Customer Reviews

Goodbye, Mr. Chips

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I watched, "Goodbye, Mr Chips" (teh Robert Donat version) when I was just a teenager, and loved it. Now 33, I've wacthed the film again several times, and had to retrieve the box of tissues every time! :-) My husband recently bought me the hardback book (been looking for it for YEARS!!), which I'm thrilled with. The story is such a wonderful one (Old school teacher reminiscing about loves ones and events that influenced and changed his life), and I really do wish that more younger people (usually those under 20) could stop for a moment and enjoy the history of an ordinary life, without rejecting the whole concept as 'boring'. Disturbingly enough, I've heard the same word (boring) used to describe, "The Diary of Anne Frank" (the actual diaries of a Jewish girl hiding from the Nazis). Makes one wonder about people, really, when such beautifully-written diares and novels are rejected as 'boring'. Perhaps those readers just don't fully understand the subject matter or the language used in either book. That's a shame, because this (and The Anne Frank diaries) is a wonderful book. Read it, enjoy it, and read it again later.

This is one of those books (a novelette, really--it's only a little over 100 pages) that has become a classic, and rightfully so. It's about a somewhat shy man, Mr. Chipping, who comes to teach at Brookfield School in 1870. He begins to warm up to his students, after falling in love and marrying Katherine, who brings him out of his shell. He becomes a beloved institution at the school, and is there until the end of his life. It's a wonderful story, told by one of the best of the modern story-tellers, James Hilton.

Hilton is a wonderful author, and I never tire of reading his books. He's very good at characterization, and that talent really shines in "Chips." "Chips," "Lost Horison," and "Random Harvest" are among his best, but I've never read a bad book by Hilton. By all means, check out his books--you'll be glad you did!

This work is a fine rendition of English literature around the
time of the 1880s or thereabouts. The main character, Mr. Chips
evolves into a personable old man who gains substantial
sympathy from the readership. This book is assigned in early
high school because of its excellent presentation and
innocent themes. The main character represents an instructor
who teaches generations of boys in a local middle or high school. The setting is in Brookfield, England. There is a
quaintness about the town, as well as the characters in the
book. The portal of time preceeded the 20th century when
teachers stayed in the same job and the same locale for
multiple generations. With each passing generation, the
graduating students would reminisce about teachers within
each others' common domain of experience. Mr. Chips was a
character not likely to be forgotten due to his longstanding
presence as a pedagogue to the many young students in Brookfield.
Students would critique his memory and style of teaching
year after year. The main character suffered through adversities
and celebrated better times. The work is memorable due to its
shear ordinariness. At times, the author shifts from the
present tense verbal structures to the past tense without
adequately preparing the reader. The general grammatical
thrust of the book is appropriate for the readership; namely,
young people. The work foretells a time past; however,
it's important for students to read literature from different
centuries in order to gain an overall perspective on world
history and comparative styles of writing in the English
language and other languages. Contrast the character of
Mr. Chips to that of Ebeneezer Scrooge in "A Christmas Carol"
by Charles Dickens. The character of Scrooge is far more
sophisticated and worldly. The story is more involved with
a complete evolution of the main character from a stingy
pennypincher to a generous patron of the local community.
The authors are similar in that the storylines are centered
on a single character throughout a lifetime. These English
authors were marvelous storytellers. They escorted the readers
through decades of experiences in the lives of the involved
characters. The works are important for readers of all ages
because they document ordinary and sometimes extraordinary
lives during the various stages of evolution and transition.

A Review by Tamame (Japanese exchange student)

This book about college professor. His name is Mr. Chips. He likes joking and he likes college students. Specially if he meets new boys, he brings to tea. He learned many thing from college students and other teachers. And many times he is envious to himself. Because he makes fun of his students and after that he look back what he did. And he knew he did stupid things.
He loves college very much. He didn't want to make Brokfield rich. So he fought with a young college teacher. But that man wanted Mr. Chips to retire. But he was so sick. So he retired college and finally he died.

This book makes me confused. I don't know representing overview. I tried to understand but I don't understand.
I like Mr. Chips. Because when Ralston talked with him. He told Mr. Chips he wanted Brokfield to be rich. So this college needed to new stuff. But Mr. Chips didn't want to make rich. I like his opinions. And he is sometimes stupid. But he likes his students a lot. I felt that when I read this book. I like his personality.

