I would love to own The Chronicles of Narnia series, but I would want it to be numbered in the order that it was written as opposed to the that the new order that I keep seeing.  Yeah, I know, it’s supposed to be chronological, but maybe it was written in the order that it was written for a reason.  Anyway, I don’t know how hard it would be to find it in the original order, but that’s the way I would want it.

With less than a week until Christmas, my input on the subject of holiday films seems a little tardy, but because there is seldom an occasion in my household that isn’t celebrated in part with the viewing of a related movie (or two, or three, or… well, you get the idea), it seemed downright unnatural to neglect contributing my own list of Christmas favorites to the hoards of others floating around out there.

As I get older, I’m finding myself increasingly disenchanted with the commercialism, consumerism, and materialism associated with Christmastime, so this year I’m finding myself drawn to films associated with the holiday in more subtle ways or to those with deeper thematic content than that of some of the conventional Christmas favorites.  You may also notice my tendency toward the sappy here, and I apologize.  Christmas makes me sentimental.

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10.  Love Actually

© Universal Pictures

I’ll just come right out and say it.  I’m a sucker for romance during the holidays, and on top of that, I can’t resist an all or at least mostly British cast.  If you’re particular about your romantic comedies (as I tend to be), this one could be for you.  It follows the love lives of eight very different loosely interrelated couples during the month before Christmas, so it has a little bit of something for everyone.

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9. Emmet Otter’s Jugband Christmas

The Jim Henson Company

IT guy introduced me to this enchanting product of Jim Henson’s imagination five years ago during our first Christmas together.  It’s a musical muppet spin on the “Gift of the Magi” story and includes some catchy bluegrass tunes.  I always catch myself singing along when Emmet’s jugband practices the song “Barbeque”.   The original TV special was narrated by Kermit the Frog, but good luck tracking down a reasonably priced copy.  We settled for the cheaper version, sans Kermit.

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8.  Home Alone

What can I say?  I’m like George Castanza.  The old man gets to me.  This was the first Christmas movie I saw in the theater, and my dad almost forced us to leave because he thought it was too violent.  Who doesn’t love watching Macaulay Culkin in all his badass kid-ness beat down Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern?  But I also love the spiritual undertones and the emphasis on the importance of family, forgiveness, and never judging others.  Seriously though.

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© Disney

7. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe

Ok, so I know this isn’t technically a Christmas movie, but the majority of it is set in a land where it is perpetually winter and Father Christmas does make an appearance.  Oh, and in case that doesn’t qualify it, it’s also chocked full off biblical metaphor.

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6. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (the 1966 version) 

Dr. Suess had a knack for tackling adult themes with children’s literature, and this book-turned-made-for-TV-movie is a great example.  Those blasted Whos never fail to bring me to tears when they hold hands in a loving circle at the end and sing “Welcome Christmas” as the Grinch dangles all of their earthly possessions treacherously from the peak of Mount Crumpet.

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© Columbia Pictures

5.  The Holiday

Friends dragged me unwillingly to this movie two years ago for a girl’s night out, and to my intense surprise, I loved it. Iris (Kate Winslet) and Amanda (Cameron Diaz) find themselves alone and lovelorn at Christmastime, so when they meet online at a home exchange website, the two impulsively agree to switch homes for the holiday.  As they adjust to the extreme change in lifestyle (Amanda moves into Iris’s rustic cottage on the snow-covered English countryside, and Iris moves into Amanda’s mansion in sunny L.A.), they meet and fall for a couple of local guys.  It’s a feel-good seasonal romance with a couple of interesting subplots, and Jude Law is completely irresistible as Cameron Diaz’s love interest.

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4.  The Muppet Christmas Carol

Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Statler and Waldorf, Fozzie Bear, and company bring the characters from this Dickens classic to life in a way only the Muppets can in my favorite film version of A Christmas Carol.  I especially love Michael Caine as Scrooge and Gonzo’s narration (with help from Rizzo the Rat), some of which is taken directly from the actual book.

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3. The Small One

This obscure 1978 animated Disney Christmas short is a highly underrated little gem about a Judean boy who is forced to sell the old donkey he loves because his father can’t afford to keep him.  The boy struggles to find someone who will care for the donkey (“Small One”) as he does, and just as things begin to look bleak, a kind and mysterious man buys the gentle donkey to carry his pregnant wife to Bethlehem.  The implications are pretty obvious.  Fictional, yes, but charming and poignant.

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2.  It’s a Wonderful Life

I know a lot of people think of this one as the quintessential Christmas movie, so I guess it may seem a little trite to list it as a pick, but I love Jimmy Stewart and the character of George Bailey.  There is something universal about this story -  about investing in people over time and hitting those dark periods and being broken and rediscovering the most important things in life – that makes this movie a classic.

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1.  A Charlie Brown Christmas

This short and sweet 1965 classic was one of my favorites as a kid, but as I settle into my late twenties, it means more to me now than it did back then.  Watching the annual television airing this year, I realized how much I relate to Charlie Brown’s plight.  It’s hard not to get a little down during the Christmas season.  The general pace of life seems to pick up, our schedules fill up, and it’s rare to find moments in which we are able to reflect on the reason for all of the chaos with the people we love.  Like Charlie Brown, sometimes I just need Linus to remind me what Christmas is all about, purely and simply.

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*Honorable Mention – National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

I feel  it’s necessary to include this one because… 1- It’s kind of hilarious, 2- IT guy made me, and 3-  I know I have faithful readers who will appreciate it.

Sauvie Island & Narnia - A Good match

When I got the news that I would be co-writing a documentary on the life & writings of British author C. S. Lewis with scholar Louis Markos…I had to laugh.  I didn’t see it coming: my passion for screenwriting colliding with my love for the writings of ‘Jack’ Lewis…and here I was getting the call I longed to hear.  During that conversation, the past 3 ½ years of exploring the beautiful and often difficult-to-transverse rocky, craggy & isolated terrain of screenwriting passed through my eyes with all the finesse of a well crafted montage.

 Tonight I had another round of scene- readings with co-author/business partner Aaron Sternberg.   After two years of writing REALMS APART, our Epic Christian Fantasy using Virgil, Middle Earth, Homer, Dante (and even a little Matrix) as both inspiration and creating a sense of place with weight, we are nearing Final Draft and a season of marketing.  During our time together (and watching Aaron meticulously slice into the script as a surgeon – first cut is the deepest) it dawned on me that starting next month I’ll be writing a script that will be filmed.  More than simply putting words into actor’s mouths for scenes of dramatic reenactment, I will have the opportunity to create moments of beauty awakened in dialogue but revealed in Image.  A screenplay is a story told in pictures on a shadowy cave wall and I’m finding it is a craft that requires diligence & discipline. A craft that I’ve fallen in Love with…because there is always more than meets the eye.

 My first script, CHAMPIONS ALWAYS, tells the true story of a gymnastics coach who transformed the lives of the boys in his care, by simply giving them a vision that far outweighed anything Sports had to offer.  Coach Mike McCoy at Willamette High School in the 1970s took kids who couldn’t find their place and gave them a track to follow to help them realize it is beyond the gym doors where life & dreams take place.

 As I got the good news about my new project, I could almost hear Coach McCoy telling us to step up salute and reach hard…and you never know where life will take you. He expected that of us…because he believed in us.

 I was a ring-man and a tumbler; I knew what made a solid routine and how the last pass / final dismount had to hit a high point…because the audience was expecting it.

In the coming days I hope to perform for you again.

 Darren Scott Jacobs

Author: CS Lewis
Year: 1950-1956
Genre: Fantasy, Action, Adventure
Protagonist: Peter, Susan, Edmund, Lucy, Caspian, Digory, Polly, Eustace, Jill, and a lot more 8D

So, I finally finished ready all these. Go Moot. 8D Anyways, this post is for all of the Chronicles of Narnia, not just one. And in case you were wondering, there’s seven of them. This post is in chronological order to the Narnian timeline, not when they were published okay?

Well, in case you haven’t seen the two movies that came out in the past few years, the Chronicles of Narnia are the stories of ordinary children from our world (though way back in around the forties) who are swept into the magical world of Narnia when they least expect it. Each story has a very different storyline to it, yet they are all connected because they all take place in Narnia or at least the world of Narnia, including the surrounding countries. Many of the characters appear in the different books as well. The one character who appears in each and every Narnia book is Aslan, the Lion. He’s pretty badass.

The first book in the Chronicles is The Magician’s Nephew. This story is definitely an essential read to the Chronicles as it shows the birth of Narnia. We are introduced to Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, two children who meet one day and begin having playtime together because there are no other children around their age. One day, they decide to see if they can get into the empty house next to Polly’s so they go through the area that connects all their houses. But they take a wrong turn and wind up in Digory’s house. This turns out to be a problem as it leads them into the attic, an area where Digory’s strange magician uncle spends him time. He finds them in there and locks them in, insisting he needs their help. He tricks Polly into touching a magical ring, which warps her into another world. Knowing his uncle refuses to help, Digory takes the other ring to go and find Polly. The Magician’s Nephew tells of Digory and Polly’s experiences to other worlds and how they get to see the birth of Narnia.

The second book is The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. This is obviously the most famous and beloved of the Narnia books. It was also the first published and written. In this book, the main characters are Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy, four siblings who are sent to live with Old Professor Kirke (Kirke, get the connection? Yeah. 8D) during the war because it’s safer for them in the country. While playing a game of hide and seek, Lucy happens upon an old wardrobe, which she goes to hide inside. Surprisingly, she doesn’t find the back of the wardrobe. Instead, she finds herself in the world of Narnia. Here, she meets Mr Tumnus and learns that Jadis, the White Witch who proclaims herself Queen of Narnia, has taken over the country and made it a hundred years of winter. When she returns though, her siblings don’t believe her and she’s even mocked by Edmund, even after he himself gets into Narnia. While trying to hide from the professor’s housekeeper who doesn’t quite like them, they hide in the wardrobe and all four are taken into Narnia. There, they discover more about the Witch and that they are the four children in the prophesy who have the power to assist Aslan and stop her. This one is my favorite. <3

Third we have The Horse and His Boy. This one takes place during the rule of Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy so it happens sometime before the last chapter of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. The main characters in this one are Shasta, a young boy who was raised by a Calormene fisherman who found him as a baby; Bree, a male Talking Horse from Narnia who was used as a war mount by a Calormene; Aravis, a young girl who is also of Calormene aristocracy; and Hwin, another Talking Horse, only female. The story is of the group of four trying to get into Narnia, all for different reasons: Bree and Hwin because that is their homeland; Shasta because he’d like to see what it is like; and Aravis because she doesn’t wish to live the life that is set out for her in Calormene society.

Next, we come to Prince Caspian (dun dun dun). This takes place a year after the four siblings return from Narnia and have gone back to their normal lives. While on their way to school, they get sucked back into Narnia where they are told the tale by a Dwarf named Trumpkin of Prince Caspian. Apparently, hundreds of years have passed in Narnia since the four have left and their kingdom as they knew it is gone. Instead, humans called Telmarines are in charge and the Talking Beasts and fantastical creatures, true Narnian citizens, are in hiding. King Miraz had disposed of his brother, the true king, and gotten rid of his brother’s loyal men. Now, he keeps Caspian, his brother’s son, around because he needed an heir. But not that his wife has bore him a son, he decides he no longer needs Caspian and plans to have him killed. But Caspian escapes and finds his way amongst the Narnians and together, along with the four siblings, must take back Narnia.

Fifth is the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. This story brings back Caspian, Edmund and Lucy, as well as introduce Edmund and Lucy’s cousin, Eustace. While the brother and sister are staying at their aunt and uncle’s house for the summer, they and their cousin get swept into a picture, which leaves them in Narnia and on the Dawn Treader, Caspian’s ship. Apparently, Caspian is off to explore the oceans beyond Narnia’s borders as the Telmarines were afraid of the sea and all sailing had been removed from their culture. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader mainly tells of their exploits through the ocean.

