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Wardrobes and Rings: Through Lenten Lands with the Inklings
Journey through Lent with the insight and imagination of the Oxford Inklings - a group of writers who reshaped Christian thought and storytelling in the twentieth century. Drawing on the work of some of the Inklings’ most well-known members, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, as well as friends of the Inklings such as Dorothy Sayers and T.S. Eliot, Wardrobes and Rings explores through their eyes a faith which is tinged with seriousness, creativity, and joy.
This devotional draws on their writings &emdash; fiction, poetry, and essays &emdash; offering daily readings and reflections that illuminate the path to the cross and resurrection. Weekly themes such as temptation, time, nature, and creativity guide the way. Written by Julia Golding, Malcolm Guite and Simon Horobin &emdash; a novelist, a poet-priest, and an Oxford professor &emdash; all deeply immersed in the Inklings’ world and wisdom, Wardrobes and Rings invites you to rediscover Lent through the lens of imagination-infused faith.
This devotional draws on their writings &emdash; fiction, poetry, and essays &emdash; offering daily readings and reflections that illuminate the path to the cross and resurrection. Weekly themes such as temptation, time, nature, and creativity guide the way. Written by Julia Golding, Malcolm Guite and Simon Horobin &emdash; a novelist, a poet-priest, and an Oxford professor &emdash; all deeply immersed in the Inklings’ world and wisdom, Wardrobes and Rings invites you to rediscover Lent through the lens of imagination-infused faith.
168 pages, Paperback
Published November 28, 2025
22 people are currently reading
249 people want to read
About the author
Julia Golding
85 books876 followersMy journey to becoming an author has been a roundabout one, taking in many other careers. I grew up on the edge of Epping Forest and was that dreamy kind of child who was always writing stories. After reading English at Cambridge, I decided to find out as much as I could about the wider world so joined the Foreign Office and served in Poland. My work as a diplomat took me from the high point of town twinning in the Tatra Mountains to the low of inspecting the bottom of a Silesian coal mine.
On leaving Poland, I exchanged diplomacy for academia and took a doctorate in the literature of the English Romantic Period at Oxford. I then joined Oxfam as a lobbyist on conflict issues, campaigning at the UN and with governments to lessen the impact of conflict on civilians living in war zones - a cause about which I still feel very passionate.
Married with three children, I now live in Oxford between two rivers, surrounded by gargoyles, beautiful sandstone buildings and ancient trees.
My first novel, 'The Diamond of Drury Lane', won the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize 2006 and the Nestle Children's Book Prize 2006 (formerly known as the Smarties Prize). I was also chosen by Waterstone's in 2007 as one of their 'Twenty-five authors for the future'. In the US, 'Secret of the Sirens' won the honor book medal of the Green Earth Book Award.
My latest series, which starts with Mel Foster and the Demon Butler, about an intrepid Victorian orphan who lives in a household of monsters, won Bronze in the Primary Teacher awards in 2015. The next part, Mel Foster and the Time Machine, has set the time-dial to arrive in 2016.
On leaving Poland, I exchanged diplomacy for academia and took a doctorate in the literature of the English Romantic Period at Oxford. I then joined Oxfam as a lobbyist on conflict issues, campaigning at the UN and with governments to lessen the impact of conflict on civilians living in war zones - a cause about which I still feel very passionate.
Married with three children, I now live in Oxford between two rivers, surrounded by gargoyles, beautiful sandstone buildings and ancient trees.
My first novel, 'The Diamond of Drury Lane', won the Waterstone's Children's Book Prize 2006 and the Nestle Children's Book Prize 2006 (formerly known as the Smarties Prize). I was also chosen by Waterstone's in 2007 as one of their 'Twenty-five authors for the future'. In the US, 'Secret of the Sirens' won the honor book medal of the Green Earth Book Award.
