver-bunned, trifocalled, green-eyed artist teaching the only things she knew to teach. I needed them then, I treasure them now, and there is no one else to whom these memories mean one single thing except an old guy reliving his past.
She was Mr. Chips, and I listened the way those schoolboys did; now it's my turn...sic semper tyrranis, oh wait that was the assassin but that's good too, sic transit Irenaea mundi...hail and farewell, dear, now you go on home to Mother and Daddy, walk safe!
Show More
his brief, brilliant career as a husband, and his long, glorious sunset as a School Institution. As he passes through the portal made for one (bet Chips'd know the source on that one), he feels...as I hope and pray all who read this will feel on their own long night...it was good, it was good.My Review: I read this book tonight because, for far from the first time in my life to date, I learned that I lost an old, old friend: My mother's best friend, my heart-mother, finally let go of her life barely short of her 92nd birthday on January 4.
I know it was only her body wearing down, because dementia had long since taken her essence from the living world. But tonight, forty-two years after I met her and began to love her, I feel she is here. And I promised her I wouldn't cry, she told me it hurt her to see me cry once a lifetime ago, but I can't not. It's for myself, for my heart growing old and curling inwards from surprisingly fresh hurt. I don't miss her, or miss her more than I did yesterday; death is a release when someone is already no longer themselves; but the days ahead number fewer than the days behind, and I can see my own end like a hill far away, instead of the comforting illusion of horizons hiding it. It's not scary. It's just...real.
I am now the age she was when I met her. My memories are so real! The Pirate's Den, the junque shoppe on North Lamar, parking under the pecan tree and racing everyone to be the first to see what was new; cold, cold Bull Creek, flat hot rocks, the folds of the Balcones Escarpment and their fossil shells; laughing, crying, talking, always with a silver-bunned, trifocalled, green-eyed artist teaching the only things she knew to teach. I needed them then, I treasure them now, and there is no one else to whom these memories mean one single thing except an old guy reliving his past.
She was Mr. Chips, and I listened the way those schoolboys did; now it's my turn...sic semper tyrranis, oh wait that was the assassin but that's good too, sic transit Irenaea mundi...hail and farewell, dear, now you go on home to Mother and Daddy, walk safe!
Show Less
LibraryThing member _Zoe_
This is the story of an old British schoolteacher reflecting on his life and career. I love boarding school stories, so I was interested in reading one from a teacher's point of view, and I wasn't disappointed. This is a short but powerful book, though I found it almost painfully sad at times. Mr.
Show More
Chips is an average, even mediocre, teacher, and it was difficult to be faced with the combination of his mediocrity and personal tragedy. Of course, this also makes it very real. I'm just glad that he could reflect with satisfaction on his achievements in the end, and remember happy times without focusing on what was lost. Anyway, this is not always an easy book to read, but it's certainly worth the time. Show Less
LibraryThing member FrkFrigg
It’s a funny little book. It’s sort of slow, laid back in the pace. I don’t really know what to think of it. Nothing much happens, and yet an entire world unravels before your eyes. You don’t really get to know most of the characters, yet it feels like you were there yourself, both on the
Show More
boarding school, Brookfield, and in the house of Mrs. Wickett’s, listening to Mr. Chips telling those charming stories about his life as a teacher. Show Less
LibraryThing member bookappeal
A simple story about a young English schoolmaster who becomes an established figure at Brookfield school in the late 1800s. Though the character is certainly appealing, little happens in this novel and no themes are particularly explored. How the book became a "classic" remains a mystery.
LibraryThing member debnance
It's the gentle story of a man who taught in a British private boys' school for many decades. I love the way Chips starts out as a very average sort of person and teacher. It's the experiences of life---the death of his wonderful wife, the tragedies of the war, the days, years spent teaching
Show More
children---that transform Chips into a thoughtful, clever, and exemplary human being. Show Less
LibraryThing member lydia1879
This book is tiny wee!
So tiny wee in fact, that there's so much dispute over what to call it. I'd call it a novella, but there are some that say that it's too long for a novella, and too long for a short story, but too short for a novel. So is it a novelette? I don't know.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips is a
I wasn't really invested in the novel, I found it interesting but I was totally ready to shelve it and then it just threw me for a loop and shattered me forever.
Get ready for some bone-crushing angst over tea and crumpets, guys.
So tiny wee in fact, that there's so much dispute over what to call it. I'd call it a novella, but there are some that say that it's too long for a novella, and too long for a short story, but too short for a novel. So is it a novelette? I don't know.
Goodbye, Mr. Chips is a
Show More
slow novel, like a lot of British of that period are. I wasn't really invested in the novel, I found it interesting but I was totally ready to shelve it and then it just threw me for a loop and shattered me forever.