Sixth is The Silver Chair. This one brings back Eustace and introduces Jill. The two go to the same school and are constantly bullied. While trying to run from bullies, they wind up in Narnia. Aslan gives Jill a task and thus she and Eustace set out on this task. To be honest, the Silver Chair is kind of my least favorite of the books. It just seemed to … happen. I didn’t even realize I reached the climax until the book was over. It was sort of anti-climatic if you ask me. Not as good as the rest of the series, to be sure. So I can’t really get into describing it.

Finally, we have The Final Battle. Once again, I didn’t really find this one as good as the rest but it is still good. Better than the Silver Chair. 8D What’s special about this one is that it brings back the characters of all the other books. I’m not going to describe it because that would be major spoilers to the Narnia series and I’m not gonna do that~

Characters of Importance

Peter: oldest of the Pevensies and High King above all Kings of Narnia. He’s my fav. <3 “High King Peter the Magificent”
Susan: second oldest Pevensies. She’s the pratical one. “Queen Susan the Gentle”
Edmund: third of the Pevensies. He’s a brat in TLTWaTW, but turns really awesome later. “King Edmund the Just”
Lucy: youngest of the Pevensies and the first to enter Narnia. “Queen Lucy the Valiant”
Caspian: King of Narnia after the novel, Prince Caspian. Born a Telmarine.
Digory: First boy to enter Narnia. Called Professor Kirke in his older years.
Polly: First girl to enter Narnia.
Eustace: Cousin of the Pevensies and friends with Jill.
Jill: a girl who attends school with Eustace.
Shasta: a young boy from Calormene.
Aravis: a young girl from Calormene born in aristorcracy.
Bree&Hwin: Talking Horses from Narnia.
Tirian: Last King of Narnia.
Jewel: an unicorn and Tirian’s friend.
Reepicheep: a Talking Mouse.
Trumpkin: Dwarfdwarfdwarfdwarf.
Jadis: the White Witch.

aaaaaaaaandddddddd

ASLAN: THE MOST BADASS LION TO EVER COME OUT OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE

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Sub Việt

http://subscene.com/The-Chronicles-of-Narnia-Prince-Caspian/subtitles-72211.aspx

Now another point.  There is one bit of advice given

to us by the ancient heathen Greeks, and by the Jews

in the Old Testament, and by the great Christian

teachers of the Middle Ages, which the modern

economic system has completely disobeyed.  All

these people told us not to lend money at interest:

and lending money at interest—what we call

investment—is the basis of our whole system…I

should not have been honest if I had not told you

that three great civilizations had agreed…in

condemning the very thing on which we have based

our whole life. 

                   – C S Lewis, Mere Christianity (NY: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1952), 80.

C S (Clive Staples) Lewis was born this date, 11/29/1898, at Belfast, Ireland.  He eventually became a Christian (Church of England).  He was a scholar, a writer, and a professor at both Oxford (1924-54) and Cambridge (1954-63).  His writings have become “modern classics” Screwtape Letters (1942), Miracles (1947), Mere Christianity (1952).  And even his allegorical The Chronicles of Narnia (1950-1956) are classics to multitudes of children.  Lewis died 11/22/1963 but most Americans were so taken up by another death we did not notice the passing of one of the greatest modern writers.

“Aslan, Aslan. Dear Aslan,” sobbed Lucy. “At last.”

The great beast rolled over on his side so that Lucy fell, half sitting and half lying between his front paws. He bent forward and just touched her nose with his tongue. His warm breath came all round her. She gazed up into the large wise face.

“Welcome, child,” he said.

“Aslan,” said Lucy, “you’re bigger.”

“That is because you are older, little one,” answered he.

“Not because you are?”

“I am not. But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.”

–C.S. Lewis, Prince Caspian (New York: Harper Collins, 1951), 141.

To commemorate the last day of principal photography of C.S. Lewis novel The Chronicles of Narnia: The Dawn Treader, the Chronicles of Narnia Facebook page posted three official photos from the film.

The Dawn Treader is the third book in the C.S. Lewis series, The Chronicles of Narnia. In the enchanted land of Narnia, Edmund and Lucy, along with their cousin Eustace Clarence Scrubb join King Caspian on a sworn mission to find the seven lost Lords of Narnia. The new and dangerous quest takes them to the farthest edge of the Eastern world on board the mighty Dawn Treader. Sailing uncharted seas, the old friends must survive a terrible storm, encounters with sea serpents, dragons, and invisible enemies to reach lands where magicians weave mysterious spells and nightmares come true.

Returning to Narnia are Ben Barnes (Prince Caspian), Skandar Keynes (Edmund), Georgie Henley (Lucy) and Liam Neeson (Aslan). Newcomer Will Poulter will play cousin Eustace.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Dawn Treader hit theaters December 9, 2010 in Australia and December 10, 2010 in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdon.

I had a passion for the Roman and Greek mythologies, since I was reading the Harry Potter series. It returned when I learned about the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series. I learned the latter from a thread/topic from the Pinoy Exchange website. I admit that, I haven’t read the latter book series.

I started reading the Harry Potter series, after I watched the first/1st Harry Potter film (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in the U.S. and other countries like the Philippines, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the U.K. and other countries). Same thing happened with the Chronicles of Narnia series. I watched the movie version of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. I don’t how I learned about the Chronicles of Narnia (started with the ‘The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe).

I had also a passion for the Norse Mythology, when I was playing then the Ragnarok Online. I had also watching the animated Ragnarok TV series. I had also a passion for the other mythologies from other countries. But my passion for the Norse Mythology and other mythologies from other countries don’t have that strong passion than the Roman Mythology.

I admit that I have dream to be a writer. A novel writer (novelist), that is.

I had that thought the other day while I was cooking. (“One, two, three, crack!  New egg.”) . . . and then it reminded me of when my grandmother Mamacella, Mom, and I watched the remake of Sabrina in the theatre.  Julia Ormond’s hair is so 90’s!  Let’s just say it won’t prove to be as timeless as Audrey Hepburn’s.  Though the new version is good, nothing compares to the original of course.  Anyway, as we sat in the audience watching 1994 Sabrina make out with her Paris boyfriend, Mamacella leaned over and whispered to fourth-grade me, “Now don’t you do that!”

I said, “OK,” and then she started giggling.  I don’t know why that’s such a vivid memory.