My latest series, which starts with Mel Foster and the Demon Butler, about an intrepid Victorian orphan who lives in a household of monsters, won Bronze in the Primary Teacher awards in 2015. The next part, Mel Foster and the Time Machine, has set the time-dial to arrive in 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
April 5, 2026
This was…very deep. It did touch on some of the less well-known Inklings, but primarily focused on Tolkien and Lewis, understandably. Each reading involved discussion of the work/s of one or more of the Inklings, tied in with Lenten appropriate Bible verses and stories. If the reader doesn’t have a good grasp of the works being discussed, then that day’s reading might not make sense.
The authors took care to make sure that didn’t happen, giving background on the work they were discussing, but on occasion the discussion went right over my head and I felt like an idiot. It’s been many a moon since I was an English major and I haven’t exactly kept up with the classics and talking with others about them, so on a few daily readings, I was worried I might have to DNF.
I was able to push through the few readings that baffled me and got to ones that were more in line with what I could understand at the time. This is a completely me problem, not the book, to be clear.
Other than that, this was a great read for me for Lent. I am currently reading/listening to Out of the Silent Planet by Lewis and when the daily reading mentioned that work, it made it that much more of a connection to me.
I highly recommend being fluent in the works of Lewis and Tolkien if you are going to read this book for Lent. Or at least flip through this book to see which works they cite and brush up on those. It will help to connect everything together I think. Not necessary, but a boost to comprehension.
4, I think I will try this again next year after reading the keys works mentioned, stars.
The authors took care to make sure that didn’t happen, giving background on the work they were discussing, but on occasion the discussion went right over my head and I felt like an idiot. It’s been many a moon since I was an English major and I haven’t exactly kept up with the classics and talking with others about them, so on a few daily readings, I was worried I might have to DNF.
I was able to push through the few readings that baffled me and got to ones that were more in line with what I could understand at the time. This is a completely me problem, not the book, to be clear.
Other than that, this was a great read for me for Lent. I am currently reading/listening to Out of the Silent Planet by Lewis and when the daily reading mentioned that work, it made it that much more of a connection to me.
I highly recommend being fluent in the works of Lewis and Tolkien if you are going to read this book for Lent. Or at least flip through this book to see which works they cite and brush up on those. It will help to connect everything together I think. Not necessary, but a boost to comprehension.
4, I think I will try this again next year after reading the keys works mentioned, stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2026
Very enjoyable. A different kind of Lent book than I’ve studied before but insightful. I enjoyed the connections between Inkling literature and the gospel narratives. Felt encouraged to deeper meditation this Lent season.
April 5, 2026
it was a blessing to journey through Lent with so many good friends, both fictional and familiar, and stories that lift the veil and reveal the Truth in fresh ways! I particularly appreciated this in tandem with Fr. Guite's "The Word in the Wilderness."
Lent 2026
Lent 2026
January 13, 2026
Wardrobes and Rings acts as an amalgamation - it is educational, calls on the reader to reflect, and it gives some entertaining insights into The Inklings. What I also loved about the book is how it delved into some of the 'lesser known' authors such as Dorothy Sayers. It was a shame the group had no female members as the UK has had some fantastic female authors, so it was nice these passages were included. The book can be read for daily wisdom and self-reflection through lent in the build up to Easter Sunday.
I loved how the book intertwined the narratives of LOTR and The Chronicles of Narnia and how faith ran intrinsically through them. There are are a many great lessons that can be gained and thought about - from Frodo and Sam's journey to banish the One Ring, to Gandalf's resurrection, to the children's journey through Narnia.
These stories are timeless and Wardrobes and Rings perfectly encapsulates why the tales of The Inklings are still are as relevant today as any other time in history.
I loved how the book intertwined the narratives of LOTR and The Chronicles of Narnia and how faith ran intrinsically through them. There are are a many great lessons that can be gained and thought about - from Frodo and Sam's journey to banish the One Ring, to Gandalf's resurrection, to the children's journey through Narnia.
These stories are timeless and Wardrobes and Rings perfectly encapsulates why the tales of The Inklings are still are as relevant today as any other time in history.
April 5, 2026
This is mostly a great book. In trying to plumb the depths of these people at this time through rigorous study, it has been refreshing to read something that resonated so heavily, yet was pragmatically simple and still pierced to the core.
