Oxford Reflections Part 2

Since one post could not contain all I wanted to share of my pictures from England and the Oxford Creative Writing Master Class, I’m back with part two. Here are a slew of photos celebrating C. S. Lewis, one of the writers we discussed the most. 

The Kilns, Lewis's house in Headington Quarry, a residential district between Headington and Risinghurt and several miles from Oxford. This house was built in 1922, and Lewis and his brother, Warnie, lived there from 1930 until their deaths. It's a surprisingly ordinary house, but very comfortable and welcoming. You can see it on a guided tour and hear funny, heart-warming stories about the Lewises and the various people who lived there with them, including Joy, C. S. Lewis's wife, to whom he was only married for four years. 

Amanda Cannon Photography

Here's our group in front of a different angle of the Kilns. Visiting Lewis's home made him all the more real and endearing to me (he was such a scholarly bachelor, immune to materialism, and his home reflected that fact!). It was one of the highlights of my trip.

This is a view of Shelley's Pond, a short distance along a wooded path from the Kilns. Lewis enjoyed swimming here.

Amanda Cannon Photography

This is a little townhouse in Oxford where C. S. Lewis lived for a short time as a young man. 

These photos are in St. Mary's Passage, an alley in Oxford between the Radcliffe Camera and High Street, wending alongside St. Mary's University Church. C. S. Lewis walked this passage many times. Although he may or may not have been directly inspired by the leonine carving on the door (behind Douglas Bond), the carved fauns, or the lamppost in the passage, it's neat these three objects that evoke Narnia are all in one small space in Oxford. 

These are all photos of Magdalen College (pronounced maudlin), where C. S. Lewis taught. His specific rooms are not open to the public.

And here are ten photos (I couldn't help myself) of one of the prettiest places I've ever been: Addison's Walk, a circular path that loops around a meadow on the grounds of Magdalen College by the River Cherwell. Lewis loved to walk here. A conversation with Tolkien on this path in 1931 was instrumental in Lewis finally becoming a Christian.

Not far from the Kilns is Holy Trinity Church, where Lewis worshiped and where he and his brother are buried.

And here is Lewis's grave:

Lewis liked cats; I couldn't believe a friendly neighborhood cat came around to greet us while we were there. It was perfect.


I can't say I'm done with photos yet . . . my apologies! Maybe one more post will be enough to wrap up the trip; if not, hopefully you won't mind even more photos of England.

Sales, a Link, and Birthdays

Whew. It seems like I have a lot to spread on the table in this post … sort of like a Thanksgiving dinner. And, like said dinner, I’m having trouble deciding where to start ….

How about business, first? I will be participating in two online book sales this weekend: One spans Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and includes a bunch of Indie authors. The print version of my book will be on sale on Friday; check here on Friday to see who else is participating and maybe find something really nice! The other is a smaller, exclusively Cyber Monday sale in which some of the Word Painters will be marking their eBooks down to $2.99 each. So stop by on Monday for more info!

Speaking of Word Painters, you may be interested in a post I wrote there recently: Encouraging Verses for the Writer.

And now for the birthdays. The birthdays, to be precise, of some of my favorite authors. It turns out the end of November is chock full of them! Each of these authors has written at least one book that is on my list of absolute favorites:

George Eliot—Nov 22, 1819­–Dec 22, 1880. Her 1876 novel Daniel Deronda, about a young man seeking his identity and befriending some remarkable European Jews, is high on my list.

John Bunyan—Nov 28, 1628–Aug 31, 1688. Author of The Pilgrim’s Progress (1678). What more can I say?

Louisa May Alcott—Nov 29, 1832–Mar 6, 1888. I enjoy all her novels, but high up on my list are Little Women (1868) and An Old-Fashioned Girl (1869).

C. S. Lewis—Nov 29, 1898–Nov 22, 1963. The Chronicles of Narnia have been a part of my life since I was I don’t know how young!

Mark Twain—Nov 30, 1835–Apr 21, 1910. Twain’s skill with words always leaves me in awe. My favorites by him are Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc (1896), quite high on my list, and The Innocents Abroad (1869), a hilarious travel memoir.

L. M. Montgomery—Nov 30, 1874–Apr 24, 1942. Montgomery is my favorite of these November authors. I love every page her lyrical words are printed on, but the ones I love best belong to her Anne of Green Gables novels, 1–6.

Which of these authors are your favorite(s)?

To wrap up this post, I want to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving. I’m thankful for these birthday-authors, I’m thankful for each of you who read my blog, and I’m thankful to God for everything … everything. I don’t want to sound trite, but He has blessed me so much, and I can see that even the bad things always, somehow, work out for good, especially when they are just to make me depend more on my Lord.

Have a blessed and meaningful holiday! 

Monet, wikimedia commons