But back to the thought– I remember Sabrina and the French chef every time I crack an egg to make brownies, and I feel grateful, especially to Mom, for allowing us to be carried away in stories when we were young.  Not just movies, either (though John watched Those Magnificent Men and Their Flying Machines every day one summer, I’m pretty sure), but books– oh, the books.  The Great Brain series, Mary Poppins, the Little House series, Narnia. . . those were the worlds to which I traveled as a child.  And certainly the ability to mentally and emotionally travel like that is something that’s valuable as an adult; helping one imagine what’s possible (now called “strategic thinking”), what type of world you’d like to live in, what kind of environment you want to create for yourself.

Beyond that, it’s easy for me to embrace the idea that I am part of a greater story; and a grand one.  It’s OK now that I’m not the main character.  But processing and living all those stories. . .  it gave me a framework to process life.  I know there will be conflict (crucial to the story!), there will be character development, and ultimately there’s going to be resolution.

As a little girl I squeezed my eyes tight and prayed that there would be a world like Narnia that I could go to, that I could open a closet door and be there.  Of course, it didn’t happen for me like that.  And even though I am not in fact Jo March from Little Women or Sacagawea the Indian Guide, or Christy teaching mountain children to read and write in a one-room schoolhouse, I want to be bold like they were.  And I want the story to end well.  It’s got to!

So, even as an adult, it’s not silly to pray now.  It’s not silly to enjoy what’s beautiful and hope for what’s good, and hope, knowing, that what’s good has got to win in the end.

William Paul Young initially wrote the story of “The Shack” for his children. It was just going to be his gift to them.  That is why he only made 15 copies the first time he printed it.  However, somehow other friends got a hold of it, read it, and passed it on to others.  By their encouragement, he self-published 10,000 copies.  The story of “The Shack” gained moment and now has over 4 million copies in publication.  His story of redemption has turned out to be a gift to millions.

I will admit up front that the genre of “The Shack” is not my particular style. There has not been a lot of “Christian Fiction” that has captured my attention outside of C.S. Lewis (or J.R.R. Tolkien, if you include him in that category).  I never got caught up into Frank E. Peretti’s series surrounding “This Present Darkness”.  However, I was amused by how many people, Christians and non-Christians, took Peretti’s fictional writing and attempted to build a theology of demons and angels out of it.  I kept wanting to scream, “It’s just a story, folks!  Hello?!  Fiction!”

That being said, I did find the story of “The Shack” interesting. For a self-published work, I thought it was done very well.  There were a few places in the story line that could have been edited a bit more tightly to make for better flow or believability.  However, over all, I found it to be well written.  I enjoyed Young’s personal style that draws the reader into the story and characters.  I found the occasional humor well placed and made the book more captivating and readable.

A search on the internet will reveal a number of people – particularly Christians – who have problems with the story theologically. They have taken the time to pull apart the story and reveal its “heretical” tendencies.  Once again, I would like to inform these people that it was not written as a theological treatise, but as a fictional story.  As such, nothing in the story should be taken as prescriptive but descriptive.  In other words, it was written to describe things that are difficult for the human heart and mind to understand.  It was not written to prescribe for us what we are to believe.  It is not a systematic theology or biblical theology for seminarians.  Nor was it written to become a new theology of some sort for New Agers.

Such fruitless endeavors by well-meaning individuals does nothing to build up faith in others let alone “protect” them from error. I think that such individuals would probably find something wrong in C.S. Lewis’ “The Chronicles of Narnia” or John Bunyan’s “The Pilgrim’s Progress”.  These, too, were written as fiction.  They were meant to be parables or portrayals of the human spiritual struggle.  Every sermon illustration, story attempt, or parable breaks down at some point.  It does not give us the whole truth, only a fuzzy picture at best of part of it.  This is the case for “The Shack”.  Taken as such, I believe there are some great illustrations or pictures for us of what God wants in a relationship with his creation, particularly humankind.

One of the major complaints against “The Shack” is its portrayal of the trinity or triune godhead. This belief is a cornerstone of orthodox Christian theology.  However, one must remember that even the best theologians have had trouble for the past 2000 years to come up with a credible and simple definition or illustration of the trinity.  All efforts at illustrating it – the egg, the apple, the three states of water, etc – all break down and fail at some point.

Wm. Paul Young’s attempt at portraying this relationship between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is just as difficult. Some critics have trouble with the picture given to us by the author of “Papa” being a large African-American woman at the beginning of the story.  (“Papa” does later in the story, however, reveals himself as a man to Mack.)  I for one was really disappointed that God the Father did not turn out to be Morgan Freeman again…okay, I’m kidding.

Rather than getting caught up in what gender or ethno-cultural identity God would really have if he really appeared to us in human form, one should enjoy the story for what it is…God attempting to relate to a man with a broken heart and past.  In a fictional story, I suppose God can reveal himself in about any way he likes…such as Aslan the Lion…a talking lion none the less.  The real point of what the author is trying to get to is lost in such a myopic attempt to critique the story.  Why not just enjoy the story for what it is?

Personally, I really appreciated how Young attempts to portray the close relationship between the trinity. I thought he did an admirable job attempting to portray the unique characteristics of “three persons in one being”.  This would be difficult at any level!  The church has suffered some nasty self-inflicted bloody noses trying to answer this question – how do you describe the triune nature of God?  A casual reading of church history will reveal some colorful and bloody fights in the early church councils trying to answer this very question.  Therefore, I think we should cut the author some slack in attempting to portray this to the 21st century person.

American Falls 2, July 2003 ©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2009)

I really like the author’s picture of Jesus. Personally, I have always appreciated a picture of Jesus that was more joyful than one that was ascetic and morose.  The picture I get of Jesus in the gospels is of an individual who really enjoyed being around people, liked celebrations and parties, and had a great sense of humor at the expense of the religious stiff-shirts.  Paul Young, to me anyway, portrays a believable Jesus in the story.

There were a couple of places in the story that I found to be a little unbelievable – a little too science fiction for me. However, it is the prerogative of the author in fiction to take his readers on a journey.  And if one will just enjoy the journey then the story can be enjoyed for what it is rather than critiqued for what it is not.  Nevertheless, the interaction of Mack with Sophia was a little “out there” for me as was the vision Mack was given of God’s view of the world and his meeting his father.  But, that is just me.  You may like those parts of the story.  Remember, it is just a story.

