turtlereads's review against another edition
4.0
What a delight to read. As the subtitle says, this book looks at fantasy and philosophy in Lewis and Tolkien. Part One argues "Why fantasy?" and explores Lewis and Tolkien's view of myth and fantasy. Part Two explores Good and Evil in both, and Part Three, titled "Conclusions", essentially argues for the truth of Lewis and Tolkien's philosophies, specifically regarding the existence of God and the truth of Christianity. The Appendices include four essays that are interesting but not necessarily related.
Overall, this book is absolutely fantastic. It is a step between "common" Lewis and Tolkien scholarship (their approach to myth, the understanding of eucatastrophe, the concept of sub-creation and secondary belief) and more serious criticisms. In the words of the author himself in the Introduction, "I have hopes that this book will be of some interest both to scholars of Lewis and Tolkien and to ordinary readers." The author also makes clear in the introduction that the reader should have read the major works of fiction by Lewis and Tolkien before reading this book. I recommend having read The Chronicles of Narnia, the Space Trilogy, The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings before attempting this work. Till We Have Faces and The Silmarillion would - of course - enhance this reading experience, but I do not think it necessary.
Overall, this book is absolutely fantastic. It is a step between "common" Lewis and Tolkien scholarship (their approach to myth, the understanding of eucatastrophe, the concept of sub-creation and secondary belief) and more serious criticisms. In the words of the author himself in the Introduction, "I have hopes that this book will be of some interest both to scholars of Lewis and Tolkien and to ordinary readers." The author also makes clear in the introduction that the reader should have read the major works of fiction by Lewis and Tolkien before reading this book. I recommend having read The Chronicles of Narnia, the Space Trilogy, The Hobbit, and The Lord of the Rings before attempting this work. Till We Have Faces and The Silmarillion would - of course - enhance this reading experience, but I do not think it necessary.
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