Last night as I was waiting for my husband to finish some marking I read the preface to Lewis Caroll's Sylvie and Bruno, a book I had never even heard of before buying Caroll's complete works this week. I came across a beautfil edition of Lewis Caroll's Complete Works at Indigo on the Bargain table and couldn't resist (even though I already had Alice in Wonderland in hardbound). I was blown away by this preface. He covers everything from introducing the story, to writing technique, to books he'd like to see written, to memorizing Scripture, to the transity of life and living each moment as if it's your last. I kept wanting to share passages with Fr. Richard but he wouldn't let me interrupt him!
All I've even read of Caroll's was Alice in Wonderland but I'm looking forward to reading more, especially the prefaces. I didn't actually make it beyond the preface last night. It's too big a book to read in bed so it was back to Dante's Inferno for bedtime. I can't actually believe that I can read about hell and then right to sleep but there it is....
4 comments:
Where's Matthew to inject some learned observations about Lewis Carroll? Because I'm sure he has some.
How is Dante's Inferno?
I'm really enjoying the Dante. Fr. Richard always talks about it and when he was reading it university used to read out loud so I've heard portions before!
I really like the ways places Greek gods as guardians, ect throughout. But I'm not all that far along, just to the heretics.
Thanks James! I do like Carrol. There was a great article about him in National Geographic in the mid 90s. Of course, he was really an Oxford mathematician by the name of Charles Lutwidge. And when "Alice" was at the height of its popularity, Queen Victoria wrote him requesting a signed copy of his "delightful little book." Lutwidge responded with a thankful letter and a copy of his recent commentary on Euclidean geometry.
I like Dante too!
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