Some critiqued the book for attempting to tell us that sin does not need to be punished. However, I looked carefully for any place the author seemed to say such a thing.  I did not find it.  Instead, he points out that sin has its own consequences.  He reasserts what Jesus said, the world is already condemned and he, Jesus, did not come to condemn the world but through his sacrifice save the world.  Sin, in fact, was judged and the punishment for it paid on the cross.  This the author makes very clear.  The story of the cross and the redemption of humankind through Jesus’ sacrifice is clearly communicated.

The story does not include a portrayal of hell or eternal judgment for those who reject the offer of relationship with God through Jesus. However, as a story, that does not seem to be the direction the author wanted to go or dwell upon.  As the author, that is his prerogative!  He is not writing a theology but a story.  In telling the story, a certain amount of theology or thoughts about God, humankind’s relationship to God and vice versa, and ultimate meaning in human tragedy and suffering is offered for us to think upon.  We are free to draw our own opinions.

If you are looking for deeper and more complete theology, I suggest reading the Bible. The help of a few good theologians may come in handy.  But do not attempt to make too much of out of another person’s fictional story.  Instead, enjoy the story for what it is and embrace those parts that give joy and meaning to you.  I think Jesus would read “The Shack” and say, “Well done!  Good story!  Got another one?”

©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2009)

So I graduated from college.  Yep.  It happened.  I did it in four years too.  Yep.  So there it is.  I certainly learned a lot about politics, sociology, human behavior and history.  Maybe I don’t know how to solve basic word problems or what causes fog but I graduated.  Regardless of what I learned there really is nothing in the world that can prepare you for what lies beyond the hallowed halls of your university.   The only way to deal with the real world is to go out into it.  But what about the fact that there were people in the real world who, when we asked about life after college, just shrugged their shoulders and said enjoy to enjoy our time as well as a multitude other quaint pleasantries.   

As seniors in college we understood that time was wearing exceptionally thin and we would have to get jobs and do something productive.  It was okay to live with our parents still, but we really didn’t want to because sometimes you just want to eat cookie dough in your underwear.  Now that’s indepedence. 

What about all those fun images in beer commercials where there are young twenty-somethings enjoying their professional careers in large apartments… and beer!  Beer!  If only someone in the real world could have told me all the things I probably should have learned how to do once I got out of college.

Be prepared to be on the phone… a lot – When you get your own place and things break, it means you need to be on the phone asking someone in India (yes, I’m looking at you India) how to fix your Dell.  Or you have to be on the phone with your bank wondering why there was a one hundred and twenty dollar overwithdraw fee.  Has anyone ever tried to get their cable turned on?  Or talked to your energy provider?  It’s like trying to nail jello to a tree.   These were all the phone calls that your parents made for you while you were still knee deep in your four year vacation. 

You have to work to meet people - In the real world there are places to meet single and attractive young people, but nothing will ever compare to the undergraduate experience.  College is a giant pot of spaghetti sauce mixed with hormones, alcohol, people coming out of their shells, just a dash of loud music, and a healthy amount of lowered inhibitions.   You are constantly in the state of meeting guys and gals that you find worthy of your attention. 

When you do graduate though you will need to work a little harder because you’re at work all week and when you get home from work all you want to do is rock back and forth in the fetal position eating cold Spaghetti-O’s while listening to The Cure in your bath robe.  You have to introduce yourself boldly in the real world to really put yourself out there.  In college you’re already there, all you need to do is go out. 

You don’t belong at college bars – I know when you graduated you thought, “I could do this forever!”, but believe it or not, when you graduated, it was just the right time.  Once that looming spectre of steamed brussel sprouts known as graduation is upon you, it becomes something you accept and it turns into a bittersweet brownie of redemption and pride.  Once you’ve accepted this reality you can’t go back to college.  It’s like Lucy and Peter Pevensie in “Prince Caspian”:  sometimes you’re just too old for Narnia.  Don’t believe me?  I live down the street from Tulane University in New Orleans and you best believe I’ve tried to go to college bars and get back to Narnia, but I continue to learn the lesson that as soon as I walk in that I don’t belong anymore.

You can’t drink as much in the real world as much as you did in college – Everyone knows that college is a magical place where beautiful, smart, women flock and boys… and yes we are boys… boys are pretty much the same no matter what, but the point is that college is pretty flippin’ magical.  And college magic enables its students to seemingly defy the odds of what a human being can physically and psychologically handle.  This pertains specifically to alcohol consumption and required hours of sleep.  Your inability to drink as much is twofold. 

The first is the Harry Potter Theorem.  This theorem operates under the principle in the Harry Potter series which states that Harry was protected from Voldemort during the summers in between school years as long as he called his aunt and uncle’s house his home.  College is like this with drinking:  as long as you call your college your home you are protected by a magic that allows you to do ridiculous things with only minor consequences.  Yeah your hangover might be terrible on Saturday but of course you were going out in under seven hours.  There was nothing a little brunch and more drinking couldn’t cure.

You try this shit in the real world and for some reason your hangover the following morning feels like the exact opposite of what petting a puppy is.  I’m not sure what it is, but think about how great puppies are just as an abstract idea.  Now think of the exact opposite of that.  I’m thinking it’s a mix of the feeling when you put on a wet bathing suit combined with being Ann Coulter’s prom date. 

The second reason you can’t drink as much as you could in college is that you’ll probably get fired from your job.  Think about those days when you were hungover on the way to class when the most trivial things in the world seemed like brain surgery.  You would do what is called the Hangover Haggle.  This is a low-grade mental gymnastics where your responsible side tries to bargain with your actual, hung over self.

Responsible Self:  Get up. We have to go to Ethics today.  We skipped last week and Dr. Smith takes attendance because he will deduct points from our final grade for too many absences.  Oh God, we smell like cigarettes and shame.

Hung Over Self:  All right fiiiiiine.  You’re such a douche.  But we’re going to McDonald’s after class.

Responsible Self:  No.  Absolutely not.  It made us feel even worse.  Fast food does not cure hangovers.  You need water, fresh fruit, and vegetables.

