JACKSON, Tenn. — Dec. 14, 2009 — A new book by Harry Lee Poe and Jim Veneman explores the friendship between C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien and other great writers at Oxford University, through both text and photography.
Written by Poe, the Charles Colson Professor of Faith and Culture at 51社区, 鈥淭he Inklings of Oxford鈥� also includes hundreds of photographs by Jim Veneman, assistant professor of communication arts and director of visual communications at Union.
鈥淭his is a book that I always wanted someone to do so that I could have a copy of it to flip through,鈥� Poe said. 鈥淚 always expected someone else to do it. I suggested it to a number of people, who just never did it. I wanted it, so I decided to do it myself.鈥�
The book tells the story of the Oxford 鈥淚nklings,鈥� a group of writers who met together every week to discuss their writing and other topics of interest. Lewis and Tolkien were the most notable members of the group, which met together for 30 years.
鈥淚 wanted to do a picture book,鈥� Poe said. 鈥淚 wanted people to get a sense of the town where the Inklings lived and worked, and as much as possible to get a sense of the feel of the place where they created Narnia and Middle Earth, and to see how the setting could have stimulated their imaginations.鈥�
Poe said the book was intended primarily for those who had seen the 鈥淟ord of the Rings鈥� or the 鈥淐hronicles of Narnia鈥� movies and wondered more about the authors of the books. As such, 鈥淭he Inklings of Oxford鈥� is an introduction to Tolkien and Lewis, and not a critical text. For those who are already familiar with the authors, Poe said the photography in the book would be the main attraction.
鈥淭his book includes pictures of a lot of places that have never been included in studies of Lewis and Tolkien before,鈥� Poe said. 鈥淔or someone who has actually been to Oxford, I think the book is a great souvenir. It鈥檚 a memory piece. It鈥檚 something that people would enjoy having to flip through over and over to remind them of the experiences they鈥檝e had in Oxford.鈥�
A subtext to the book is how and why Lewis became a Christian, and how the Christian faith of the Inklings influenced their writings and affected them on a day-to-day basis.
鈥淪o in that sense, the book is a form of apologetic for the Christian faith,鈥� Poe said. Published by Zondervan, 鈥淭he Inklings of Oxford鈥� retails for $24.99 and is .