My only con is a few essays felt like they were stretching in the points they made, and there were a few theological comments and misreadings of the inklings I would deem ‘dangerous’.
However, I’m still thoroughly glad to have read this book. It came to me at a time I needed it most, when one of the most important things in my life was in peril: my imagination.
I’m sure I will mention this in other book reviews, but this is largely credited to Malcolm Guite, who throughout reading this book I had the pleasure of meeting briefly in person. In a similar way to how MacDonald was the one who ‘baptized’ Lewis’s imagination, I would like to say that Guite was the fell sword wielded by the divine to deal me the last blow in my death throes that led my imagination to that holy union. Though, inverse to Lewis, the rest of me met this union years earlier. Still, I find it nothing but poetic to be brought to this realization on Easter morning as just outside my window there is a light sprinkling.
My only con is a few essays felt like they were stretching in the points they made, and there were a few theological comments and misreadings of the inklings I would deem ‘dangerous’.
However, I’m still thoroughly glad to have read this book. It came to me at a time I needed it most, when one of the most important things in my life was in peril: my imagination.
I’m sure I will mention this in other book reviews, but this is largely credited to Malcolm Guite, who throughout reading this book I had the pleasure of meeting briefly in person. In a similar way to how MacDonald was the one who ‘baptized’ Lewis’s imagination, I would like to say that Guite was the fell sword wielded by the divine to deal me the last blow in my death throes that led my imagination to that holy union. Though, inverse to Lewis, the rest of me met this union years earlier. Still, I find it nothing but poetic to be brought to this realization on Easter morning as just outside my window there is a light sprinkling.
April 5, 2026
This is a different type of Lenten devotional for me, but one that I very much enjoyed. My favorite podcast, Pints with Jack, which discusses the literature and life of C.S. Lewis, had Julia Golding as a guest. During the podcast, she talked about this book and I immediately decided it would be my Lenten read this year.
It’s no secret that Lewis and Tolkien were informed by their faith when they penned some of the great works of 20th-century literature, particularly in the genre of fantasy fiction. One of the reflections discusses how Lewis in particular described his imagination as being “baptized” by other writers before he ever came to faith.
In this book, the authors walk through various works of Lewis, Tolkien and other Inklings to help our imaginations to likewise be baptized as well as give us some insights and backstories into their literature. A few that stood out to me were:
Galadriel and the Ring, on temptation.
The Discarded Image, on God’s creation of our universe.
The Heavens Declare, also on Creation.
Tolkien and the Music of Creation.
What is True? Puddleglum and Plato! on myth, story and truth.
Spotlight on Sam ‘As One Who Serves” on humility and service.
But above all, my favorite was on Lewis’s work, The Great Divorce — The Moment to Choose is Now.
It’s no secret that Lewis and Tolkien were informed by their faith when they penned some of the great works of 20th-century literature, particularly in the genre of fantasy fiction. One of the reflections discusses how Lewis in particular described his imagination as being “baptized” by other writers before he ever came to faith.
In this book, the authors walk through various works of Lewis, Tolkien and other Inklings to help our imaginations to likewise be baptized as well as give us some insights and backstories into their literature. A few that stood out to me were:
Galadriel and the Ring, on temptation.
The Discarded Image, on God’s creation of our universe.
The Heavens Declare, also on Creation.
Tolkien and the Music of Creation.
What is True? Puddleglum and Plato! on myth, story and truth.
Spotlight on Sam ‘As One Who Serves” on humility and service.
But above all, my favorite was on Lewis’s work, The Great Divorce — The Moment to Choose is Now.
April 6, 2026
What could be more delightful than spending a little time with the Inklings each day leading up to Easter?
April 13, 2026
This was an enjoyable book for the most part, though I would perhaps take issue with such great literature as that of J.R.R. Tolkien being used for a purpose apart from its own enjoyment (I think Lewis has some thoughts that relate somewhere...). It also highlighted for me the didacticism often present in The Chronicles of Narnia—while a number of scenes provide various illustrations for Lenten themes, I couldn't help but think that in the stories themselves they seem fabricated for the sake of the lesson they provide..