Hung Over Self:  Chipotle?

Responsible Self:  Fine.  You know one burrito still has like 1,800 calories right.  You’re not eating again today.

Hung Over Self:  Fuck that.  We’re going back for dinner before night class.  And can we not walk up any hills today?  I don’t think I can handle hills today.  Plus I need my favorite sweatpants.  Where are my sunglasses?

Responsible Self:  No one will ever love you.

Now imagine if you had to go to work for eight hours like this.  Woof.

Everything costs money – In college you have that summer savings to chip away at for your spending money.  You worked hard for four months and it was really terrible but you made enough money to go on spring break in Cancun and buy shots for your buddies occasionally during the spring and fall semesters.  You go out to eat when you want to, go to the movies and take road trips.  But this is what you worked for.  You worked to enjoy the fruits of your labor.  Also, you don’t necessarily pay rent when you’re in college except when you live off campus, but your parents helped pay for that too.

However, when you graduate you start to notice that movies cost $9.75, groceries are really expensive, drinks cost much more outside the university area and Jesus Christ Canolis do you go through gas quickly.  I mean everything you do costs some sort of money that you’re earning and have to earn unless you want to amass a fairly sizable debt.  And that shit is really depressing because all the little things you don’t think about most certainly add up.  There needs to be therapy groups for this kind of stuff.  How did my parents do it?

Whether it’s a loss of a sense of frivolity or now that I have a degree, college seems like a faraway place that I will always look back at with a very deep feeling of melancholy, but all of us know that when we graduate we can’t go back.  All our lives we had expectations:  graduate from high school, go to college, don’t kill yourself, and finally graduate.  What now?  These lofty expectations that society has held for you since you were born have been fullfilled.  I feel like a twenty three year old child, but college does a funny thing because it makes it so you have expectations of your own and instead of just fullfilling the expectations of society, you actually become a part of it.  That is what is truly terrifying about graduation. 

I left the stove on for two hours the other day and kept complaining my house smelled like burning meat.  But these kinds of learning experiences are most certainly part of the journey.  Maybe not the burning meat part, but we have to make our own mistakes, learn what works for us as professionals as well as active members of society and we must wholeheartedly embrace the seemingly less frequent moments of levity and joy that seemed to come so easily when we were undergraduates.

Ever since Joseph and Aseneth was a runaway second-century bestseller, Christians have been writing fiction.  Some of it has been among the world’s great literature, such as Dante’s Divine Comedy, Milton’s Paradise Lost, Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress, Evelyn Waugh’s Helena, and many more.

My recent discussion of The Shack by Wm. Paul Young and its lack of certain heresies (read it here) has set me thinking about Christian novels worth recommending.  While The Shack was entertaining and thought-provoking, it won’t be in the following list.  The books I’m going to recommend have the following benefits: not only are they good novels but they express deep truths about the universe, God, humanity, and people who aren’t professing Christians could enjoy and read them as well.  Here are five, in alphabetical order by title:

Byzantium by Stephen R. Lawhead.  This is a novelisation of the adventures of St. Aidan, an Irish monk who, in the Early Middle Ages sets off from Kells to Byzantium with a complaint about the behaviour of Western clerics on the Continent.  There are Vikings, Muslims, Byzantines, loss of faith and its recovery.  Aidan is very . . . real.  And the Vikings are fantastic (“Heya!”).

The Cosmic Trilogy by C.S. Lewis.  Many people find The Chronicles of Narnia their favourites; others applaud Till We Have Faces as a work of genius.  I’m not sure what my favourite work of Lewis’ fiction is.  The Cosmic Trilogy, however, is well worth a read.  These books centre on the adventures of Ransom, who in the first (Out of the Silent Planet) travels to Mars (Malacandra), the second (Perelandra) to Venus (Perelandra), and in the final volume (That Hideous Strength), the battle takes itself to Earth.  The stories are excellent, the characters compelling, and a whole gamut of “issues” is run throughout this trilogy.

Godric by Frederick Buechner.  This is a novelisation of the life of St. Godric, an Anglo-Saxon hermit in the Middle Ages.  This well-written novel tells Godric’s life, including Godric’s struggles and doubts, his own humility and questioning of his vocation.  It is beautiful and wonderful.

Helena by Evelyn Waugh.  This is a novelisation of the life of St. Helena, mother of the Emperor Constantine.  I believe that this book captures the spirit of the Late Antique world, especially in terms of philosophy and religion.  Waugh is not trying to make a historical reconstruction but simply telling the legend of St. Helena’s life.  I believe this is a masterpiece; it was Waugh’s favourite of his works.  Loyola Classics has a snazzy edition out.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle.  This, along with its companion novels, is among my favourite books.  It is a type of science fantasy, if such a genre exists.  It is about four children who set out across the universe to fight the Dark and to find their missing father; the Dark is taking over planets, extinguishing stars.  Their greatest weapon in the fight against the Dark?  Love.

Christian fiction I want to read:

All Hallows Eve by Charles Williams

Brenden by Frederick Buechner

The Pendragon Cycle by Stephen R. Lawhead (I’ve only read Taliesin)

The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan

The Psychomachia by Prudentius

What Christian novels do you recommend?

The Chronicles of Narnia – The Chronicles of Narnia: Leul, vrăjitoarea şi dulapul

Magnific realizata scena patimilor si a invierii!

