There are not nearly enough books that have been written about the subject of friendship.  This particular book seeks to look at two particularly famous and illustrious friends who were both among the greatest Christian writers of the 20th century, and examines their friendship and ends up coming to some very interesting insights.  Admittedly, I would be somewhat concerned of what kind of books would be written about my friendships with other creative people, but this book is a good one.  It was not only an enjoyable book to read on its own terms, as someone who has read a great deal of the writings of both Tolkien and Lewis and enjoys both of them highly, but also the sort of book that makes me wonder why there are not more books in this vein.  It would be a good thing, for example, for friendships that spur on the creativity of the people involved to be reflected upon and commented upon, so that people are made aware of the benefits of having chosen friends wisely as was the case with both of these men.  After all, many people would be happy to have friends like Lewis or Tolkien.  I know I would.

This particular book is about 200 pages long and is divided into twelve chapters along with some other material.  The author begins with a preface and then the book proceeds in a chronological fashion.  First, the author explores the formative years of both Lewis and Tolkien before they met in Oxford around 1925, showing both of them facing World War I and making their friends (1).  After that the author talks about the meeting of minds and imaginations between the two from 1926-1929 (2), their shared interest in myths (3), as well as the context of imaginative orthodoxy that the two of them (along with others) shared (4).  After that the author wrote about the start of the Inklings (5), the early wrings of the two that were influenced by the other (6), and the beginnings of the Lord of the Rings (7).  The author then looks at World War II and the coming of Charles Williams to Oxford (8).  The author then discusses the relationship between Narnia and the Lord of the Rings (9) as well as the distancing that came when Lewis went to Cambridge and married Joy (10).  After that the author explores the period between the death of Lewis and that of Tolkien (11) as well as the gift of friendship the two of them had (12) before two appendices dealing with chronology (i) and the enduring popularity (ii) of Lewis and Tolkien as well as notes, the writings of the two friends, bibliography, acknowledgements, and an index, which close the book.

What do we learn about the friendship of Tolkien and Lewis?  For one, we learn that people can be enduring and successful friends even if they are rather different.  Both Lewis and Tolkien believed differently (Lewis was first an atheist and then an Anglican, Tolkien a Catholic), both had very different styles of writing (Tolkien was a perfectionist, Lewis a fluent and prolific writer), and both of them strongly disagreed about mutual acquaintances, most notably Charles Williams.  And both of them were able to inspire and encourage the other.  It was Lewis' encouragement that likely led to Tolkien being able to write both the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings and other works, serving as an appreciative person who gave evidence that adults could be interested in fairy tales and take fantasy literature seriously.  Tolkien encouraged Lewis to become a Christian early on, and then served as the model for Professor Ransom from Lewis' Space Trilogy.  All of this shows the way that good friends can be a spur to creativity, which is certainly something to think about and reflect on.

“In each of my friends there is something that only some other friend can fully bring out. By myself I am not large enough to call the whole man into activity; I want other lights than my own to show all his facets. Far from having more of [Tolkien], having him “to myself” now that Charles is away, I have less of [him]. Hence true Friendship is the least jealous of loves.” — C.S. Lewis on friendship

Pode se considerar uma das amizades mais produtivas de todos os tempos. É notável para qualquer pessoa que conhece as obras de ambos o quanto são grandiosas e belas. A influência e ajuda que os dois exerceram na vida um do outro é notória. O livro traz uma narrativa de fatos da vida de cada um, como um filme que conta a vida de dois personagens em paralelo. É uma biografia mais radiográfica nos pontos individuais de ambos, mas ressaltando com mais detalhes o ponto de encontro dos dois e suas carreiras acadêmicas, seus grupos de leituras, as críticas, os amores, os ciúmes e o ponto em comum: sua fé enraizada na cristandade e no que isso influenciou na forma de enxergarem os contos de fadas. De maneira convincente o livro retrata como cada um via a fantasia e o mito, e como isto está retratado nas obras ficcionais deles.

