The story of the writer of a best-selling “immoral novel”

Simon Keable-Elliott talks about his recently published biography of his grandfather on Wednesday January 18th at 7pm ( doors open at 6.30)

Slated by critics, dubbed ‘utterly immoral’ by F Scott Fitzgerald and mocked in The Great Gatsby, Robert Keable’s novel Simon Called Peter became a worldwide bestseller in the 1920s. It was turned into a Broadway play, its sequel made into a Hollywood movie, and it transformed its author, a Cambridge-educated priest, into an international celebrity.

The biography traces Robert Keable’s experiences from Croydon to Basutoland and on to France as a First World War chaplain to mistreated black labourers. It examines the novel’s success, Keable’s loss of faith, his escape to Tahiti with his secret lover, and his final relationship with an island princess.

This event is free of charge but you can book at Eventbrite (htpps://www.eventbrite.com/e/486769599977) or by contacting the library at 0207 926 0710