The Chronicles of Narnia 2: Prince Caspian

Inkheart (2008)
★ / ★★★★

I had high expectations from this movie because the premise of it was interesting: a man named Mo Folchart (Brendan Fraser) who was a “Silvertongue” had the ability to bring book characters to live simply just by reading about them out loud. He did not always have such an ability (or was he aware of it) so over the years, the disparate characters from the books were taken to the human world–some of them good (Paul Bettany as the fire-wielding Dustfinger and Rafi Gavron as Farid, a sort of Aladdin-like character) and some bad (led by Andy Serkis as Capricorn). One of my biggest problems with this movie was its dialogue. It was so uninspired and it lacked a sense of wonder that movies like the “Harry Potter” and “The Chronicles of Narnia” innately have. Since this was based on a children’s novel by Cornelia Funke, I expected it to be at least entertaining by way of enchancing the audiences’ imagination. Instead, we got this overly long exposition, chaotic action scenes that did not amount to anything, and characters that were not exactly likable or memorable. I usually love watching Helen Mirren’s elegance but I think she was completely miscast as the grandmother who loves books and the indoors more than other people and the outdoors. Her character’s attempt at humor made me feel sort of ashamed because none of them were even slightly amusing. There were many points in the film where I just felt bored and wondered about the technical things. For instance, I thought about the repercussions that would happen in the book if the characters were suddenly taken off the pages. I thought of the “exchange” that had to happen–if one was to be transported into the book, wouldn’t it make more sense if someone comparable would be taken out of the book? There were a plethora of plotholes and by the end of it, I was just tired of being disappointed. Perhaps with a better direction other than Iain Softley, the translation from novel to film would have been better. I suggest not to waste time with this one. Even the kids would be bored out of their minds.

First came the DVD, then the extended version, then the Blu-ray and now Disney are re-releasing some of their catalogue in Blu-ray/DVD Combi Packs, presumably to keep them in line with their recent releases…oh, and to make a heap of money as well!

Blu-ray / DVD Combi Pack

The titles being released as Blu-ray / DVD Combi packs on November 2nd are as follow:

Pirates Of The Caribbean – The Curse Of The Black Pearl Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
Enchanted Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
The Nightmare Before Christmas Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
The Chronicles Of Narnia – The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
The Chronicles Of Narnia – Prince Caspian Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
Cars Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
Tinker Bell Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
High School Musical Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)
Ratatouille Combi Pack (Blu-ray + DVD)

Of those we have Pirates of the Caribbean on both DVD and Blu-ray, Enchanted on Blu-ray, The Nightmare Before Christmas on DVD, The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe on DVD, Cars on Blu-ray and DVD, High School Musical on DVD and Ratatouille on Blu-ray. These Combi Packs are all priced at £12.98 ($20.87) which is a pretty damn good price and less than I paid for any of the Blu-rays, and probably the DVDs at the time. As an avid Disney collector, am I tempted to re-buy any of those that I have? In a word, no. That said I’m probably not the target consumer for these deals, more likely they are for people who don’t already have these titles. I don’t have Prince Caspian and am very tempted to get this Combi Pack at just £12.98 as I like to play Blu-ray in the lounge and DVDs elsewhere in the house.

It’ll be interesting to see if other companies follow suit, but as usual Disney are the front runners in the way Blu-rays are released.

Warning:  This post contains strong spiritual beliefs. 

I was actually surprised by a student’s book request this week. 
A tall boy came to the circulation counter with a girl hiding behind him. 
He proceeded to ask, for her, whether or not we had a certain book in our collection. 

In the brief nano seconds before I responded, I pondered why was she not able to ask for herself. 
Did she enjoy being controlled by a dominate male?
(I have a VERY strong opinion of the Snow White/Cinderella/Sleeping Beauty Syndrome.)  
Did she not want me to know that she had an overdue book?  Was she afraid of me?  Students usually are when I have confiscated their cell phones for the umpteenth time.  In any case, I don’t see my big intimidation factor. 

“No, I’m sorry, we don’t have The Shack as part of our library collection,” I said addressing the girl directly.  “But, I do have it at home.  I bought it; when I’m finished, I will bring it in for check out.”  The girl ducked back behind the teenage boy and he nodded saying that they would check back.  I hope I’m around the day she finds her spine. 

The reason I was surprised, was that the student was asking for a book that I thought had some spiritual significance.  We’ve had years where students check out the Left Behind series like crazy, sadly that is the only series that we have with any spiritual truth behind it. 

I started reading The Shack at the beginning of summer vacation. 
Briefly, the book is about a father, who after the death of his daughter receives an invitation presumably from God, to spend the weekend at the shack where his daughter was killed. 
If you are invited to read The Shack, I would encourage you to decline. 

I had heard that it was a great new work of Christian fiction.  An allegory.  It’s not.  I thought it would be a book with spiritual truths that I could introduce to the library collection and to the students.  No such luck….

Contrary to some blog posts and reviews, it is not a fast read.  I found it to be laboriously long.  As a parent, the last thing I want to read, is a book about a child being murdered, even if it is fiction; even if the lead character’s relationship with ABBA Father will be strengthened and renewed by the conclusion of the novel.  I will not see the conclusion of this book.  No, that’s not true, I will force my self to read through to the ending, but I find the book to be disturbing to my spirit;  too much of the content smacks up against the Solid Rock of Who I know to be Truth. 

I’ve done some online research since the teenager asked me for The Shack this week. I thought it was just me, that only I had trouble wading through the story line, accepting the author’s suggestion that God the Father is female.  Was I the only one who was protesting, to having the concepts of Universalism shoved down my throat?  I found that I was not. 

Some people blogged about how moving they found the book.  One individual stated that ”I can’t remember sitting  in a classroom and being moved to tears by a novel before, certainly not one in the “Christian” market.”  Personally, I was moved to close the book and silently berate myself for picking up such trite nonsense.  

If you want to read a good work of Christian allegory, then your best choices would be: 
The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis &  Hinds’ Feet On High Places by Hannah Hurnard. 

Now before you assemble picket signs and gather outside my library protesting that I am censoring books, put your paint brushes away.  The Shack will join the library collection after it has been catalogued and processed.  If a student asks me for my recommendation I will advise them that if he/she wants to read it- Read it as Science Fiction.  If they believe a boy can sparkle, they’ll believe this. 

The following are links – If you want to Read More About It…. 

www.challies.com/…/the-shack-by-william-p-young.php –

www.christianbook.com/shack-william-young/

www.hubpages.com/hub/-The-Shack  

I’ve been thinking a lot about children’s books lately, and here’s why: one of my classmates is pregnant with a baby girl and will be having a baby shower in a few weeks, and all the guests have been asked to bring a book for the new arrival. Isn’t that a wonderful idea? I think every baby should come into the world with a library already begun! Anyway, in deciding what book to bring to the shower, I’ve started thinking about what books I liked as a kid and what books I’d want my kids to read.  My husband and I still aren’t sure we want kids, but, if we decide we do, here, in no particular order, are some books and authors I’d read them or encourage them to read for themselves:

1. The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams: This is probably my favorite children’s book of all time. I still read it myself sometimes! I would definitely read this to my kids, and I’d make sure they had the edition with the the beautiful William Nicholson illustrations.

