Monthly Archives: July 2019

Tolkien’s Last Friend in Oxford when the World Went to War, by John Garth

Posted on July 29, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Originally posted on John Garth:
Colin Cullis and J.R.R. Tolkien at Exeter College, Oxford, in 1912 (courtesy of H.D.L. Thompson) ‘Not a single man I know is up except Cullis,’ Tolkien lamented at the start of his final year as…

Posted in Thoughtful Essays | Tagged Colin Cullis, friendship, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Garth, spanish flu, TCBS, Tolkien and the Great War, WWI | 8 Comments

The Screwtape Letters Special Illustrated Edition by Artist Wayland Moore (Throwback Thursday)

Posted on July 25, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Throwback Thursdays are where I find a blog post from the past–raiding either my own blog-hoard or someone else’s–and throw it back out into the digital world. This might be an idea or book that is now relevant again, or … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews, Throwback Thursdays | Tagged books, C.S. Lewis, james thurber, literature, religion, Screwtape, The Screwtape Letters, Used Bookstores, Walter Hooper, Wayland Moore | 19 Comments

A WWI-era L.M. Montgomery Timeline

Posted on July 23, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

I am preparing a paper proposal for The L.M. Montgomery Institute’s Fourteenth Biennial Conference at the University of Prince Edward Island (25-28 June 2020; CFP due 16 Aug 2019). In my Montgomery reading, as much as I love the first Anne … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian literature, L.M. Montgomery | Tagged Anne of Green Gables, Anne's House of Dreams, Chronicles of Avonlea, Emily of New Moon, L.M. Montgomery, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Prince Edward Island, Rainbow Valley, Rilla of Ingleside | 23 Comments

The 100 Best Fantasy Books by Steve Hayes

Posted on July 19, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Originally posted on Notes from underground:
I saw this list of best fantasy books from Reddit. Top 100 Best Fantasy books: This is a list of the best fantasy books. If you want to find good fantasy books to read,…

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Guest Blogs | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Connolly, Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, Suzanne Collins, Ursula K. Le Guin | 5 Comments

O Foolish Writer: The Living Reality of an Author’s Work, with C.S. Lewis, Stephen King, and Ursula K. Le Guin (Throwback Thursday)

Posted on July 18, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Posted in Creative Writing, Fictional Worlds, Memorable Quotes, Throwback Thursdays | Tagged brewing, C.S. Lewis, Carrie, Chloe Moretz, Earthsea, Eugene Peterson, fantasy, fictional worlds, Frederick Buechner, Julianne Moore, Of Other Worlds, On Writing, Science Fiction, speculative fiction, Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, writing | 17 Comments

Mark Vernon’s “A Secret History of Christianity,” review by Wesley Schantz (On Owen Barfield)

Posted on July 16, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Review of A Secret History of Christianity: Jesus, the Last Inkling, and the Evolution of Consciousness, by Mark Vernon A guest post from Wesley Schantz Rating: 4 out of 5 stars For purposes of calibration or, if you like, conversion, … Continue reading →

Posted in Guest Blogs, Reviews | Tagged A Secret History of Christianity, C.S. Lewis, Christianity, History, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Vernon, On Fairy-Stories, owen barfield, philosophy, Splintered Light, Surprised by Joy, The Discarded Image, Verlyn Flieger, William Blake | 42 Comments

7 New Audiobooks on C.S. Lewis: Michael Ward, James Como, Stephanie Derrick, Patti Callahan, Joe Rigney, Diana Glyer, Gary Selby

Posted on July 10, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Checking Audible for something completely unrelated, I was pleased to see that Michael Ward’s Planet Narnia is now on audiobook. I thought I would provide a brief set of reviews on some good, new Audible C.S. Lewis finds. While sometimes audiobooks … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Reviews | Tagged Abigail Santamaria, audiobooks, Becoming Mrs. Lewis, Diana Pavlac Glyer, Gary Selby, James Como, Joe Rigney, Joy Davidman, Michael Ward, Planet Narnia, reception, reception history, Stephanie Derrick, The Fame of C.S. Lewis, The Narnia Code | 25 Comments

CFP: “2020: L.M. Montgomery and Vision”: Conference in Prince Edward Island

Posted on July 8, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Living on the extreme end of the continent has its perks. Besides a rich culture, gorgeous beaches, and something we call weather–sorry folks, most of you don’t really have weather–we in Prince Edward Island also have Anne of Green Gables. … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links | Tagged Amybeth McNulty, Anne, Anne of Green Gables, Anne's House of Dreams, Kevin Sullivan, L.M. Montgomery, Megan Follows, Prince Edward Island, tourism, University of Prince Edward Island, UPEI, WWI | 14 Comments

Lessons on Christian Culture from Good Omens, and Why the Protests Make Weird Sense

Posted on July 2, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Terry Pratchett My rating: 4 of 5 stars I decided to reread Good Omens because of the Amazon Prime series–though don’t tell fundamentalist American Christians that the series … Continue reading →