Hello Lewis readers! I shared some recent events announcements, including a couple of new C.S. Lewis studies book launches. Each of these events was well worth the time, filled with thoughtful conversation in what seem like creative, accessible, and high-quality books. I have Michael Ward‘s After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis’s The Abolition of Man on my desk and Katherine Langrish’s From Spare Oom to War Drobe: A Journey to Narnia on order with my local bookstore. Langrish’s writing on Narnia is far more literary and historical than I anticipated, both academic and personal with some artistic touches. And Ward’s “guide” is intricately designed and filled with context clues for Lewis’ most important and most difficult work of cultural criticism, The Abolition of Man. I look forward to digging in!

Meanwhile, I thought I would share the full videos of each book talk. Both of the conversations are archived in the organization’s respective Youtube channels (The Centre for Fantasy and the Fantastic at the University of Glasgow and The Marion E. Wade Center at Wheaton College), and I include here the video links and event descriptions.

Wade Centre Virtual Book Launch: After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis’s The Abolition of Man by Michael Ward (Thurs, Jun 17, 4pm CDT/5pm EST)

The Wade Center welcomes Michael Ward for a virtual book launch of his latest work, After Humanity: A Guide to C.S. Lewis’s The Abolition of Man. In his book, Dr. Ward sheds light on Lewis’s important but difficult work, which originated as a series of lectures on ethics that Lewis delivered during the Second World War. Ward explains both the general academic context and particular circumstances in Lewis’s life that helped give rise to The Abolition of Man, including his front-line service in the trenches of the First World War.

The publisher is also offering a deal that those who pre-order After Humanity will also get a free companion copy of Lewis’s The Abolition of Man. Pre-order your bundled set today and get two books for the price of one! Check out the full book launch discussion here.

Centre for Fantasy and the Fantastic at the University of Glasgow Book Launch: From Spare Oom to War Drobe: A Journey to Narnia with Katherine Langrish

In the just-published From Spare Oom to War Drobe, celebrated children’s and young adult fantasy author Katherine Langrish has revisited her childhood reading of C.S. Lewis‘s Chronicles of Narnia series to explore what enchanted her in the books as a young reader, and ask whether they still have the power to do so. Hand in hand with her nine year-old self, Katherine traces many paths through Lewis’s thick forest of allusions not only to Christianity, but to Plato, fairy tales, myths, legends, medieval romances, renaissance poetry and indeed to other children’s books. She juxtaposes two very different ways of reading the Narnia stories: the adult, informed, rational way and the passionate childish way.

Katherine was joined by the Centre for Fantasy and the Fantastic co-directors Dr Robert Maslen and Dr Dimitra Fimi, who will interview her about the book and all things Narnia, before giving attendees the opportunity to participate in a Q&A with Katherine. Click here for the full video.