Tag Archives: literature

A Brace of Tolkien Posts for his 129th Birthday #TolkienBirthdayToast

Posted on January 3, 2021 by Brenton Dickieson

To celebrate Tolkien’s twelfthty-ninth (or eleventy-nineteenth–a joke that expires this year) birthday on 3 January 2021, the Tolkien Society is once again raising a toast to the Professor (see here). After Bilbo left the Shire on his eleventy-first birthday in … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

“A Sense of the Season”: C.S. Lewis’ Birthday Pivot and the Cambridge Inaugural Address

Posted on November 29, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

In the autumn of 1954 at the age of 56, C.S. Lewis was at the height of his academic career. After nearly two decades of research and writing English Literature in the Sixteenth Century, Excluding Drama, this magnum opus intensified … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Original Research, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Tolkien’s “I am in fact a Hobbit (in all but size)” in Context: A Note on Books and Their Authors (#hobbitday)

Posted on September 22, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

I don’t know that there is any more famous J.R.R. Tolkien quote than his claim to, in fact, be a hobbit. It’s really quite a delightful statement and worth quoting more fully: I am in fact a Hobbit (in all … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

A Brace of Tolkien Posts for his 128th Birthday #TolkienBirthdayToast

Posted on January 3, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

To celebrate Tolkien’s twelfthty-eighth (or eleventy-eighteenth) birthday on 3 January 2020, the Tolkien Society is once again raising a toast to the Professor (see here). After Bilbo left the Shire on his eleventy-first birthday in The Lord of the Rings, Frodo … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links, Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

The Inside is Bigger than the Outside: A Christmas Thought from Narnia for Our World Too

Posted on December 25, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

I worked this older blog post into a short children’s sermon on Sunday, on the shortest day of the year, following the children’s Christmas concert. I think this moment in Narnia is always worth sharing this time of year. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Memorable Quotes, Reflections | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

What is Signum Culture? A Signum Symposium hosted by Brenton Dickieson (Thursday, 2pm EST)

Posted on December 10, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Signum University is a unique institution of learning. Beginning with the Mythgard Academy and a model of diving deep into some of our most engaging books, Signum University has developed an online, low-cost MA programme with majors in Tolkien Studies, … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“A Sense of the Season”: C.S. Lewis’ Birthday Pivot and the Cambridge Inaugural Address

Posted on November 28, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

In the autumn of 1954 at the age of 56, C.S. Lewis was at the height of his academic career. After nearly two decades of research and writing English Literature in the Sixteenth Century, Excluding Drama, this magnum opus intensified … Continue reading →

Posted in Lewis Biography, Original Research, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

C.S. Lewis, Gender, and The Four Loves: An Open Class

Posted on October 2, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

C.S. Lewis’ The Four Loves is a book that is building in popularity nearly 60 years after it was originally published. My original review of the book 8 years ago remains one of the top posts on this blog, and I … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

C.S. Lewis, Gender, and The Four Loves: An Open Class (Tues, Sep 17, 7pm Eastern)

Posted on September 12, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

C.S. Lewis’ The Four Loves is a book that is building in popularity. My original review of the book 8 years ago remains one of the top posts on this blog, and I have returned to the ideas again and again. … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, News & Links | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 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 , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments