The Inklings Variety Hour

Not quite in time for his death-day (or even the anniversary of his death-day), here is a reading of four poems by C.S. Lewis. We at the Inklings Variety Hour hope to be back soon.  In the meantime, enjoy this reading of "Our Daily Bread," "Cliche Came Out of its Cage," "Science-fiction Cradlesong," and "Here The Whole World," all by C.S. Lewis.  Happy C.S. Lewis Day!  Feel free to drop us a line...

If you're enjoying The Inklings Variety Hour, please give us a rating on iTunes.  We'd also love to hear from you about what you'd like to see on the show.  Email us at InklingsVarietyHour@gmail.com .   This week, we welcome Meagan Logsdon back to discuss C.S. Lewis' final novel, Till We Have Faces, Chapters 16 and 17.  Among other topics, we cover: Orual's veil and vulnerability Did Orual sacrifi...

This special bonus episode commemorating Charles Williams' passing features the triumphant return of Meagan Logsdon (whose birthday coincides with her hero's death-day--can somebody say "substitution"?). We are also joined by my wife, Glencora, as we discuss "Taliessin on the Death of Virgil," published as part of Williams' poetry cycle,  Taliessin Through Logres , a reworking of the Arthurian myt...

If you're enjoying these podcasts, feel free to drop us a line and let us know at InklingsVarietyHour@gmail.com .  We'd appreciate a review on iTunes as well, as this will help others find out about us! This week, Chris and Anika discuss Chapters 14 and 15 of Till We Have Faces, where we find ourselves face-to-face with the God of the Mountain.  Topics include: Mountains v. Sea Psyche's childliken...

If you like this podcast, please give us a review in iTunes!  Also, we'd love to hear from you!  Email us at InklingsVarietyHour@gmail.com .   This week, Chris and Anika discuss Chapters 12 and 13 of Till We Have Faces.  Subjects for discussion include: Santeria and the First Amendment (and also, of course, " Santeria " by Sublime) How Orual-the-author is being changed while telling us about Orual...

This week, we're talking with Andrew Lazo , author, speaker, and noted Till We Have Faces  and C.S. Lewis scholar.  You can find additional information about Andrew's projects, current and future, at mythoflove.net.  We would like to thank David Bates at Pints with Jack  for connecting us with Andrew!  In this episode, Anika, Chris and Andrew discuss some classical and medieval influences on Till...

The Inklings Variety Hour is back!  Apologies for the extra-long wait this time! This week, we are still hiking up the enchanting mountain that is Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold, hearts dancing all the while.  And why should they not, as we discuss such topics as: Fighting and work as a potential antidote for depression Resurrection as a potential antidote for depression How King Trom is a bro...

In which Anika and Chris reveal the fairly shallow reason we had for doing Till We Have Faces this year and accidentally endorse human sacrifice.  Mostly, we talk about Chapter 7, in which Orual and Psyche say goodbye, and Chapter 8, in which Orual decides to journey to the mountain and recover Psyche's body.  At issue are whether or not selfish love is still love and whether sacrifice (especially...

With special guest star and Inklings scholar, Sørina Higgins !   Our conversation about  Till We Have Faces , C.S. Lewis' final novel, continues, with a veritable musical extravaganza at the end (really, we talk about music from the '70s, 80's, and 90's that would fit Till We Have Faces--not niche at all.  At all.) We'll be back in two weeks.  Meanwhile, consider this an invitation to be on our po...

[Something went wrong with the previous file and only half the interview was working--hopefully this new file corrects things--apologies!] This week, we are thrilled to present our very first interview with author Gina Dalfonzo!  Buy her book,  Dorothy and Jack: The Transforming Friendship of Dorothy L. Sayers and C.S. Lewis .  It's a very readable and insightful exploration of the deep and freque...

In the spirit of Groundhog's Day, Chris and Anika dig into Chapters 3-4 of Lewis' Till We Have Faces , which retells the Cupid and Psyche myth.   We discuss, among other things: The apparent popularity of J.G. Frazer in Glome " Foxy Redival's Flirtations "  Whether we're the worst at what we care about most (and other cheering thoughts) Soup and Religion (and other metaphors) Narrative asides abou...

Welcome back to The Inklings Variety Hour!  It's a new year, and Ungit has only just hatched out of her egg-house (or something), but already, your intrepid hosts are tackling C.S. Lewis' novel, Till We Have Faces (1956)--widely considered the best novel he ever wrote.  Chris, Anika, and Meagan discuss this retelling of the Cupid and Psyche myth as only the Inklings Variety Hour can--with lots of...