April 6, 2026
A memorable read. Authors respectable in their own right walking through Lent with the reader to visit the subtle truths and intense reflections hidden within the Inklings and their own wrestling with God-inspired classics. That’s five literary generations!
Daily reflections set up as mediating dialogues between reader, Inkling, and Bible was a great way to crack those seemingly impermeable layers to great inspirations. How do you juggle Beowulf, Thorin, and Eustace in one day; wrestle with Plato in the Silver Chair in another; and jump to Samwise in Mordor with Dante’s Inferno, while finding a Biblical truth in each conversation?
I absolutely loved, in part, getting to know Tokien and Lewis’ styles and philosophies of writing. I feel a deeper sense of faithful storytelling coming across concepts such as mythopoeia, eucatastrophe, sehnsucht, and subcreation (“great beauty has been woken to its song”).
As a novice interested in the world of storytelling, poems, and faith, I particularly enjoyed seeing the intensely theological side of these stories, some that I read as a child. I list some of those reflective questions below.
“…to let my imagination create, but let it be baptized too. Faith and values can be the skeleton underlying the writing. It doesn’t have to be the face.”
“Lewis, however, saw fairytales as a way of stimulating a longing in the reader for something beyond the material world, offering a new dimension of depth. Reading about enchanted wardrobes should not make us despise real wardrobes, but instead make all real unenchanted wardrobes a little enchanted.”
- What temptations have we given into that might be blinding us to the goodness and beauty of God’s world?
- Have there been times when taking the easy path has turned out to be the wrong turn?
- What are the “mathoms” in our lives for which we have no use/no longer helpful for us? What unhelpful thoughts or desires should we be throwing away?
- What skins do you need to shed?
- Can we learn from the steadfast badgers clinging onto those truths even when the world around us rejects them?
- What adventure have you been putting off?
Daily reflections set up as mediating dialogues between reader, Inkling, and Bible was a great way to crack those seemingly impermeable layers to great inspirations. How do you juggle Beowulf, Thorin, and Eustace in one day; wrestle with Plato in the Silver Chair in another; and jump to Samwise in Mordor with Dante’s Inferno, while finding a Biblical truth in each conversation?
I absolutely loved, in part, getting to know Tokien and Lewis’ styles and philosophies of writing. I feel a deeper sense of faithful storytelling coming across concepts such as mythopoeia, eucatastrophe, sehnsucht, and subcreation (“great beauty has been woken to its song”).
As a novice interested in the world of storytelling, poems, and faith, I particularly enjoyed seeing the intensely theological side of these stories, some that I read as a child. I list some of those reflective questions below.
“…to let my imagination create, but let it be baptized too. Faith and values can be the skeleton underlying the writing. It doesn’t have to be the face.”
“Lewis, however, saw fairytales as a way of stimulating a longing in the reader for something beyond the material world, offering a new dimension of depth. Reading about enchanted wardrobes should not make us despise real wardrobes, but instead make all real unenchanted wardrobes a little enchanted.”
- What temptations have we given into that might be blinding us to the goodness and beauty of God’s world?
- Have there been times when taking the easy path has turned out to be the wrong turn?
- What are the “mathoms” in our lives for which we have no use/no longer helpful for us? What unhelpful thoughts or desires should we be throwing away?
- What skins do you need to shed?
- Can we learn from the steadfast badgers clinging onto those truths even when the world around us rejects them?
- What adventure have you been putting off?
April 4, 2026
I’m not a big fan of devotionals but I enjoyed this one. The weeks are divided as follows:
Lent Begins : Ash Wednesday through Saturday
Week 1: Nature in the Worlds of Tolkien and C.S.Lewis
Week 1: Time and Wizardly Wisdom
Week 3: Sub-creation - Creativity and Creation Stories
Week 4: Conversion, Conversation and Fellowship
Week 5: Going Through the Wardrobe - The Importance of Story
Holy Week: The Ultimate Sacrifice
The readings are based mostly on the writings of Tolkien and Lewis but others are included: Milton, Dante, Coleridge, Charles Williams, Yeats, Dorothy Sayers, Chaucer, Plato, and several others.
