Tag Archives: Christopher Tolkien

Christmas With J.R.R. Tolkien: The Father Christmas Letters

Posted on December 25, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

My little 2015 piece on J.R.R. Tolkien’s funny and endearing Father Christmas Letters has had quite a spin around the internet this week. I cannot think of a better Christmas note for you, dear readers of A Pilgrim in Narnia, … Continue reading →

Posted in Letters, Memorable Quotes | Tagged art, art of letter writing, children's literature, Christmas, Christopher Tolkien, fantasy, Father Christmas, J.R.R. Tolkien, letters, literature, Lord of the Rings, myth, Santa Claus, The Hobbit, writing | 14 Comments

The Doom and Destiny of Tolkien’s Chaucer Research: A Note on John M. Bowers, Tolkien’s Lost Chaucer (2019)

Posted on November 3, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

Tolkien’s Lost Chaucer is a book about a book that was doomed from the start. As I have been preparing for a Canterbury Tales section in a class I’m teaching, I have been using this recent winner of the Mythopoeic … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Beowulf, C.S. Lewis, Chaucer, Christopher Tolkien, Harold Bloom, J.R.R. Tolkien, John M. Bowers, Middle English, The Canterbury Tales, The History of Middle-earth, Tolkien’s Lost Chaucer | 17 Comments

Tolkien Studies Projects Sweep the Mythopoeic Scholarship Award Shortlist in Inklings Studies (Trying Not To Say “I Told You So”)

Posted on August 5, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

I just spent the weekend at Mythcon–a short, digital version of the normally weird and wonderful long weekend of scholarship and fan fun. Many of the parts of Mythcon that I love were still featured, including thoughtful and engaging panels, … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Charles Huttar, Charles Williams, Christopher Tolkien, Clyde Kilby, david downing, Diana Glyer, Dimitra Fimi, Dorothy L. Sayers, Doug Anderson, George Sayer, Grevel Lindop, Humphrey Carpenter, J.R.R. Tolkien, Janet Brennan Croft, Joe Christopher, John Garth, Kathryn Lindskoog, Michael Drout, Michael Ward, Mythcon, owen barfield, Paul Ford, Peter Schakel, The Inklings, Tom Shippey, Verlyn Flieger, Walter Hooper | 22 Comments

Why is Tolkien Scholarship Stronger than Lewis Scholarship? Part 3: Other Factors

Posted on April 20, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

As I have been chest-deep in academic works about C.S. Lewis and at least knee-deep in the same kinds of J.R.R. Tolkien books and articles, I conceived of a thought experiment. Without even glancing at my bookshelf, I can name … Continue reading →

Posted in Original Research, Reflections | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Christopher Tolkien, J.R.R. Tolkien, Literary Theory, Lord of the Rings, owen barfield, scholarship, The Hobbit, Walter Hooper | 31 Comments

The Top New Posts of 2020 on A Pilgrim in Narnia

Posted on January 5, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

2020 was the busiest year ever on A Pilgrim in Narnia! And by a pretty big margin. In 2020, we topped 1,000 posts, blew past our 1,000,000th page view, and passed 200,000 hits in a single year for the first … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links, Reviews, Throwback Thursdays | Tagged Anne’s House of Dreams, C.S. Lewis, Christopher Tolkien, fantasy, J.R.R. Tolkien, John Keats, L.M. Montgomery, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Narnia, Rainbow Valley, Ransom Cycle, SF, The Inklings, The MaudCast, The Problem of Susan, The Screwtape Letters, Tolkien, Walter Hooper | Leave a comment

Readings from J.R.R. Tolkien’s Tale Of Beren and Lúthien, with The Center from the Study of C.S. Lewis and Friends

Posted on April 17, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

Hi folks. This event is past, but The Center for the Study of C.S. Lewis and Friends at Taylor University are having a digital Inklings “tea” on Friday’s at 4pm. They are an archive, a host of strong Inklings-informed study … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, News & Links | Tagged Beowulf, Beren and Lúthien, Christopher Tolkien, fantasy, Fictional Universes, J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, writing | 20 Comments

Trees, Leaves, Vines, Circles: The Layered Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Fiction, A Note on “Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth”

Posted on March 25, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

I am for the first time teaching J.R.R. Tolkien‘s “Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth,” the “Debate between Finrod and Andreth”–though I wonder if “Dialogue” is a better term for “Athrabeth.” Finrod was the son of Finarfin, great Elven King of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Arthurian Torso, Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, Christopher Tolkien, Inklings, Leaf by Niggle, Morgoth's Ring, subcreation, The History of Middle-earth | 16 Comments

Christopher Tolkien, Curator of Middle-earth, Has Died, and a Letter from His Father

Posted on January 17, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

As last evening tilted towards nighttime in my part of the world, my social media feeds began filling with the news that Christopher Tolkien had died. The last living Inkling, Christopher John Reuel Tolkien (21 Nov 1924 to 15 Jan … Continue reading →

Posted in Letters, News & Links | Tagged archival research, Beren and Lúthien, Christopher Tolkien, Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien, Middle Earth, The History of Middle-earth, The Hobbit, The Inklings, The Lord of the Rings, The Silmarillion, The Tale of Beren and Lúthien | 51 Comments

A Ham of Note in the History of Literature (Throwback Thursday)

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Last year I introduced an occasional feature I call “Throwback Thursday.” This is 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 … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Memorable Quotes, Throwback Thursdays | Tagged C.S. Lewis, Christopher Tolkien, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, david downing, ham, Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien, letters, literature, Looking for the King, Lord David Cecil, owen barfield, rationing, WWII | 16 Comments

The Last Letter of J.R.R. Tolkien, on the 45th Anniversary of His Death

Posted on September 3, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

I have just finished reading The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (1982), which is fitting given that this is the 45th anniversary of his death (2 Sep 1973). With help from Christopher Tolkien, noted writer, broadcaster, and biographer Humphrey Carpenter collected the letters … Continue reading →