This is a wonderful meditation on reading in general and, specifically, what I'll call "The Book From Childhood." Almost all of us have one. Miller's was The Chronicles of Narnia. Many of us have returned to The Book as adults only to be disappointed in some way. Miller shows us how we can "get back in" and appreciate Our Book anew. I especially liked her take on the great works of children's literature, which are often viewed with condescension by "serious" literary critics but, she argues, shouldn't be. And I love the idea that we can still openly love certain books and great works of art even if their creators had some glaring faults (sexism, racism, etc. among them) or unsavory motives. I found myself relating to her as I read such thoughts as if she were my braver, more honest, more analytical, and more skeptical self.Publisher's description:
The Magician's Book is an intellectual adventure story, in which Miller travels to Lewis's childhood home in Ireland, the possible inspiration for Narnia's landscape; unfolds his intense friendship with J.R.R.Tolkien, a bond that led the two of them to create the greatest myth-worlds of modern times; and explores Lewis's influence on writers like Neil Gaiman, Jonathan Franzen, and Philip Pullman. Finally reclaiming Narnia "for the rest of us," Miller casts the Chronicles as a profoundly literary creation, and the portal to a life-long adventure in books, art, and the imagination. Erudite, wide-ranging, and playful, The Magician's Book is for all who live in thrall to the magic of books.
Find The Magician's Book in our online catalog.