Review:
"I would like to think that Milbank's outstanding book, if it achieves nothing else, will make [fans] return to The Lord of the Rings with an enhanced appreciation for the depth, complexity and purpose of the world he created; and maybe, just maybe, entice some of them to the Chestertonian well from which it sprang." - Waterstone's Watford, www.waterstones.com Mention -Theology Digest, Summer 2006 "Milbank has gifted us with what may well become our finest study of these Catholic artists in their unique relation not only to each other but also to our imagination-starved churches and culture." First Things: The Journal of Religion, Culture and Public Life Mention --Theology Digest, Summer 2006 Mention Theology Digest, Summer 2006 "Neither Chesterton nor Tolkien has received the quality of critical attention their work deserves, but Alison Milbank's remarkable book - as good as anything that has been written so far about either author - does much to remedy that deficiency. So far the field of Chesterton and Tolkien criticism has largely been divided between fierce celebrants and equally fierce detractors, and almost all parties seem to have missed the rich cultural and intellectual contexts from which these authors' works grow. By exploring these contexts - the Catholic encounter with modernity, the conscious and unconscious preservation of ancient folk traditions, the 'fair and perilous' land of Faery - Milbank performs a great service for these writers and their many readers."--Sanford Lakoff "Alison Milbank, of the University of Nottingham, aims to show how Chesterton's theology, and especially his ideas on faerie, influenced Tolkien's writing. This interesting subject produces no leisurely read, but a sophisticated analysis of the thought and works of both authors. Milbank expertly compares the writer's ideas on imagination, the grotesque, paradoxes, and the idea of the gift. This is hardly traditional theology!...it should be considered essential for academic libraries supporting graduate work in English literature." - Daniel Boice, Catholic Library World, September 2008--Sanford Lakoff "Catholic Library World " "The astonishingly high cost of this slim volume is unfortunate, and will limit its availability..." - Daniel Boice, Catholic Library World, September 2008--Sanford Lakoff "Catholic Library World " "Alison Milbank most ably demonstrates in her fascinating and illuminating book [that both Chesterton and Tolkein are theologians] ... Her purpose in making a comparitive study of the two writers, one so celebrated, one so sadly neglected ... is an immensely rewarding exercise, conducted with deftness and deep learning, and productive of more insights than a brief review can acknowledge... The achievement of this brilliant book is to show the truth of the Cherstertonian paradox that is its subtitle." - John Pridmore, Theology, Vol. CXII No. 867, May/June 2009--Sanford Lakoff "Theology " "In this enjoyable book the imaginary worlds of Chesterton and Tolkien are explored in order to show their shared basis in a dynamic theology of creation and incarnation, an essential aspect in the revival of Christian imagination today." Benedicta Ward SLG, Reader in Christian Spirituality, Oxford University, UK--Sanford Lakoff "The fictional worlds of Chesterton and Tolkien are not only theological but also deeply Augustinian: they show us universes in which creatures exchange gifts with one another and with God. So argues Alison Milbank, with verve and brilliance, in this finely conceived and beautifully written book." Kevin Hart, The University of Virginia --Sanford Lakoff
About the Author:
Alison Milbank is an Associate Professor in Literature and Theology at the University of Nottingham, UK. She was formerly John Rylands Research Institute Fellow at the University of Manchester, UK, and taught at the Universities of Cambridge, UK, Middlesex, UK, and Virginia, USA.
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