Into the Wardrobe: C. S. Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles (Google eBook)

David C. Downing

John Wiley & Sons, Jun 15, 2007 - Social Science - 256 pages

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 like cantrips, poltoonery, hastilude, and skirling. A masterful work that will appeal to both new and seasoned fans of Narnia, Into the Wardrobe offers a journey beyond Narnia's deceptively simple surface and into its richly textured and unexpected depths.

What people are saying

Review: Into the Wardrobe: CS Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles

User Review  - Melissa Lynn - Goodreads

Besides the fact that I knew a lot of the backstory already from my scouring the Internet and reading about CS Lewis in the past this book is a great read for Narnia fans and filled with fun facts! I highly recommend to all fans of the series- really well done! And I love the cover art!

Review: Into the Wardrobe: CS Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles

User Review  - Thomas Grosh IV - Goodreads

Desire an introduction to CS Lewis' Narnia Chronicles? Then this is the book for you.

Contents

• The Life of C S Lewis: 1
• The Genesis of Narnia: 27
• The Spiritual Vision of the Narnia Chronicles: 63
• Moral Psychology: 89
• Classical and Medieval Elements: 107
• Whats in a Narnian Name?: 129
• Lewiss Literary Artistry: 147
• DefinitionsAllusions and Textual Notes: 163
• Notes: 173
• Bibliography: 195
• Acknowledgments: 207
• The Author: 209
• Index: 211

About the author

David C. Downing is a leading C. S. Lewis expert, award-winning author, and professor of English at Elizabethtown College in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. His articles about Lewis have appeared in such publications as Christianity Today, Christianity and Literature, Books & Culture, Christian Scholars Review, and numerous other journals. His books include Planets in Peril, about the Space Trilogy; The Most Reluctant Convert, a biography of Lewis that was named one of the Top Ten Religion Books of the Year by the American Library Association; and Into the Region of Awe, a study of the mystical elements in Lewis's life and writings.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Into the Wardrobe: C. S. Lewis and the Narnia Chronicles
• Author: David C. Downing
• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, 2007
• ISBN: 0787997900, 9780787997908
• Length: 256 pages
• Subjects: Social Science / Popular Culture