"Essas são as melhores reuniões[...] Quando colocamos nossos chinelos, nossos pés esticados em direção ao fogo da lareira e nossos drinques ao alcance de nossas mãos; quando o mundo inteiro, e algo além do mundo, se abre para nossas mentes à medida que falamos. E ninguém reivindica ou tem qualquer responsabilidade com o outro, mas todos são pessoas livres e iguais, como se tivessem se encontrado há uma hora, ao mesmo tempo que uma afeição enternecida pelos anos nos envolve. A vida — vida natural — não possui dádiva melhor que essa para dar. Quem poderia merecer isso?"

Acho que esse é um dos meus livros favoritos, chorei em algumas partes, me lembrou bastante os meus melhores amigos.

I like both of these authors so it was really cool to see how their lives have been connected. As Christians and fantasy writers, they had an incredible impact on each other.

Another day, another Inklings book! This one is focused entirely on the friendship between J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis: how they met, how they influenced and supported each other, and how that friendship evolved until Lewis died.

[Given that Lewis was younger, it’s interesting to me that he died first.]

After reading the last Inklings book, I wondered how much of the more out-there things described in that one would be mentioned here. There are allusions to the ambiguity in the relationship of Lewis and Mrs. Moore, and of Warnie’s alcoholism, though these are not dwelt upon, only briefly mentioned. Charles Williams’s more… eccentric interests are more alluded to than explained, too. It makes sense that it isn’t too heavily focused on, given that’s not the book’s point, just wondered.

It’s a very informative book! If you have read up on the Inklings, I don’t think you’ll find much here that’s new, though. That means, though, that if you are starting on the subject, here is a very good place to start! This book was written in the early 2000’s–the “Lord of the Rings” movies had come out, but not yet the first Walden Media “Narnia” film, though it was in the works, as Duriez mentions that it’s upcoming. So that means it’s probably not the most recent scholarship on the subject, but it’s still very good! It’s not too long, either, so you can pick it up quite easily.

And!! The Appendices have lists of books written by the two authors, as well as places to go find out more.

Knygoje apžvelgiamas šių dviejų Oksfordo universiteto dėstytojų, Inklingų draugijos narių gyvenimas, bei draugystė. Neeilinė draugystė, kurios šerdis - kūryba, bei tikėjimas. Tai biografinė knyga, atspindinti literatūrinės draugystės savitumą. Šioje knygoje daug faktų ir užkulisių iš to proceso, kaip buvo kuriami Viduržemio ir Narnijos pasauliai.

4.5/5

When discussing storytellers that have been blessed with immense talent and a magical imagination, it becomes almost impossible to not mention J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. The worlds they created continue to enrich the lives of readers of all ages and all backgrounds across the globe today. To delve into a bit of the biography of each of these writers was enjoyable, but discovering how deep their friendship was and how much that friendship shaped the works we know them for today was the true gem of this book. Their differences in personality, though sometimes radically opposing, never overpowered the similarities that bonded them. From their times at Oxford, and relationships formed with groups such as the Inklings, these two faced a myriad of challenges, but never faced them on their own. At the time, it was “normal” to write children’s fairy stories. Both battled with how to “establish heroic fantasy and romance as contemporary adult literature,” pointing out that an audience existed that was starved for such books. Though each had their own unique stories in development, Tolkien and Lewis agreed that “good imagining was as vital as good thinking, and each was impoverished without the other.” I will often find myself wishing I could be in the mind of a talented author, to feel what it is like to be in those developing thoughts and wild tangents that are shaped into a journey through words. To have been in the mind of either of these two would have been incredible, and to think about how amazing it would have been to sit in on one of their lectures still makes my heart warm with astonishment. Whether it is the protective roar of Aslan, the hot breath of a dragon, or the comforts of the Shire, I will always owe a debt of heartfelt gratitude to these two for showing us the magic of a wonderful story, and the magic of the company of friends.

When you get a chance to read about Tokien and Lewis' friendship, the most boring book ever is the last thing you expect. Well, this one was such a surprise...

On friendship, as well as the philosophy and Christian fellowship that connected these men. They made adults read fantasy and have only grown more popular over time. Great section about the Inklings

Although much of the information about these two authors and their lives and friendships was already known to me, I enjoyed the way things were set out sequentially and in order.

Great writing style, and wonderful new insight from Colin who has studied and written much about the Inklings. I highly recommend this book.