{"product_id":"converts-from-oscar-wilde-to-muriel-spark-why-so-many-became-catholic-in-the-20th-century-9780300266078","title":"Converts: From Oscar Wilde to Muriel Spark, Why So Many Became Catholic in the 20th Century","description":"\u003cb\u003eWhy did Catholicism attract so many unlikely converts in Britain during the twentieth century?\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e The twentieth century is understood as an era of growing, inexorable secularism, yet in Britain between the 1890s and the 1960s there was a marked turn to Rome. In the first half of the century, Catholicism became an intellectual and spiritual fashion attracting more than half a million converts, including fascinating artists, writers, and thinkers. What drew these men and women to join the church, and what difference did conversion make to them? \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Melanie McDonagh examines the lives of these notable converts from the perspective of their faith. For the Decadent circle of Aubrey Beardsley and Oscar Wilde--who converted on his deathbed--artists such as Gwen John and David Jones, the philosopher Elizabeth Anscombe, and novelists including G. K. Chesterton, Graham Greene, Evelyn Waugh, and Muriel Spark, Catholicism offered stability in increasingly febrile times. McDonagh explores their lives and influences, the reaction to their conversions, and the priests who initiated them into their faith.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Melanie McDonagh\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Yale University Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/06\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 368\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.30lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.30h x 6.00w x 1.50d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780300266078\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMelanie McDonagh\u003c\/b\u003e is a journalist who has written extensively about religion and ideas for the \u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e, and the \u003ci\u003eDaily Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e. She is writer at large for the \u003ci\u003eEvening Standard\u003c\/i\u003e, and she has a doctorate in history from the University of Cambridge.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Melanie McDonagh \/ Hardcover \/ English","offer_id":47711894667421,"sku":"9780300266078","price":67.86,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_f5a04a83-0923-4c7e-a6bd-b4de5ff06e3f.jpg?v=1773170410","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/converts-from-oscar-wilde-to-muriel-spark-why-so-many-became-catholic-in-the-20th-century-9780300266078","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}