If students don't like teachers. I would like to recommend reading this book. This book is a little bit sad. But this book gives to us thinking. So I would like to recommend to read this book.

This book is great for high schoolers and adults. Mr. Chips is a wonderful study in what teaching used to be. Except for corporal punishment, I think he was a wonderful teacher. I loved this book, and, although I read it many years ago, I still have endearing memories. It is very sad in spots, but heartwarming most of the time. Much better than Lost Horizon.

The last page of this book made up for any feelings of boredom I experienced before. Mr. Chips has enjoyed a 63-year history at Brookfield School for Boys in England. He was married briefly for a year to a young woman who died, and no one remembers her. It's like he has always been a confirmed old bachelor.

Mr. Chips is easily the prototype for Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society. You can see a much-loved teacher with his own complexities shining through this character. The last page made me cry, it was just so touching. Read this book -- it is a classic and worth much more than the few hours it takes to read it.

Goodbye Mr.Chips was an interesting book. Mr. Chips lives in a house with Mrs. Wicket and he teaches at Brookfield. He loves being a teacher and he touches many students lives.
He meets his wife at a vacation resort. She changes his view on life and this makes Mr. Chips well loved at school.Mrs. Chips becomes pregant yet she dies in childbirth. This makes Mr. Chips horribly sad and he is very drpressed. Although when the school Head of School comes in, Mr. Chips job faces danger. The new Head of school tells Mr. CHips that he will have to retire. So Mr. Chips tries to but he just cannot leave. A new Head Master comes in and Mr. Chips begins work again. He goes through many dangers during his teaching. He faces sad students, World War I, air raids and many other things. He dies a happy man at Mrs. Wicket's.

I enjoyed reading this book because it was easy to follow. Although the story could have had a alot more plot to it, I enjoyed it. I also liked getting deeper into the book by looking at the themes prevalant in the book.

I would encourage you to read Goodbye Mr. Chips if you are looking for a short story. If you want to havea good read, read GOODBYE MR. CHIPS.

This story is understated yet full of heart. I love the original black and white Robert Donat (sp?) movie of this -- I saw it as a boy and was unusually touched by it; it has stuck vividly in my mind these last 30 years. I recently saw the much newer Peter O'Toole version, which was also good -- but the original movie was sublime and altogether more sophisticated. The author apparently wrote the story quickly and easily basing it to some degree on his own father. It was clearly written from the heart, the prose is simple and direct yet sensitive and thoroughly charming. A delight to read.

The story contrasts the quiet, simplicity and order of an old English public school in the decades around the turn of the centuary (~1900). It touches on the Great War with typical British understatement. It describes the life of a school master until his death in old age...a lovely, but necessarily sad story. Quite beautiful.

Another book, longer and a little more challenging from the same period and with a similar feel is "Memoirs of a Fox Hunting Man" by Sigfried Sasson. Do not be put off by the title.

I marveled at this book, which passed my tests with flying colors. Mr. Chips was a delightful and subtle balance of a lovable, caring teacher and a mildly pathetic person...so real...so true to life. It's the story of an unfulfilled man who falls into his place in the world and grows to accept it as best he can, and becomes loved by others in the process.

I found myself increasingly awed by the writer's style as the book proceeded. There was an extreme comfort in his flow, like he knew exactly what he wanted to say and how to say it. He was brief yet descriptive, sometimes so perfectly and marvelously descriptive that it really brought me hook, line and sinker into the world of his story - rare in a book, and especially in one so gentle and tender. It was no surprise for me to find he wrote the book in four days - this book was no hard labor of creation...this book flowed from his essence. I don't think a book can get much better than this. This is what writing is all about. I wish libraries were full of books of this quality.

This is one of those books which immediately fall under the head of "literary classics". Mind, dont go here looking for an amazing plot et al. You would not find it here - rather enter Hilton's world for the literature and its beauty. James Hilton, to my mind, presents a picture of a typical British author - laidback and rather understatemental. The pre-2nd W war years of British literature were good years - and there was a continuance of the literary traditions from Hardy and Eliot. The tale explores Mr Chips' life as a teacher in a typical British country setting. His romance - short but so very sweet - has been captured quite brilliantly. The changes in hin due to his married life have also been put forward - quite unobtrusively. I would put it down as an amzing book - provided you are attuned to such slow and engrossing books. This is a must-read for all literature lovers.