Another successful April Fools Day comes and goes. I couldn’t have asked for a better response than the one that was given by the amount of press that we received from our three major April Fools Day jokes this year.
For our wrap up this year, Jonathon and I are collaborating on this story. We’re both weighing in on the response to the stories that I can take no credit for. Jonathon is a genius, and he is THE genius behind the April Fool’s Day jokes this year and last.
Two of the biggest Christian actors are slated to star in a film about two of the 20th century’s most prominent Christian writers. Actors Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains,Left Behind, and Fireproof), and Mel Gibson (Lethal Weapon, Braveheart and The Passion of the Christ) are slated to star as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien in an upcoming still untitled movie.
The C.S. Lewis and Inklings Society is now accepting registrations for its twelfth annual meeting on March 26-28, 2009, addressing the theme “Inklings: Dinosaurs or Contemporaries?” and featuring plenary speaker Peter Schakel. See below for more details. Please click here to see the seminar schedule (as a PDF). A detailed schedule will be available mid-February.
In papers and plenary sessions, the conference will explore ways in which C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Owen Barfield and Charles Williams may (or may not) be particularly relevant to the literary, theological, philosophical and socio-political issues of our own early 21st century times. As in previous conferences, we would like to extend the conversation to include Dorothy Sayers as well, and we would like to open the conversation even a bit further this year by including G.K. Chesterton, a strong-minded proto-Inkling of sorts, in the mix. What might this diverse and pleasantly provocative circle of thinkers have to offer to the world of ideas that we find ourselves in?
Welcome to Tumnus’s Book Shelf where we review any and all books related to The Chronicles of Narnia and CS Lewis! For today’s book we will be reviewing Tales Before Narnia, edited by Douglas Anderson.
James A. Owen is the author of a series called “The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica.” The first book in the series, “Here, There Be Dragons” introduced us to the characters that would become the heroes of the stories: Jack, John and Charles.
Jack is actually C.S. Lewis, John is J.R.R. Tolkien and Charles is Charles Williams. They were each members of a group called the Inklings. This series is based on fictional adventures that these characters embarked on, into the Archipelago of Dreams, where they became Caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica.
The second book in the series is titled “The Search for the Red Dragon,” and introduces new characters and a few more writers from that era to the story.
Now, author James A. Owen has revealed the cover art for the third book in the series: The Indigo King.
Having listened to the books on CD (I have the unabridged audio books!), I am very curious to learn what happens next in the adventures through the Archipelago of Dreams.
Bruce Edwards is pleased and excited to report that the four volume reference set on the life, works, and legacy of C. S. Lewis for which he served as General Editor, is in press, and will be published in hardback in late April by Praeger Perspectives. Amazon and Barnes and Noble already have it listed!
Most popularly known as the author of the children’s classic The Chronicles of Narnia, C. S. Lewis was also a prolific poet, essayist, novelist, and Christian writer. His most famous work, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, while known as a children’s book is often read as a Christian allegory and remains to this day one of his best-loved works. But Lewis was prolific in a number of areas, including poetry, Christian writing, literary criticism, letters, memoir, autobiography, sermons and more.
This set, written by experts, guides readers to a better understanding and appreciation of this important and influential writer. Clive Staples Lewis was born on November 29, 1898, in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His mother died when he was young, leaving his father to raise him and his older brother Warren.
He fought and was wounded in WWI and later became immersed in the spiritual life of Christianity. While he delved into the world of Christian writing, he did not limit himself to one genre and produced a remarkable oeuvre that continues to be widely read, taught, and adored at all levels.
As part of the circle known as the Inklings, which consisted of writers and intellectuals, and included J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, and others, he developed and honed his skills and continued to put out extensive writings.
Many different groups now claim him as their own: spanning genres from science fiction to Christian literature, from nonfiction to children’s stories, his output remains among the most popular and complex. Here, experts in the field of Lewis studies examine all his works along with the details of his life and the culture in which he lived to give readers the fullest complete picture of the man, the writer, and the husband, alongside his works, his legacy, and his place in English letters.
Last Friday, IGN had the opportunity to interview producer/screenwriter David Goyer, where he spoke at length about the novel “Here, There Be Dragons.” The rights for the novel have been snapped up by Warner Brothers, pushing the book up the sales charts very quickly. For example, Amazon pre-sales ranked the book around 5,000. On September 29th, with word spreading of the movie news, “Dragons” was ranking at 644. As of this writing, it is sitting at 1,493.
The book takes place in two worlds, our world (In London, during World War I) and a fantasy world, and features three characters that go on adventures. The three adventurers turn out to be real life authors J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams.
Here are three questions extracted from the interview:
IGN: Does this story focus on these characters when they’re in their twenties at Oxford? I’m just wondering what the age range is for these characters.
Goyer: They were all slightly different in age. C.S. Lewis would be the youngest, probably his early twenties. Tolkien a little older, the mid-twenties or later twenties. Charles Williams was at least a good ten years older than the two of them and sort of functioned as a mentor. We liked that as well because for casting possibilities. We can pull from these different age groups.
IGN: It’d be funny to see if Here, There Be Dragons and Peter Jackson’s Temeraire end up going head-to-head in cinemas. The end of this decade will be all dragons onscreen.
Goyer: They both have dragons. Dragons is in the title of the first and the seventh books. Ours is not… yes, there happens to be a dragon in this first book but there are many, many other creatures and characters and things. So it’s not exactly a head-to-head dragon fest.
IGN: So how does one actually refer to the property since we can’t really call it the Dragons franchise?
