Winter READING

recommendations

autumn READING

recommendations

Literary Life is an uncommon feast for literature lovers. It is the single richest resource we know online for a daily, steady diet of pure, true, soul food from the best of literature coupled with stunning photography. Deeply steeped in the Word, Lit Life presents thoughtful, short selections for their readers to consider, and incorporates salient introductions to each author, with commentary and options for digging deeper. The book studies are a treasure. Do not miss it! 

In ever marvelous Lit Life, this October, Rachel Dodge will be guiding the discussion of her book, Praying with Jane: 31 Days Through the Prayers of Jane Austen, a devotional book based on the three prayers Jane Austen wrote during her lifetime for the purpose of corporate family prayer. In this discussion Lit Life readers explore the faith and religious life of one of the world’s most famous female authors, and also discuss the impact her faith had on her writing.

From Amazon: "In 2007, when a new edition of the Oxford Junior Dictionary ― widely used in schools around the world ― was published, a sharp-eyed reader soon noticed that around forty common words concerning nature had been dropped. Apparently they were no longer being used enough by children to merit their place in the dictionary. The list of these “lost words” included acorn, adder, bluebell, dandelion, fern, heron, kingfisher, newt, otter, and willow. Among the words taking their place were attachment, blog, broadband, bullet-point, cut-and-paste, and voice-mail. The news of these substitutions ― the outdoor and natural being displaced by the indoor and virtual ― became seen by many as a powerful sign of the growing gulf between childhood and the natural world.

Ten years later, Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris set out to make a “spell book” that will conjure back twenty of these lost words, and the beings they name, from acorn to wren. By the magic of word and paint, they sought to summon these words again into the voices, stories, and dreams of children and adults alike, and to celebrate the wonder and importance of everyday nature. The Lost Words is that book ― a work that has already cast its extraordinary spell on hundreds of thousands of people and begun a grass-roots movement to re-wild childhood across Britain, Europe, and North America."

Lancia: "This is an exquisite book and truly not to be missed. The enchantment of reading these words afresh with your favourite young readers, turning pages and exploring the illustrations, will richly repay the effort and expense to acquire the book. This is a beautiful and valiant defiance against losing words that shape our view of the vast and nuanced natural world gifted to us. Highly recommended!" 

October 15 is the official release date for a new collection of Lewis' thoughts on the essentials of a reading life. Pre-Orders are available now. Zach Kincaid, of Harper Collins writes, "Lewis has a good deal to say about reading. We might think he provides advice on reading high-minded books, ones that perhaps Oxford dons leisurely read and the rest of the population labor to enjoy, let alone comprehend. It isn’t true.

While Lewis was a ferocious reader ever since his early school days, though his references accompanied an intimacy with Greek and Latin, and despite his professional life being steeped in medieval literature, we don’t see his call to the everyday reader to be altogether heady in reading choices. He even posts a warning through the demon’s mouth in The Screwtape Letters: “You should always try to make the patient abandon the people or food or books he really likes in favour of the ‘best’ people, the ‘right’ food, the ‘important’ books.”

For further reading enjoy these essays: