Synopses & Reviews
A unique account of one of history's most intriguing literary groups, which will find itself on the reading list of every serious Tolkien, Lewis, or Inkling fanThe Inklings were an influential group, along the lines of the Lake Poets or the Bloomsbury Group. Acclaimed author Colin Duriez explores their lives, their writings, their ideas, and, crucially, the influence they had on each other. Examining the clear purpose behind the group while celebrating its diversity and lack of formality, Duriez explains how this eclectic group of friends, without formal membership, agenda, and minutes, could have a program that shaped the publication and ideas of the leading participants. The Inklings met weekly for many years in Oxford, to discuss and read their writings—conversation was as important to them as writing—and so the city of Oxford, and its pubs where conversations were borne out, feature, as does the Christian faith of the defining members, which influenced them greatly. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien were at the group's center, but who else was involved, and why do Owen Barfield and Charles Williams matter so much? The Oxford Inklings explores the complex and fascinating interactions of the group, including the women on the fringes, such as Dorothy L. Sayers and Lewis's wife, Joy Davidman.
Review
"In a graceful, sympathetic, and appealing dual biography, Duriez stresses their influences on one another and the depths of their friendship." —Booklist on Tolkien and C.S. Lewis
Synopsis
The Oxford Inklings tells the story of the friendships, mutual influence, and common purpose of the Inklings - the literary circle which congregated around C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien.
Meeting in pubs or Lewis's college rooms, they included an influential array of literary figures. They were, claimed poet and novelist John Wain, bent on 'the task of redirecting the whole current of contemporary art and life'.
Tolkien and Lewis expert Colin Duriez unpacks the Inklings' origins, relationships, and the nature of their collaboration. He shows how they influenced, encouraged, and moulded each other. Duriez also covers the less celebrated Inklings, neglected, he claims, for too long. What did they owe - and offer - to the more acknowledged names? What brought them together? And what, eventually, drove them apart from their initial focus upon each other's writings?
Synopsis
Discover the real C. S. Lewis—the man behind the remarkable enigmaExplore this sparkling new biography that brings out the significance of C. S. Lewis' key friendships, revealing their impact on his thoughts and writings. C. S. Lewis was one of the most high profile academics of his time. He saw the world as story-shaped and believed his imagination to be the center of his being. He was a man who was at home with ideas and debate and yet he valued friendship above all else, and not just with fellow intellectuals. Among his most important friendships were the other members of the Inklings. Drawing on the latest scholarship and previously unpublished material, this book delves into his remarkable life through these key people—those that knew him best.
About the Author
Colin Duriez is a widely respected authority on Tolkien and a regular speaker at Tolkien conferences. He is the author of The C. S. Lewis Encyclopedia, A Field Guide to Narnia, The Inklings Handbook, Tolkien and C. S. Lewis: The Gift of Friendship, and Tolkien and the Lord of the Rings, among others.