Tag Archives: literary friendship

Bunyan and Others and Me: Vicarious Bookshelf Friendship and a Jazz Hands Theory of Reading

Posted on March 22, 2022 by Brenton Dickieson

I have been quite open about the fact that I have had some difficulty finding true sympathy with John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress. I even went so far as to admit that the text at one time had been for … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged A Pilgrim's Regress, Auerbach, C.S. Lewis, Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, Dante, Enid Blyton, George MacDonald, Harold Bloom, Huckleberry Finn, Jane Eyre, John Bunyan, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, literary friendship, Little Women, Louisa May Alcott., Mark Twain, Middlemarch, Milton, mimesis, Prince Edward Island, Spenser, The Allegory of Love, The Land of Far-Beyond, The Pilgrim's Progress | 9 Comments

L.M. Montgomery Articles on A Pilgrim In Narnia

Posted on June 26, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

Including posts for the 2020 Vision Forum, the launch of the Maudcast, and my 2018 spring L.M. Montgomery series, I have published more than two dozen notes and articles on Montgomery and her work! And I still have a few … Continue reading →

Posted in L.M. Montgomery | Tagged Anne's House of Dreams, C.S. Lewis, Emily of New Moon, Jane Austen, L.M. Montgomery, literary friendship, Louisa May Alcott., Lucy Maud Montgomery, Rainbow Valley, Sehnsucht, The Alpine Path | 5 Comments

The Regent College BS Guild and the Inklings

Posted on June 26, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

It was a brief and intensely happy time of my life. My wife and I moved from rural Japan to the grand city of Vancouver. Never having lived in anything more than a small town and moving from a mountain … Continue reading →

Posted in Thoughtful Essays | Tagged Babette's Feast, Biblical Studies Guild, BS Guild, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, friendship, Inklings, J.R.R. Tolkien, Japan, literary friendship, Regent College, Settlers of Catan, The Drive, The Inklings, theology, Vancouver | 31 Comments

A Call for Literary Patrons

Posted on June 20, 2016 by Brenton Dickieson

I still have not found the words—or the time to search very hard—to describe the sublime experience of my research and conference trip to the Midwest these past couple of weeks. I spent nearly five days in archival and secondary … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links, Reflections | Tagged academic, friendship, literary friendship, literature, PhD, Reading, research, theology, University, writing | 26 Comments

“You’re one of me too”: Venn Diagram Friends by Neil Gaiman and C.S. Lewis

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Brenton Dickieson

It is one of the of the more moving moments in C.S. Lewis’ autobiography, Surprised by Joy. Lewis was living a largely lonely childhood, his only friend being his older brother. Then something utterly surprising happens: It is a curious truth, … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Arthur Greeves, books, C.S. Lewis, Discworld, fantasy, friendship, Good Omens, literary friendship, Neil Gaiman, Surprised by Joy, Terry Pratchett, The Colour of Magic, writing | 27 Comments

Talking of Books

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

My grandmother used to read aloud bits of whatever she was reading to my grandfather. Most typically this was the newspaper. Grampie would be sitting on the sofa reading the Holstein Journal, while Grammie would sit in her well-worn arm … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Reflections | Tagged books, C.S. Lewis, Cecil Harwood, friendship, hiking, J.R.R. Tolkien, literary friendship, literature, Nelson Mandela, The Guardian, walking, Warren Lewis, WWII | 7 Comments

Meeting the Oddest Inkling: The Early Letters of C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Brenton Dickieson

I have been reading the newly minted blog, The Oddest Inkling, by American Charles Williams scholar and past Pilgrim guest blogger Sørina Higgins. As I’ve been following the first few posts, I’ve also been reading through C.S. Lewis’ letters, and … Continue reading →