I’ve just had the pleasure of (re)reading Perelandra with my wife – it’s her first time, but one of many times I’ve read it. It’s possibly my favourite C S Lewis novel (against strong competition!). I first read it back when I was in secondary school, and it made a deep and lasting impression on […]
So many books, so little time! I’m enjoying having more time for reading for pleasure now I’ve finished my MA. It’s sometimes possible to feel guilty about going back to reread books, when I’ve got so many unread books waiting for me. But you never actually read the same book twice. You never have the […]
Charlie Brooker, favourite misanthrope of Guardian readers everywhere (after David Simon, of course) yesterday claimed that Contemplating the scale of the universe makes a mockery of household chores. Funnily enough, the relationship between cosmos and chores was one of the topics I mentioned in my wedding speech, but I came to a rather different conclusion: […]
I decided to read The Problem of Pain by C S Lewis as part of my preparation to preach on the Fall. I thought I’d read it before, but on reading it, I’m not sure I have read it all – there’s lots of material that’s really striking me as fresh and interesting that I […]
When someone accused J R R Tolkien of writing escapism, Tolkien apparently replied: “Maybe, but it’s not the escape of a deserter from the front lines, but of a prisoner from a cage.” These two types of escapism are a good description of the two ways that stories can function. Borrowing from Andrew Fellows from […]
That was the question posed in the Books section of Outpost Gallifrey recently. You might not be surprised to read that my short answer is “No”, but hopefully my further observations might be of some interest… First of all, I really enjoy all three writers and their books. Secondly, in the interests of full disclosure, […]
A few weeks ago, I got to see a preview screening of Prince Caspian, which is out in the UK on 26th June, courtesy of Christian charity Care for the Family. Here are my thoughts on the film – I’ll try not to give too much away. First off, it is a very entertaining film, […]
“I hate the Narnia books,” said Philip Pullman, author of the His Dark Materials trilogy, “and I hate them with deep and bitter passion, with their view of childhood as a golden age from which sexuality and adulthood are a falling away”. [link] The essay I found most interesting to write last year (and got […]
What took him so long? Yes, Philip Pullman, author of the His Dark Materials trilogy and Richard Dawkins of the literary world has been on the warpath against The Chronicles of Narnia again. When The Guardian ran a feature previewing the film a few weeks ago which described The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe […]
