The Inklings Handbook A Comprehensive Guide to the Lives, Thought and Writings of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, Owen Barfield and Their Friends

The Oxford Inklings was an informal group of literary friends who met weekly from around 1933 to 1963 to talk about ideas, read to each other pieces they were writing, and enjoy a good evening of "the cut and parry of prolonged, fierce and masculine argument." The Inklings Handbook focuses on the main members of the group, C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien -- who are among the most popular writers of the twentieth century -- Charles Williams, and Owen Barfield. Composed of two sections, this comprehensive guide provides an introduction to the Inklings themselves and an A-Z section of biographical articles, as well as the group's publications, themes, and theology. Included is an extensive bibliography and suggestions for further reading. Authoritative and engaging, Duriez and Porter's long-awaited volume makes a fascinating attempt to capture the elusive complexity of the friendships at the heart of this most remarkable association of writers.