A bible verse and a reflection question are included at the end of each reading. The questions are a notch better than the usual insipid fare one gets in most devotionals.
Lent Begins : Ash Wednesday through Saturday
Week 1: Nature in the Worlds of Tolkien and C.S.Lewis
Week 1: Time and Wizardly Wisdom
Week 3: Sub-creation - Creativity and Creation Stories
Week 4: Conversion, Conversation and Fellowship
Week 5: Going Through the Wardrobe - The Importance of Story
Holy Week: The Ultimate Sacrifice
The readings are based mostly on the writings of Tolkien and Lewis but others are included: Milton, Dante, Coleridge, Charles Williams, Yeats, Dorothy Sayers, Chaucer, Plato, and several others.
A bible verse and a reflection question are included at the end of each reading. The questions are a notch better than the usual insipid fare one gets in most devotionals.
April 17, 2026
This was not my typical Lent study but it was really intriguing and inspired and piqued my interest to reading more of especially CS Lewis books but fascinated me with all the different writers mentioned. I am glad there was Scripture for each day and enjoyed reading and then journaling the questions at the end of each reading. I think if you already love CS and Tolkien you’d love this but if you have no connection to their books it would be a great intro! I will def re read!
April 5, 2026
This is by far one of my favorite Lenten readings ever. How rich it is to weave some of the best imagined stories with the Greatest True Story Ever Told.
I have a new appreciation for the Inklings and these authors who collaborated to connect them and of course more books to add to my TBR list. Overall, it was lovely to be encouraged during Lent to reflect on scripture and imagination and fantastical journeys.
I have a new appreciation for the Inklings and these authors who collaborated to connect them and of course more books to add to my TBR list. Overall, it was lovely to be encouraged during Lent to reflect on scripture and imagination and fantastical journeys.
April 5, 2026
What a sweet and refreshing fountain to begin each day’s Lenten wanderings with! My imagination has been challenged, my determination strengthened, and my love for the Inklings and their works deepened. The Mythopoeic worldview has totally captured me over the course of the past year, and this was an excellent resource for working through its re-enchanting of the Easter Epic.
My chief criticism rests with an inconsistency in the quality of readings. Several weeks in, one begins to notice a pattern of certain essays displaying far more depth of insight, clarity, theological orthodoxy, and eloquence than others. These were all written by Malcolm Guite. The others, for the most part, are not bad — just not to the same level. Nonetheless, this was an extremely edifying study I will absolutely be recommending it to others.
My chief criticism rests with an inconsistency in the quality of readings. Several weeks in, one begins to notice a pattern of certain essays displaying far more depth of insight, clarity, theological orthodoxy, and eloquence than others. These were all written by Malcolm Guite. The others, for the most part, are not bad — just not to the same level. Nonetheless, this was an extremely edifying study I will absolutely be recommending it to others.
April 6, 2026
For the past two years, during Lent, I've done a Lenten devotional. When I found this particular book that walks through 'Lenten lands with the Inklings', most notably J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, and found out one of my favorite poet-priests, Malcom Guite was one of the authors, I grabbed one for me and a friend.
This did not disappoint. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, each day focuses on a particular theme pertaining to Lent such as forgiveness, sacrifice, love, surrender. And each day dives into a different piece of literature (mostly Lord of the Rings and Narnia, but also various other stories and poems from all of the Inklings - even a few contemporaries of the Inklings). The parallels were stunning and reinforced what I already knew: that true Christ followers cannot help but infuse their fiction with their faith, and since the Inklings were Christians, they absolutely did this. The chapters end with a scripture and reflection on that scripture.
I thoroughly enjoyed every single page of this book. I looked forward to reading it, loved learning about stories I wasn't familiar with and used the scripture and reflections to guide my daily prayer time. As an added bonus, I 'discovered' Julia Golding and Simon Horobin, the two writers who started this study, then looped in Malcom Guite. I look forward to exploring Goldin and Horobin's other books.
This did not disappoint. From Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday, each day focuses on a particular theme pertaining to Lent such as forgiveness, sacrifice, love, surrender. And each day dives into a different piece of literature (mostly Lord of the Rings and Narnia, but also various other stories and poems from all of the Inklings - even a few contemporaries of the Inklings). The parallels were stunning and reinforced what I already knew: that true Christ followers cannot help but infuse their fiction with their faith, and since the Inklings were Christians, they absolutely did this. The chapters end with a scripture and reflection on that scripture.
I thoroughly enjoyed every single page of this book. I looked forward to reading it, loved learning about stories I wasn't familiar with and used the scripture and reflections to guide my daily prayer time. As an added bonus, I 'discovered' Julia Golding and Simon Horobin, the two writers who started this study, then looped in Malcom Guite. I look forward to exploring Goldin and Horobin's other books.
April 6, 2026
As a huge fan of Malcolm Guite, having used his Waiting on the Word and Word in the Wilderness collections, I eagerly anticipated this book. The stated aim of the three authors was to employ Lewis’ ‘supposal’ and Tolkien’s ‘reimagining’ so to help us engage Biblical/Lenten themes. Well, they certainly know their Lewis and Tolkien, impressively so. However….
First, I missed the connection (s) theologically and biblically; some of the suggested Scriptural links were tenuous and a few even failing. Maybe they had an intended audience of which I wasn’t a member?
Second, there wasn’t much about the Inklings rather Lewis and Tolkien received the spotlight. Arguably, this is inevitable given these two prominent characters. But, then, why suggest the Inklings?
I feel badly giving only 2 stars as I really had high hopes for this book during my Lenten season but I struggled to finish this work and upon completion on Easter morning I was more relieved it was over than appreciative of the authors help.
First, I missed the connection (s) theologically and biblically; some of the suggested Scriptural links were tenuous and a few even failing. Maybe they had an intended audience of which I wasn’t a member?
Second, there wasn’t much about the Inklings rather Lewis and Tolkien received the spotlight. Arguably, this is inevitable given these two prominent characters. But, then, why suggest the Inklings?
I feel badly giving only 2 stars as I really had high hopes for this book during my Lenten season but I struggled to finish this work and upon completion on Easter morning I was more relieved it was over than appreciative of the authors help.
April 5, 2026
I have been reading this book as a Lent Devotional and, honestly, if I could have given it six stars, I would have done because I have absolutely LOVED it.
It did help that, just recently, my other half and I watched all the hobbit movies, plus the Lord of the Rings trilogy, so those stories were current in my mind; but anyone who has read these stories in their youth, as I did, would gain so much from following this course of essays.
It has also made me want to go back and read the Narnia collection through adult eyes.
The authors draw on significant moments within the works of the Inklings to illustrate biblical scripture and theology and the analogies are so easy to pick up and run with, gaining insight into the scripture.
I am thinking of gifting this to my son and all my sons in law next year (only one of whom is a follower of Christ) because I think they would get so much from it.
Would highly recommend.
It did help that, just recently, my other half and I watched all the hobbit movies, plus the Lord of the Rings trilogy, so those stories were current in my mind; but anyone who has read these stories in their youth, as I did, would gain so much from following this course of essays.
It has also made me want to go back and read the Narnia collection through adult eyes.
The authors draw on significant moments within the works of the Inklings to illustrate biblical scripture and theology and the analogies are so easy to pick up and run with, gaining insight into the scripture.
I am thinking of gifting this to my son and all my sons in law next year (only one of whom is a follower of Christ) because I think they would get so much from it.
Would highly recommend.
May 6, 2026
This Lenten devotional is too good to pass up especially if you are a literature lover. My husband and I read this aloud before bed and enjoyed the discussions we had afterwards. With daily devotionals for the entire season, we were reminded of many of our favorite stories by our favorite authors and encouraged to enter into Christ’s story in new and beautiful ways. When you are reading a devotional by Malcom Guite, you know it – he is just so good. While I am not familiar with the writing of Simon Horbin and Julia Golding, they did a good job too. Julia specifically coming in clutch at the end (some of her earlier devotionals felt a little bit “all about me/girl power” which felt a bit off-putting at times.) Overall, a five star read for me and one I will read again during a future Lent (but probably not next year.)
March 21, 2026
This journey into the worlds and works of the Inklings, as filtered through a Christian and Lenten point of view, is fascinating, informative, and worthwhile, even for a non-believer like me.
The essays are brief but resonant. One is supposed to read one-a-day through Lent; I did not, though I didn't read straight through, either. Interestingly, the essays converge and build to an overall point (which must've been difficult, with three different authors, a novelist, a poet, and and Oxford Fellow).
A good and comforting read for these dark times.
The essays are brief but resonant. One is supposed to read one-a-day through Lent; I did not, though I didn't read straight through, either. Interestingly, the essays converge and build to an overall point (which must've been difficult, with three different authors, a novelist, a poet, and and Oxford Fellow).
A good and comforting read for these dark times.
April 4, 2026
This Lenten devotional was written by three authors: Julia Golding, Malcolm Guite, and Simon Horobin. This review may be somewhat biased, as I am a Malcolm Guite fan, but it seemed that the devotions that he wrote were my favorites, while the ones from the other two were hit-or-miss. Some of them were very good, others just so-so. Altogether, though, it was an enjoyable journey, as the authors linked the writings of the Inklings, primarily C.S. Lewis and Tolkien, to the events of Christ's life, death and resurrection.
April 5, 2026
I have several books I return to year after year, Lent after Lent. This will be one of them. Although the devotions mostly felt like essays that I will come back to at any time of the year, those for Holy Week were particularly poignant. Since Malcolm Guite contributed to this volume, his entries, in particular, felt like companion pieces to The Word in the Wilderness, and reading the two simultaneously was perfection. Simon Horobin is an author who is new to me, and one I'm going to be reading more of very soon.
April 6, 2026
Very disappointing, unfortunately. I've read similar books by Malcolm Guite and so looked forward to this collaboration work, but the meditations herein are very surface and simple. The authors either retell the basic plot or idea presented in a book by the Inklings, or they quickly reiterate an idea within Inkling scholarship that is found in most other discussions of the authors. I found very little actual meditations here, just reminders of what people who like the Inklings like. Yes, very pleasant, but can't we go any deeper with these texts (or Lent?)
April 4, 2026
Loved the idea of an Inklings Lent devotional. The passages selected are all “greatest hits” from mostly Lewis and Tolkien, with nothing too groundbreaking in their reflections. Still worthwhile to sit with these passages again.
My latest Inklings reading kick (9 of the past 30 books I’ve read are Tolkien/Lewis/Macdonald) inspired by going to a fantastic lecture series at the Wade Center on justice in Middle Earth and in the writings of the Inklings
My latest Inklings reading kick (9 of the past 30 books I’ve read are Tolkien/Lewis/Macdonald) inspired by going to a fantastic lecture series at the Wade Center on justice in Middle Earth and in the writings of the Inklings
April 5, 2026
Really loved this, you need to be at least familiar with The Hobbit, The Lord of The Rings and the Narnia Chronicles to fully appreciate this Lent Devotional, its an excellent read. First Lent Devotional I've ever done, looking forward to my next one!
April 6, 2026
This book was a great companion through the Lent season. I looked forward to each daily reading and what new insight or nugget of wisdom might be gained. The daily encouragement to persevere was especially helpful as I journeyed through a personally tumultuous time.
April 12, 2026
My husband and I enjoyed this book of Lenten readings, essays that connect the writings of Tolkien and Lewis to the season of Lent. Each reading was usually 2-3 short pages, followed by a Scripture reading and a question for reflection.
April 5, 2026
An interesting and differnt Lenten devotional, seen through the writings of the Inklings. Insightful and very worthwhile.
April 5, 2026
I don't care for many devotionals, but this one is excellent.
April 6, 2026
Good as a book about theological reflections on Tolkien and Lewis, bad as a specifically Lenten devotional
April 13, 2026
One of the most amazing books on Lent. Absolutely recommend!
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews