Research Catalog

Title

Into the wardrobe : C.S. Lewis and the Narnia chronicles / David C. Downing.

Author

Downing, David C.

Publication

San Francisco : Jossey-Bass, [2005], ©2005.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Description

xvii, 238 pages; 23 cm

Summary

"Published in the early 1950s, C. S. Lewis's seven Chronicles of Narnia were proclaimed instant children's classics and have been hailed in The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature as "the most sustained achievement in fantasy for children by a 20th-century author." But how could Lewis - a formidable critic, scholar, and Christian apologist - conjure up the kind of adventures in which generations of children (and adults) take such delight? In this engaging and insightful book, C. S. Lewis expert David C. Downing invites readers to join his vivid exploration of the Chronicles of Narnia, offering a detailed look at the enchanting stories themselves and also focusing on the extraordinary intellect and imagination of the man behind the Wardrobe." "Downing presents each Narnia book as its own little wardrobe - each tale an opportunity to discover a visionary world of bustling vitality, sparkling beauty, and spiritual clarity. And Downing's examination of C. S. Lewis's personal life shows how the content of these classic children's books reflects Lewis's love of wonder and story, his affection for animals and homespun things, his shrewd observations about human nature, along with his vast reading, robust humor, theological speculations, medieval scholarship, and arcane linguistic jokes. A fun glossary of odd and invented words will allow readers to speak with Narnian flair, regaling friends and family with unusual words such as cantrips, poltroonery, hastilude, and skirling. This work will appeal to both new and seasoned fans of Narnia, extending the journey beyond Narnia's deceptively simple surface and into its richly textured and unexpected depths."--BOOK JACKET.

Subjects

• Children's stories, English > History and criticism
• Christian fiction, English > History and criticism
• Fantasy fiction, English > History and criticism
• Lewis, C. S (Clive Staples), 1898-1963 > Chronicles of Narnia
• Narnia (Imaginary place)

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 195-206) and index.

Contents

A. C. S. Lewis time line -- Introduction : the child as father of the man -- 1. The life of C. S. Lewis -- 2. The genesis of Narnia -- 3. The spiritual vision of the Narnia Chronicles -- 4. Moral psychology -- 5. Classical and medieval elements -- 6. What's in a Narnian name? -- 7. Lewis's literary artistry.

ISBN

0787978906 (alk. paper)

LCCN

• 2005013177
• 9780787978907

OCLC

• ocm60373322
• SCSB-5212616

Owning Institutions

Columbia University Libraries