Goyer: The franchise is actually called The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica. For instance, the second book is called The Children’s Crusade. The Imaginarium Geographica is actually the fictional almanac of that other world. It’s kind of the almanac that maps all of these mythical lands and I guess it is what you would call the MacGuffin for the series. James’ studio is actually producing for Simon & Schuster an actual Imaginarium Geographica. It’s just this big book of maps of all these fantasy worlds.
Since The Lord of the Rings’ success, there have been many fantasy films released to try to cash in on the success. I think it’s a breath of fresh air, as far as movies are concerned. After all, movies are mostly fantasy anyway, depending on how you look at them. Recently, Peter Jackson has optioned a series called Temeraire.
Adding to that list, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Brothers has picked up the rights to a soon to be released children’s novel by James A. Owen called “Here, There Be Dragons.”
Says The Hollywood Reporter: The book brings together three strangers — John, Jack and Charles — in London during World War I, where they become entrusted with the Imaginarium Geographica, an atlas of all the lands that have ever existed in myth and legend, fable and fairy tale. They end up traveling to the Archipelago of Dreams, fighting the dark forces that threaten two worlds. It is later revealed that the three are future fantasy authors J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and Charles Williams, who met in real life at Oxford and enjoyed a competitive friendship.
“It’s the ultimate story behind the story,” screenwriter David Goyer said of the project’s fictional treatment of the famed authors. “Very few people really know what they were like. They had really colorful lives, enough so you could tell straight biographies on them. By doing it this way, you get to have your cake and eat it too.”
“What sets it apart is that there’s a real quid pro quo between our world and their world and how events in the other world shape events our world,” he said. “Also, we get to cherry-pick the best public domain legends that exist, from the Homeric myths to tales like ‘The 7th Voyage of Sinbad.’ In this world, each island is a different fantasy world — it’s the mother lode of all that fantasy. And we get to have fun to see how Tolkien and Lewis got their inspiration. It just seemed like a no-brainer.”
Said Harry Potter producer: David Heyman: “The odd thing is, I’m not a fantasy fan. What drew me was that these characters are appealing and relatable and that the adventure takes place in a wholly conceived world. This is the place where all our stories come from, and the death of imagination equates to bad things happening to our world, which is such a beautiful idea.”
Heyman said he wants to fast-track “Dragons” even as he sees himself working on wrapping up the “Potter” movies for the next three or four years.
As far as the movie is concerned: WB is holding on to it as a project for Harry Potter producer David Heyman and Batman Begins screenwriter David Goyer to produce.
From TheOneLion: I thought you’d be interested in a six week seminar taking place on Wheaton College campus in Wheaton, Illinois. It includes a visit to the Wade Center where CS Lewis’ desk and wardrobe are on display and JRR Tolkein’s desk is on display. Visitors can indeed touch the museum pieces, however they no longer allow visitors to climb into the wardrobe since it is a unique furniture piece and its age requires them to take certain steps to ensure its preservation. The Wade Center is an amazing little library/museum full of fantastic British authors works and some very interesting Tolkien original writings and other items related to The Lord of the Rings. The seminar is as follows and meets in the Rolland Center cafe – lower level. An as-of-now unscheduled trip to see the anticipated movie that we are all anticipating.
From Weaton.edu: The Marion E. Wade Center of Wheaton College, Illinois, houses a major research collection of the books and papers of seven British authors: Owen Barfield, G.K. Chesterton, C.S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Dorothy L. Sayers, J.R.R. Tolkien, and Charles Williams. These writers are well known for their impact on contemporary literature and Christian thought. Together they produced over four hundred books including novels, drama, poetry, fantasy, children’s books, and Christian treatises. Overall, the Wade Center has more than 11,000 volumes including first editions and critical works. Other holdings on the seven authors include letters, manuscripts, audio and video tapes, artwork, dissertations, periodicals, photographs, and related materials. Any of these resources may be studied in the quiet surroundings of the Kilby Reading Room.
In addition, the Wade Center has a museum where such pieces as C.S. Lewis’s family wardrobe and writing desk, Charles Williams’s bookcases, J.R.R. Tolkien’s desk, Pauline Baynes’s original map of Narnia, and a tapestry from Dorothy L. Sayers’s home can be viewed. Photographs, rare books and manuscripts, and other small items of memorabilia round off the displays. A current exhibit, entitled “The Craft of Detective Fiction”, details the contributions made by G.K. Chesterton and Dorothy L. Sayers to the genre of detective fiction.
The website for the “‘Past Watchful Dragons’: Fantasy and Faith in the World of C.S. Lewis” conference to be held November 3-5, 2005 on the campus of Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, USA (which will include The Nashville Symphony’s performance of Howard Shore’s The Lord of the Rings Symphony) has been thoroughly updated to include the specific details about the event. Online registration and ticket sales begin April 1, 2005. The Call for Papers remains open through May 1, 2005.
Belmont University invites scholars, students, church and community members to attend this exciting event featuring Doug Gresham (stepson of C.S. Lewis and Consultant to the film); Christopher Mitchell (Director of the Marion E. Wade Center and Assistant Professor of Theology, Wheaton College); Bruce Edwards (Noted Lewis Scholar, Associate Dean, and Professor of English at Bowling Green State University); David Payne (British actor and President of Rising Image Productions, specializing in dramatizations of the works of C.S. Lewis); and Glass Hammer (literary progressive rock band specializing in original music based on the writings of C.S. Lewis).
Inspired by the forthcoming Walden Media/Disney Film of the classic Narnia story The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, this conference celebrates C.S. Lewis’s contribution to literature, theology, apologetics, scholarship, popular culture, myth, and imagination.
‘Past Watchful Dragons’ will also consider the work of the constellation of writers associated with Lewis such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, Owen Barfield, and Dorothy Sayers.
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