It's an Inklings Variety Hour Jovial Christmas Extravaganza!  Featuring: A Discussion of J.R.R. Tolkien's Letters from Father Christmas ! Chris Pipkin and his children, Davey and Virginia!   Anika Smith! (First half of show)  Meagan Logsdon!  (Second half of show)  A cringeworthy impersonation of an old British person by Chris Pipkin! Bits of music by Steeleye Span and Maddy Prior ( The Boar's Hea...

This week, we follow up on our discussion of Tolkien's "On Fairy Stories" by applying some of his ideas to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.  We're trying to assess whether (despite Tolkien's low view of it), Lewis' children's tale actually works as a Tolkienian "Fairy Story."  Works mentioned include: On Fairy Stories The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe The Black Bull of Norroway Preface t...

Join Anika, Meagan, and Chris for the second half of our discussion of J.R.R. Tolkien's essay "On Fairy Stories."  Among other things, we talk about the nature of originality, the way that stories re-enchant and recover reality for us, the nature of true escapism and modernity, the Gift of Illuvatar and whether anyone actually wants to live forever--probably--also, whether Tolkien really did belie...

Happy "Commemoration of C.S. Lewis Day."  Rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?  Here's a quick reading from Walter Hooper's Introduction to " The Weight of Glory and Other Essays ," which describes the last three months of Lewis' life. Stay tuned for more podcasts very soon.

"By the tobacco-tinted teeth of Tolkien!  It's the walrus of the OED, and he wants revenge on those who once defined him!"  We're waxing philosophical about a philologist's fairy-wondering wander-work this week!  Longer episode description to come, when I'm not deliriously tired! In the meantime, enjoy the podcast!  Read "On Fairy Stories," if you have it under your pillow or otherwise near at han...

This week, we have J.R.R. Tolkien's "Mythopoeia," read by Anika Smith! You can find the text of the poem online if you want to read along, or you can buy this lovely book . Music in the background is Lohengrin, by Richard Wagner. Next week, we'll be back to discuss Tolkien's essay "On Fairy Stories," in which a part of "Mythopoeia" is quoted. If you're enjoying these podcasts, please share with a...

Welcome back!  In this final episode covering Charles Williams' spiritual thriller, War in Heaven, we discuss the conclusion of the book!  What does Charles Williams have in common with J.K. Rowling?  Is Gregory the Satanist the secret protagonist of this book?  And finally, what do you do if a priest falls down dead in the middle of mass, but it was a really pleasant service otherwise?  Stay tune...

This is part four of our five-part discussion of War in Heaven , Charles' Williams' modern take on the Holy Graal Quest.  In the chapters we discuss this week, Gregory Persimmons drives Barbara Rackstraw insane using "the ointment," in order to obtain both the Graal and Barbara and Lionel's son, Adrian.  The guardians of the Graal willingly trade the Graal for Barbara's sanity, only to have her cu...

This week, we're covering Part III of Charles Williams' supernatural thriller, War in Heaven, in which the good guys (The Archdeacon, Kenneth Mornington, and the Duke) steal the Graal back from Gregory Persimmons, who desires to use it for his own dark purposes.  They then must pray to prevent the Graal from being magically disintegrated from a long distance by Manasseh and Dmitri, two more advanc...

We begin this second part of our series on War in Heaven with the Archdeacon's words to the Holy Graal (yes, that's how it's spelled).  We end as a Georgia thunderstorm knocks out the Internet.  In between, we discuss Chapters 4-8 of Charles Williams' supernatural thriller. You can find War in Heaven here .  It is pretty inexpensive to buy on Kindle ($0.99 the last I checked). Other than the usual...

This is the first of a series of conversations on Charles Williams' 1930 novel, War in Heaven, in which the Holy Graal (yes, that's how it's spelled here) is discovered in a tiny church in the English countryside.  Hijinks and shenanigans ensue, along with a heavy dose of black magic, car chases, and ecumenism.  You'll also find out whether the hosts would prefer to read a book called Christianity...

We're taking this week off, but here's a quick reading of Longfellow's "Tegner's Drapa," a poem that acquainted the nine-year-old C.S. Lewis with an early sense of the sublime longing he called "Joy," and began to instill a love of what he called "Northernness."  A few ramblings-on about the poem and the myth of "Balder the Beautiful" are included at no extra cost.  Join us next week as we begin d...

The third and final installment of our conversation on The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe enters some interesting territory as Chris, Anika, and Meagan explore Lewis's (inadvertent?) use of Aslan-as-Trickster imagery, proper Narnian politics, and kangaroos. Also witness the precise moment in which the trio realizes that Lewis may have ruined their childhoods. Works referenced include: A Grief O...