Tag Archives: Stephen King

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 Charles Williams, Franz Kafka, Harry Potter, Hobbit Day, I.A. Richards, J.K. Rowling, J.R.R. Tolkien, literary criticism, literature, Lord of the Rings, new criticism, practical criticism, Stephen King, The Hobbit, Ursula K. LeGuin | 8 Comments

The Great Commandments Which All Vampires Must Obey, by Anne Rice

Posted on September 15, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

Richard Matheson’s 1954 novella, I Am Legend–a brilliant story that I am rereading now–is an important vampire tale that follows the great classic film interpretations, but it really is the earnest literary beginning of the zombie genre. And there are … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, Reflections | Tagged 'Salem's Lot, Anne Rice, Carrie, Fred Saberhagen, Interview with the Vampire, Mythopoeia, Queen of the Damned, Stephen King, Tanith Lee, The Dracula Tape, The Vampire Armand, The Vampire Lestat, Tom Cruise, Vampire Chronicles, Vampire Fiction | 2 Comments

1,000th Post Party!

Posted on March 4, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

It’s the 1,000th post on A Pilgrim in Narnia! Huzzah! I began this blog way back in 2011 as a sandbox project for thoughts about C.S. Lewis’ writings. “Pilgrimage” was a word-picture I was using a lot for my life … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links | Tagged books, C.S. Lewis, Discworld, Earthsea, Field of Arbol, H.P. Lovecraft, Harry Potter, Jane Austen, L.M. Montgomery, Lilliput, Middle Earth, Narnia, Númenor, Neil Gaiman, New Urth, Oz, Panem, Prince Edward Island, Ringworld, Stephen King, The Dark Tower, The Enderverse, The Great Divorce | 38 Comments

2019: A Year of Reading: The Nerd Bit, with Charts

Posted on January 1, 2020 by Brenton Dickieson

“With such wishes for the New Year as still seem possible” ~ C.S. Lewis to his father from the WWI trenches in France “Except at my job—where the machine seems to run on much as usual—I loathe the slightest effort. … Continue reading →

Posted in Original Research, Reflections | Tagged A.N. Wilson, Alan Jacobs, C.S. Lewis, Chaim Potok, Flannery O'Connor, Goodreads, Harry Potter, J.R.R. Tolkien, L.M. Montgomery, Margaret Atwood, Marilynne Robinson, N.K. Jemisin, Narnia, Neil Gaiman, Orson Scott Card, Rachel Held Evans, Reading, Sorina Higgins, Stephen King, Suzanne Collins, Terry Pratchett | 6 Comments

2019: My Year in Books: The Infographic

Posted on December 30, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

Happy New Year everyone! I will have some fun putting together the data in an upcoming post, including some new date charts. It’s not often I get to play with graphs and charts, so I’m looking forward to it. Meanwhile, … Continue reading →

Posted in News & Links | Tagged A.N. Wilson, Alan Jacobs, C.S. Lewis, Chaim Potok, Flannery O'Connor, Goodreads, Harry Potter, J.R.R. Tolkien, L.M. Montgomery, Margaret Atwood, Marilynne Robinson, N.K. Jemisin, Neil Gaiman, Orson Scott Card, Rachel Held Evans, Reading, Sorina Higgins, Stephen King, Suzanne Collins, Terry Pratchett | 5 Comments

J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Secret Vice” and My Secret Love: Thoughts on Dimitra Fimi and Andrew Higgins’ Critical Edition of A Secret Vice: Tolkien on Invented Language

Posted on November 13, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

A Secret Vice by J.R.R. Tolkien My rating: 5 of 5 stars It was the fall of 2001. I was rereading The Lord of the Rings in anticipation of the film, which I was sure would be screened even in … Continue reading →

Posted in Reviews | Tagged A Secret Vice, Andrew Higgins, conlangs, Constructed Languages, David J. Peterson, Dimitra Fimi, George R.R. Martin, J.R.R. Tolkien, language, Song of Ice and Fire, Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, The Art of Language Invention, The Game of Thrones, The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings | 12 Comments

Robert Browning’s “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came” read by George Guidall

Posted on August 14, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

There are few short pieces in literature that have generated as many new stories as Robert Browning’s 1855 poem, “Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came.” The story itself comes from an old folktale that inspired a moment in Shakespeare‘s King … Continue reading →

Posted in Fictional Worlds, Memorable Quotes | Tagged A.S. Byatt, Alexander Theroux, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came, George Guidall, Gordon R. Dickson, Harper Lee, John Connolly, King Lear, Neil Gaiman, P. G. Wodehouse, Robert Browning, Roger Zelazny, Shakespeare, Stephen King, The Dark Tower | 16 Comments

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is the UK’s Favourite Book

Posted on August 9, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

According to a OnePoll survey of 2,000 UK adults, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is Britain’s most popular book. It is an intriguing find, but not inconsistent with other surveys and with research by people like Stephanie Derrick (see … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged Anne of Green Gables, Arthur Conan Doyle, C.S. Lewis, Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, Emily Bronte, Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Life of Pi, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Robert Louis Stevenson, Stephen King, The Da Vinci Code, The Handmaid's Tale, The Hobbit, The Lion, The Lord of the Rings | 26 Comments

Writing Tips by Stephen King: Infographic and Video

Posted on August 2, 2019 by Brenton Dickieson

I know that this post is less than a year old, but I still think the infographic is pretty cool. Plus, I found a funny short video from the Late Show with Stephen Colbert that is worth sharing. No matter … Continue reading →