Get ready for some bone-crushing angst over tea and crumpets, guys.
Show Less
LibraryThing member eglinton
The more we age, the more of our experience is behind us rather than ahead. And as we look back, the soothing temptation is to let ourselves be lulled into a comfortable, maybe mushy, sense of worthiness. Veteran school-master Mr Chips is an un-layered, rather flat, recognisably English character,
Show More
rather like the butler in “Remains of the Day” but without the creeping self-doubt. For over time, his steadiness is seen to prevail. Strivers and innovators are distrusted or at least gently teased. The great upheavals of the age, undermining the Victorian-Edwardian order, are endured without major divergence from the settled methods. Chips’ ponderous manner is matched by Hilton’s sparing prose. And Chips wins us over, as the author dignifies those little foibles and familiar tics we adopt or succumb to as we age. Perhaps too, our own sense of receded ambitions and modest attainment is soothed. The overall effect is uplifting, memorable, even moving. Show Less
LibraryThing member Sandydog1
I've yet to see the movie, but I read the campy 1969 paperback edition with color stills of Peter OToole and Petula Clark. This tiny book is a wonderful character study of the long career of a British schoolmaster. It spans from the Victorian era into the 1930s and was first published in the
Show More
Atlantic Monthly. The novella merely mentions incidents, anecdotes and events, leaving the reader very, very curious. I'm sure these were further fleshed-out by the screenplay folks. I'll look for the movie. Show Less
LibraryThing member callmejacx
I was amazed how this short story told such an in depth story. I connected with the story right away. It was difficult to put it down. I felt as if I had known Mr. Chips all my life.
It was a remarkable story told in a remarkable way. I am thrilled that I finally read this classic.
It was a remarkable story told in a remarkable way. I am thrilled that I finally read this classic.
LibraryThing member Greymowser
An old hardcover book given to me by a friend. No slipcover on it so I just picked the cover at random.
A sweet sad story. A good reference for the old school tie.
A sweet sad story. A good reference for the old school tie.
LibraryThing member jeffome
nice simple little tale of a well-loved gentleman whose entire adult life was devoted to a private school where he held a teaching position....an inspirational look at the value of character and how it can trump all else in our lives.....a theme that seems to not get nearly enough attention these
Show More
days.....i enjoyed..... Show Less
LibraryThing member bkwurm
This book tells the story of Mr. Chipping, a retired schoolteacher from the English boarding school of Brookfield. The story is told as a series of flashbacks and remembrances from Mr. Chipping's (affectionately referred to as "Chips") point of view, and covers 6 decades, including his early years
This was a light and charming story, but too short. The time span is so great, and the length of the book so short, that it was hard to get any sense of depth. Additionally, the memoir style of storytelling--dipping into memories and then pulling back--prevented me from truly losing myself in the book.
Still, it is a delightful story, and Mr. Chips is a fun and memorable character. I recommend this book if you're in the mood for some light weekend reading.
Show More
as a teacher, his brief but life-changing marriage, more than 3 headmasters, many political movements, wars, and much more.This was a light and charming story, but too short. The time span is so great, and the length of the book so short, that it was hard to get any sense of depth. Additionally, the memoir style of storytelling--dipping into memories and then pulling back--prevented me from truly losing myself in the book.
Still, it is a delightful story, and Mr. Chips is a fun and memorable character. I recommend this book if you're in the mood for some light weekend reading.
Show Less
LibraryThing member usnmm2
A joy to read. A real feel good story
LibraryThing member shelley436
Lovely! Poignant, beautiful. Great novels to read in autumn.
LibraryThing member bookworm12
This sweet story follows the life of a devoted school master from the beginning of his career until the end. It’s a very short book, so there’s not too much room for character development. I wish I’d gotten to know a couple of the characters better. I actually saw the 1939 film before reading
BOTTOM LINE: A good little book about the impact one man can have on his students. A quick read and definitely worth the time.
Show More
the book and this is one of the rare cases where I actually liked the movie better. Still I enjoyed this one and I particularly loved Mrs. Chips' role in the story. BOTTOM LINE: A good little book about the impact one man can have on his students. A quick read and definitely worth the time.
Show Less
LibraryThing member fuzzi
An enchanting look at an English schoolmaster, and the memories of his life and times over more than 60 years. Highly recommended.
LibraryThing member Bagpuss
The 2002 ITV dramatisation with Martin Clunes is one of my favourite DVDs - it's one of my regular 'ironing' films and I don't think I'll ever tire of it!
I came across a free Kindle download for it so though it was about time I gave the book a go to see how it compares.
Well, compare isn't the
Did it stop me enjoying the book? No - it's a charming tale and I enjoyed it - I liked Hilton's style of writing. In this case, I did prefer the TV version - had I read the book first I might have felt differently! I will continue to watch, and love, the DVD - they just need to be treated as slightly different things!
I came across a free Kindle download for it so though it was about time I gave the book a go to see how it compares.
Well, compare isn't the
Show More
right word! The ITV version has the same elements, of course - most of the same characters appear but the ITV version is very embellished - the time frame, for example is very different - some of the events which take place are pretty insignificant in the book but have been made major points of the dramatisation.Did it stop me enjoying the book? No - it's a charming tale and I enjoyed it - I liked Hilton's style of writing. In this case, I did prefer the TV version - had I read the book first I might have felt differently! I will continue to watch, and love, the DVD - they just need to be treated as slightly different things!
Show Less
LibraryThing member edwina1
All time favorite
LibraryThing member SeriousGrace
When one thinks of Goodbye, Mr. Chips I am sure they are transported back to movies like Dead Poet's Society and Mr. Holland's Opus, two movies very similar in nature to Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Mr. Chips, the much loved teacher and sometime acting Head of Brookfield was devoted to his students and
Show More
loved teaching them with a passion. Even when the boarding school tried to get him to retire they were unsuccessful. How do you rid yourself of pillar of the institution? Show Less
LibraryThing member elenchus
Easy to speculate Hilton distills his own outlook on education into Chips, fitting insofar as it is inherently conservative, in the sense of upholding established ideals under threat of changing norms. No mere propaganda vehicle, however: Chips undergoes a transformation of character, becoming a
So, a self-conscious nostalgia trip, impressive as English history in miniature panorama. Brings to mind Forrest Gump: does the film adaptation hew closer or further from that peculiar sense of History-with-an-H? Similarly, an elegy to the influence an individual can wield. Sentimental, but at sufficient remove to allow a genuine glimpse into its time & place. An open question as to whether I would have thought the same when reading it on publication. An authenticity accrued over time, incidental to authorial intent.
//
Chips almost despite himself a contrarian: talking with a striker in broad view of the boys, bringing political talk down to a human level; his friendship with Max Staefel even through the Great War, exchanging letters; reciting Latin during an air raid.
Like 84, Charing Cross Road, Good-bye, Mr Chips lends itself to reading aloud, with brief chapters and vignettes easily parceled out over several evenings before bed.
Show More
jester within stolid Brookfield, a second-tier public school, in his effort to preserve tradition even while honouring the ideals of excellence and personal compassion (made manifest with his love for Kathie). Chips himself refers to "a sense of proportion".So, a self-conscious nostalgia trip, impressive as English history in miniature panorama. Brings to mind Forrest Gump: does the film adaptation hew closer or further from that peculiar sense of History-with-an-H? Similarly, an elegy to the influence an individual can wield. Sentimental, but at sufficient remove to allow a genuine glimpse into its time & place. An open question as to whether I would have thought the same when reading it on publication. An authenticity accrued over time, incidental to authorial intent.
//
Chips almost despite himself a contrarian: talking with a striker in broad view of the boys, bringing political talk down to a human level; his friendship with Max Staefel even through the Great War, exchanging letters; reciting Latin during an air raid.
Like 84, Charing Cross Road, Good-bye, Mr Chips lends itself to reading aloud, with brief chapters and vignettes easily parceled out over several evenings before bed.
Show Less
LibraryThing member deckla
Why can't I go to a proper English boarding school?
LibraryThing member kslade
Really pleasant story of a schoolmaster and how he affected the lives of his students and eventually found a wife.
LibraryThing member Romonko
This little book came out in 1933. James Hilton tells us the heartwarming story of a lovable schoolmaster named Mr. Chips who taught at the Brookfield boarding school for over four decades. The book is fiction, but Mr. Chips is an amalgamation of many public school schoolmasters of his time. He is
Show More
probably the most loveable character that you're ever going to meet between the covers of a book. I have had this copy for a number of years in my own library, and finally decided that I need to read and re-read some of my own classics. There are a number that I haven't read even once. This book tells the story of a man who has lived a full life and has filled his days with teaching, mentoring, grooming and caring for young school-age boys. To the uninitiated observer, the world appears to have passed him by, but that is not so at all. All the things that Mr, Chips teaches his boys are valuable life-lessons that stand the test of time, right up to the present day. What a delightful book, and a great way to spend a couple of cold winter days. It's nice to get off the merry-go-round of the world's current state of affairs, and slip into a much quieter and simpler age. Show Less
LibraryThing member OperaMan_22
I think this appeals to a certain class of person who yearns for the "good old days" (i.e., white, Anglo-Saxon, perhaps even Protestant). It is quaint but dated.
Subjects
Call number
FIC A4 Hil