2. The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss: Dr. Seuss is, of course, a genius, and I imagine I’d read my kids many of his books.  But this one is for sure.  It teaches kids the importance of respecting and valuing people who are different than they are, and it does so in the most inventive way imaginable!

3. The Amelia Bedelia books by Peggy Parish: I loved these books as a kid!  They were so fun, and I think they taught me, among other things, the tremendous joy of word games since it’s always a verbal misunderstanding that trip up the lovable Amelia Bedelia.

4. Shel Silverstein’s books: There’s no doubt in my mind that I would read my kids just about everything Shel Silverstein wrote–Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, The Giving Tree, The Missing Piece, and the list could go on.  Shel Silverstein’s poems and stories are so fun and yet profound, and his line drawings are always clever! I think these books would be a good introduction to the fun and meaningfulness of poetry and art.

5. The Bible: Whatever you believe about God and religion, you can’t deny that kids simply won’t understand Western civilization unless they know the Bible.  I intend for my kids to know their Bibles very well.

6. The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer: Like the Bible, though in a different way, The Iliad and The Odyssey are foundational texts in Western civilization you’ve got to know to be an educated person.  Besides, they’re just fun stories!  I still remember the first time my dad told me the story of the Trojan horse–I was fascinated.

7. Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White: Charlotte’s Web is one of the cutest, best-told stories I know.  E. B. White, the author of the classic The Elements of Style, is the master of good writing, and I think every kid should learn from his storytelling flair.

8. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson: I used to read this book every Christmas, and it’s probably my favorite holiday tale.  It’s hard not to fall in love with the Herdmans and their antics and get sucked into the story!  I think this is a good book for teaching kids the true importance of the holidays too.

9. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis: I grew up on these books and wouldn’t hear of not bringing my kids up with them.  The stories are just so mesmerizing, and they teach good lessons.  And hey, maybe if or when I have kids, all the movies will be out too!

10. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle: L’Engle’s books are some of the biggest reasons I decided to become an English major and study the interaction of religion and literature.  Her stories are so powerful.  I wouldn’t let my kids miss them for the world.

11. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson: This was an immensely meaningful book for me when I first read it in the sixth grade, and I immediately went out and read all the rest of Paterson’s books.  I like that Paterson takes the tragedies and emotions kids experience seriously and, while not intruding on their childish innocence, gives them the dignity of adults.

12. The Harry Potter books by J. K. Rowling: I’ve actually just recently finished reading the last of this series, and I loved it.  These books are a lot better than I expected them to be–they’re so clever and well-told, and they teach kids about friendship, trust, and courage. A kid’s must-read!

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader será o terceiro filme baseado no livro A Viagem do Peregrino da Alvorada. Como Andrew Adamson se encontrará ocupado na produção do filme anterior quando este estiver sendo produzido a direção ficará a cargo de Michael Apted.^[6]

Até o momento apenas Ben Barnes está escalado para retornar no papel de Caspian X por ter assinado um contrato para atuar em três filmes da série.^[7]. Georgie Henley e Skandar Keynes também irão retornar para os papéis de Lúcia e Edmundo.

O filme contará a história da volta de Lúcia e Edmundo para Nárnia acompanhados agora do seu primo Eustáquio Mísero interpretado por William Poulter a bordo do navio Peregrino da Alvorada no qual Caspian, agora rei, navega em busca dos sete fidalgos.

Este filme não será mais produzido pela Walt Disney que desistiu do projeto descontente com o faturamento de Príncipe Caspian. Um mês depois da desistência da Disney, foi anunciado que a 20th Century Fox irá assumir o financiamento do terceiro filme da franquia em parceria com a Walden Media. A Fox pertence a News Corp, proprietária também da HarperCollins, que publica em inglês a versão em livros da série. O cronograma do filme está mantido para 2010^.

K.N.B. EFX Group background:

In 1988, Robert Kurtzman along with Gregory Nicotero and Howard Berger, formed K.N.B. EFX Group, a special effects studio which has gone on to work on over 600 film and television projects. K.N.B. has won numerous awards, including an Emmy Award in 2001 for their work on the 2000 Sci Fi Channel miniseries Frank Herbert’s Dune.  They were awarded an Academy Award in 2006 for achievement in makeup for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.

In 2002, Kurtzman left K.N.B. EFX Group. Kurtzman and his wife, relocated their family to Crestline, Ohio, and started their own production company, Precinct 13 Entertainment. Founded in 2003, Precinct 13 is described as a Film/Television and Radio Commercial/Visual Effects production facility.

From the current K.N.B. website: http://www.knbefxgroup.com/

Transformers, Pulp Fiction, Dances with Wolves, Land of the Dead, The Green Mile, Sin City, Spy Kids, The Chronicles of Narnia, Army of Darkness; The Island….These aren’t merely the names of great genre films; they’re iconic interpretations of some of the most imaginative and groundbreaking special makeup effects ever created.  KNB EFX Group is the force behind some of the most memorable effects put on film.  With work on over 600 films, including 5 Oscar winners, and dozens of awards; including an Oscar of their own, one Emmy, one BAFTA award, and a whole host of Saturn’s, KNB is the culmination of two decades of creative passion for making real what was previously unreal and unimagined.  Over the last 20 years, Greg Nicotero and Howard Berger’s company has grown and matured within the ever changing landscape of makeup and creature effects.  KNB’s principal philosophy has remained consistent: deliver ground breaking visually spectacular EFX while breathing life into the illusion of what is seen on the screen.

K.N.B. EFX Group Howard Berger and Gregory Nicotero

My Dear Lucy, 

I wrote this story for you, but when I began it I had not realized that girls grow quicker than books. As a result you are already too old for fairy tales, and by the time it is printed and bound you will be older still. But someday you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again. You can then take it down from some upper shelf, dust it, and tell me what you think of it. I shall probably be too deaf to hear, and too old to understand, a word you say, but I shall still be
your affectionate Godfather,

C. S. Lewis